The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-13
RAILROAD COMPANIES AND THE
LAW.


LAW.
The time is near at hand when the Inter-
state-commerce Commission will have to
decide whether the railroads of the United
States are under or above the law. On the
1st of January next a law passed by Con-
gress nearly five years ago will go into
effect, entitled IAN act to promote the
safety Of employees and travellers upon rail-
roads by compelling common carriers en-
gagged in interstate commerce to equip their
cars with automatic couplers and continu
Gus brakes, and their locomotives with
driving wheel brakes" The law provides
that from and after the 1st day of January,
1888, it shall be unlawful for any railroad
doing an interstate business to use on its
line any locomotive engine not equipped
with power driving-wheel brake and APP
planes for operating the train-brake sys-
tenn, or to use any car not equipped with
couplers coupling automatically by impact,
and which can be uncoupled without the
necessity of men going between the ends
of the cars. This law had quite a history.
The subject of legislating for the better
protection of railroad employees and pas
sengers was before the interstate-commerce
committee several years before anything
was done. The difficulty was in determining
upon right line of action. The first Presi-
dent to call the attention of Congress to
the matter was General Harrison, and he
did so in three successive annual messages.
In 1892 both of the national platforms con-
tanned plank favoring legislation by Con-
gress on the subject. Finally, late in
February, 1893 the bill passed Congress and
was approved by President Harrison two
days before the expiration of his term. AS
above stated, it gave the railroads until
Jan. l, 1898, in which to supply their loco
motives and cars with the required equip
ments, after which date it would be unlaw-
full to run trains without them. The law
makes it the duty of the Interstate-com-
merce Commission to see to it's enforce
ment but it also provides that the COM
mission may from time to time, upon full
hearing and for good cause, extend the
period within which any common carrier
shall comply with the provisions of this
act" Some time ago the commission
ordered reports to be filed by the various
railroad companies showing what had al
ready been done towards a compliance with
the law, and so far forty companies have
complied with the order. The reports show
that only five roads are fully equipped with
automatic couplers, and not one has power
brakes on all its freight cars. After nearly
five years notice this does not show much
alacrity in complying with the law. 1t is
true the last two or three years have been
very hard on the railroads, but surely some
of them should have been able to report
full compliance with the law Some COM
panies have applied to the Interstate-com-
merce Commission for extension of time,
and the commission has given notice that
to insure attention all such petitions must
be filed by the 18th inst. Besides the filing
of petition for further delay, the COM
pany must post notices in stations and adj
vertise in newspapers that the law has not
been complied with, and that further time
is needed. The law provides that any rail-
road company using a locomotive or cars
not equipped as the law requires after Jan.
/, 1898, shall be liable to a penalty of 500
for each and every such violation. and it is
made the duty of United States district at
torneys to bring suit for the enforcement
of the penalty, upon the information of the
Interstate-commerce Commission. From
present indications great many roads will
neither have complied with the law on the
LIST of January next nor have petitioned the
Interstate-commerce Commission for an ex-
tension of time. AS a matter of fact, they
have had time enough already. The law is
imperative, and while the commission has
authority to extend the period of COM
pliance with its provisions it should not do
so without good cause shown. The railroad
companies should be made to understand
that Congress was in earnest when it
passed the law and that it cannot be ig-
nored or trified with.