The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-02-19
" Ill II

The San Diego Times asks if the Pacific
Mail Steamship Company viii comply
th its contract TO stop lis steamers at that
port The Times concludes that If the
Government Of the United States is more
powerful than the Southern Pacific Company
o. Kentucky the Pacific Mail steamers will
stop al San Diego, but if the Southern Paci-
hc Is the more powerful the Pacific Mail
viii give San Diego the gU-by. The Times
then proceeds 10 state that the Pacific Mail
Steamship Company IS controlled by Mr..
Gould and MI Huntington; that the Gov
eminent OF tie United States Gays them a
subsidy Of 81 per mile for carrying the
mails, and that TIE contract includes San
Diego as one Of the places where a landing
shal. be made. 1t is also asserted that the
steamer City of Sydney came along and laid
outside the bar the captain claiming that
there was not a sufficient depth OF water to
enable the vessel to enter the harbor. At the
same time, the San Diego journal says. the
San Francisco was lying in the harbOr de-
spite tie fac. that the San Francisco draws
two feet more water than any Pacific Mail
Company steamer.
The question our San Diego contemporary
asks as to the relative power Of the Federal
Government and the Southern Pacific can
not be answered o1hand. The Govern
ment would certainly be the more powerful
fer some purposes, but the company ap-
pears To be for others. Just at present the
Southern Pacific Company is engaged in
tilt with the State of California. 1t has
formally declared that it does not recog-
nize the power Of the State Railroad Com
mission to fix the rates Of freight over any
10, CT B.ofEa 70 Al.
Southern Pacific succeeds in asserting
its suprem acy over the State of California
it may proceed to try conclusions with the
Federal Government. Possibly the outline
Of the cOmpany'G refusal to submit to the
rates established by the State Commission
may be found in the following from trea-
tise entitled Estate Railroad Commissions
and How They Can BE Made Effective"
The machinery IN the form Of commissions
created by large number OF the States OF the
UuI0n for The purpose OF administering The laws
IN respect 10 railroads, IS not effective. II IL
were repeated violations OF the law would be-
come less frequent. That Il is not effective IS
due 10 part TO the construction Of the commits.
slons themselves more largely perhaps, to the
need OF power and behind the power a strong
public sentiment on the part OF the people.
There is a flaw in this argument. The
conclusion that there would not be repeated
violations Of the law if the machinery were
effective is not warranted The courts
which are relied upon TO enforce the man
dates Of the commissions are not q part Of
the machinery Of the commissions, and it is
in the courts that the causes of failure lie.
When a Federal court decides that a rail-
road manager need not give evidence that
will tend 10 convict him Of having violated
law Of the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion-a commission much more powerful
than a State Commission can be-of what
use is the effort Of a commission to estab-
ish rates the railroad company does not ap-
prove OF? The significance of the letter the
Third Vice-President Of the Southern Pa
cifc Railroad Company addressed to the
Railroad Commission lies entirely in the
fact that the railroad company will have its
case tried in the courts Can the people of
California rely upon the Supreme Court to
do its duty in case where the Southern
Pacific is the opposing party?