St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-07-09
will be greater evenness of prosperity
and longer term of it.
GETTING READY FOR 1T.

A morning paper gives what is evil
IDENTIFY an authorized statement from
the grain and warehouse commission of
the preparations for the elevator law.
the governors BILL" which takes effect
on Aug. l; and. what is more important,
the Interpretation the commission gives
of the scope of the law.
If the statement expresses the views
of the commissioners, it is their opinion
that the law embraces all elevators in
the state except those ct the terminals,
which were thoughtfully omitted from
its provisions. This view the GLOBE
did not share at the time the bill was
pending, and does not now. 1t then
charged that the bill was only intended
to be operative on those elevators which,
as part or the whole of their BUSH
ness, received grain for storage for hire
from the owners and held it subject to
their orders. 1t does not apply 10 those
elevators which are the property of per-
sons engaged in buying wheat OH their
own account, who do no storage for
others, but use their elevators to hold
their wheat until they are ready to ship
1t. This view was not then contravert-
ed i'll the debates on the bill.
If the construction put on it by the
statement referred to is the one which
will be enforced, then the sooner its
constltutionality is aScertained the bet
ter. If the state can Oblige men whose
business is buying grain to transact it
under governmental supervision, then
there is no limit to the interference of
the state. If it can Oblige men to re-
ceive grain and become responsible for
the delivery of the grain whose grade
and quality the bailee has no voice in
determining, then it can with equal
right regulate the millers who grind the
wheat. the dealers who sell the flour,
the merchants who supply dry goods
and groceries; i'll short, every vocation
OF men. There is absolutely no limit
save the whim of a not over-wise legis-
lature.
The man who buys wheat assumes no
more public or quasi-public function
than does the man who buys sugar or
boots and shoes. The case of Mum VS..
Illinois only went to the length OF say
ing that those who operated elevators
Tor the receipt of the grain of others for
storage for hire assume such public
relation that the legislature was justified
IN fixing their charges. Merely from
the point of view of the citizen having
no interest with either side to bias
Judgment, the GLOBE trusts that this
Interpretation of the law will be brought
to speedy test, that we may know just
what measure of liberty of action is left
to the citizen.
The object Of law, its scope, is not
to be found in the punitive clause on
which the statement alluded to depends
1t Is to be found i'll the enacting clauses
The first section declares the purpose of
the law in unmistakable terms. "All
elevators and warehouses in which grain
is stored and handled are public ele-
vatorS. All subsequent references are
to ''such" elevators; "such" elevators
must take cut license; owners of "such''
elevators will be guilty of a misde-
meanOr if operated without license, all
referring to the elevators described in
section l, which "Store" grain. Every
provision i'll the act relates, and is only
applicable, to an elevator or warehouse
which receives grain for hire. The
owner-must be paid, and his charges for
storage are to be fixed by the commits
sion; the manner of delivery,s he place
and conditions are prescribed; in fact,
the whole act is based OH the Jaw of
hailment, and is capable of no other
construction. Where there is 10 con-
tract of bailment, expressed or implied.
the act does not apply. If the promoters
of the measure had any other intention
than to regulate storage. they succeeded
well in obscuring their purpose in the
act.