The times., 1898-03-06

merce commission to Be Made
as Effective as the Judgment of
the Courts-The Proposed Change
in the Long and Short Haul Clause
Would Iujure the Railroad Busi-
ness of the South.
The following communication ap-
peared in a late number of the Railway
and Engineering Review. 1t is from
one Of the leading railway men of the
South, and expresses the general opin-
ion of that section in relation to the
new interstate commerce legislation
proposed in the CulIom bill, now pend
ing in the Senate.
Editor of the Railway and Engineering Review:
] notice that in the Railway and En-
gineering Review of January 80 1898, you
discuss briefly the bill introduced by Sem
ator Cullom on January % ult., TO amend
the act to regulate commerce. This bill is
practically verbatim copy of the amend
ments urged by the commission.
You very correctly say that the powers
proposed to he given are very radical and
constitute an entirely new departure, and
you indicate some of the difficulties in the
way of carrying out any such scheme of
governmental regulation. 1t is perfectly
clear to anyone who is familiar with the
interstate commerce act, and with the
debates leading to its adoption, that it
was never intended by Congress TO give
any such powers to the commission, and
that no bill, giving such powers, could
have been passed by Congress.
One radical and dangerous change pro-
posed by this bill. which you do not refer
to, is that the orders OF the commission.
made in the exercise of the practically
unlimited powers which are proposed to
be conferred will be effective without
any resort to the courts for their enforce
ment In other w'rds they will be as
effective as if they were the judgments OF
the courts, although the commission is not
a court, and although, under the present
law, ii acts in the inconsistent capacities
of detective, prosecutor, and party in
interest. The commission wishes to have
added to these various duties the power
to render a judgment which can be en-
forced without resort 10 any other tri-
bunal. Although d review Of the orders
Of the commission by the courts is pro-
vided for. the peculiar nature Of the SUD-
| ject is such that the review win be prac
| tically useless. Even where the commits
| sion's orders may be so palpably wrong
as TO justify the court in setting them
| aside, the orders will. under the proposed
| amendment. become effective and regu-
| late both the carriers and the commerce
| involved during the review proceedings
| except in very rare instances where the
court can say at the outset. upon a bare
| inspection of the record, that it plainly
appears that the order is wrong.
There is another very stringent pro-
vision in the bill which should certainly
! be called to the attention of shippers and
| carriers. The proposed amendment Of
| section 6 requires the tariffs fled with
the commission, and posted at stations,
| To specify not only the rates of trans
| Dortation, but also all storage tharges,
| and all privileges or facilities allowed III
any instance TO shippers; and then, not
| only prohibits charging more or less than
| the published rates, but also prohibits
| extending to any shipper any privilege
| or facility in receiving, storing, handling
| or forwarding property except such "a
| may be specified In the tariffs filed and
| published 1t is well known all over the
| country that carriers may from time TO
| time be able TO extend facilities TO ship
| pers in the way OF storing, handling or
| forwarding property, but yet the ability
10 do this is not so certain as to warrant
| the carrier In holding itself out by its
| tariffs as affording these facilities in all
| instances.
The result would be, therefore under
| this bill that while the carrier would be
| frequently able to extend, without any
/ loss TO itself, various facilities and priVi-
| leges to shippers. il would have 10 de
| cline to do so, thereby causing great in
| convenience to the shippers without 1ny
| benefit TO the carrier or TO the public.
| There is really no reason whatever for
any such change in the law If. under
| the law as il now stands, the carrier
to one that are not extended to another,
| this discrimination or preference could
| be corrected. The demand for such a
| change in the law illustrates well the
| commissions policy of applying 10 the
! traffic Of this country iron-clad regula-
tons absolutely impossible of enforce
| ment without the very greatest inconve-
| nience both 10 carriers and to the public
and without any appreciable benefit tc
| any person or TO any interest.
You refer to the proposed change IN
the long and short haul section, and you
| correctly state that IL Is Il complete reyo-
| luton. The debates of Congress show
that there was very bitter resistance tc
giving the commission even the power tc
relieve from the long and short haul
section in special instances, because It
was feared that Ii would give the com
mission too much power, and the power
was finally conceded with much misgiv-
| lOS. II the pidN now proposed, OF turn
ing the whole subject over TO the com
mission to make such a long and short
haul law as IL likes in each instance, had
been then proposed, il would not have
| been given n serious thought. This stTik
ingly illustrates the expansion of the
commissions ideas il now demands, as
Il matter of course, a power which its
widest advocates would not have dream.
ed of giving or asking for in the outset
i fear you underestimate very much the
effect Of this change in the law.
There is very great danger that the
power proposed TO be granted In this re.
spect will be grossly abused. In the South
on account of the fact that the popula.
ton and the traffic are far less dense
than in the North and East, it IS abso
| lutely necessary that the carriers main
tain their local rates at considerably
higher figures than the extremely low
rates at which places on or near navi
gable waters can secure their freights
There are SO many naVigable waterway.
extending all through the South that tn,
number of localities thus faVorably situ
atcd is very great, and the traffic to those
points IS extremely important. Unless
therefore, the railroads are permitted I,
make rates to those localities low enough
10 compete with the other methods o
| transportation they will simply have t,
withdraw from the important business L
| these points; and the reduction in reVe
nues thereby caused will, no doubt resul
| In la af Of n