The herald., 1896-12-18

day confirmed the following nomlna
| tions: Macgrane Coke of New York, tt
be envoy extraordinary and minister
plenipotentiary to Guatemala and Hon
duras; C.Manning of Georgia, to be Sec
retary of. legation of the United States
at Monrovia, Liberia: Charles "A. ProutJ
of Vermont, to be interstate commerce
commissioner; James L. Cowan of Port
land, Or, to be Indian agent at Warn
Springs agency, Oregon.
The house committee on Indian af-
fairs today authorized a favorable re-
port on bill to abolish the office OF
commissioner and assistant commits
soner of Indian affairs and create in
their stead board of Indian commits
sioners of three members.
Senator Gear from the committee or
Pacific railroads today presented re-
port favorable to the passage of bill
which authorizes the secretary of the
treasury TO make such settlement as
will best subserve the interests of the
government. with regard to the debt OF
the Sioux City and Pacific railroad"
There are 100 miles of this road. eX-
tending from Sioux City, Iowa, to Cali
fornia Junction. to Fremont. Neb. The
road had a land grant of 60, 900 acres and
the government has advanced for it in
principle and interest 81, 4,116,047. OF this
only $253. .16i has been repaid. The line is
now practically owned by the Chicago
and Northwestern company. The COM
pany says it is not earning more than
sufficient to meet its first mortgage
bonds, and that it is impossible for it to
meet it's full obligation to the govern
ment
TRAFFIC AND TRUSTS.
The senate committee on interstate
commerce examined District Attorney
MeFarlane of New York regarding the
trust resolution introduced by Senator
Chandler. Mi. McFarlane said he hoped
to get the case through the circuit court
of appeals at the term beginning jan
uary 18th and if the department of jus
tice would agree to a formal submission
Of the case, it might be advanced and a
decision reached in the United States
supreme court in the early spring.
He declared that he had fought the
case earnestly and upon grounds that
he believed to be sound.
Mr.. McFarlane said one of the defects
in the interstate commerce law was
that there is no definition of what a
pooling of freights was. The suit, he
said, brought against the Joint traffic
association was to test the agreement
on its face and not upon what might be
its intention not expressed.
Senator Chandler gave q lively turn
to the inquiry by strongly insisting that
the department of justice had not press
ed the matter with vigor. He called
special attention to articles 10 and II
OF the traffic agreement. contending that
the articles meant that the association
could divide its earnings among the
reads and that it should have been the
leading point presented in the case. Sen
ator Wolcott contended that the articles
could not be construed to mean divis-
ion of the gross receipts because the
money might have been received from
the sale OF bonds or from any other
sources. Other members of the COM
mittee did not agree with Senator Chan
dler in his construction of the provisions
of the quoted sections of the law but the
latter, continuing, insisted that the case
was not pushed with Vigor because
Attorney general Harmon said that the
pooling agreement was no doubt legal
Some doubt was expressed about this
and Senator Chandler produced letter
in which Mr. Harmon stated that no
doubt the agreement was drawn within
the points covered by Judge Symington
in the transmssouri case.
The reference to the transmssouri
case caused a little discussion upon it.
Mr.. Mcfarland said that the transmits
souri, arrangement does not contain as
many strong features as the pooling
agreement as the joint traffic associa-
ton, but it was fully as strong an agree
ment to maintain rates. The matter end
ed by Chairman Cullom saying opinions
on cases pending in the courts were out
of place.
Mr.. MacFarlane next spoke of the diff
ficuty encountered in finding judges
who We're not disqualified from trying
the case by reason of holding stock in
some of the various companies who wers
parties to the agreement. OF the eight
was brought. Judge Wheeler was the on
ly ont not qualified for this reason.
Senator Wolcott said that it indica ted
what was we'll known, that professional
men and persons of small holdings in
vested in these securities and collect
lively hold large amount. This devel-
opment seemed to surprise the commit
tee, which discussed the question
whether or not the supreme court judges
were disqualified to try the case when it
came before them.
Mr.. Mactarlane explained that there
being so many roads in the Joint Traf-
fic association, it was not singular that
judges held stock. and added that Judge
Lacombe had qualified himself to Try
the case in the circuit court of appeals
by disposing of the stock he held. No
action was taken looking to further in
vestigation by the committee.
DECISIONS GIVEN.
Decisions rendered during the year by
federal courts involving important feat
ures of the act to regulate commerce
are assigned prominent place in the
tenth annual report of the inter-stat te
commerce commission sent to congress
today.
During the year the supreme court has
rendered three decisions of special i'm
portance. In one case the law has been
upheld and fortified in a most important
particular but the outcome of the others
has either emphaszed the defects of the
statute or left its further Interpretations
so doubtful and uncertain as to increase
the difficulty of efficient administrations
A number of amendments to the law
are recommended and they are, the
commission says, intended to make the
substance mean what it was supposed
to mean a the time of its passage.
The general discomfort with present
trans portation conditions, the report
says, as shown by petitions from many
sections for the enforcement of the stat
ute emphasizes the necessity for amend
ing the law so as to give greater force
and finality to the findings and decisions
of the commission.
April last the commission requested
the carriers to show how far, up to
April /, their equipment had been made
to conform to the requirement of the
safety anp1iaOpa rp1o in n ca1rn1arc