The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-10-22
OPPOSE SUNDAY LAWS
Railroad Presidents Before the IN
dustrial Commission,
DENOUNCE PASS SYSTEM
THEY RIDIcULE GOVERNMENT
OWNERSHIP OF RAILROADS.
One Believes That Preacher Is No
More Entitled to Ride Free Than
a Shoemaker-Value Received For
Free Transportation For Congress
men and Legislators.

Washington, Oct 21.-President John
K. Cowan of the Baltimore & Ohio rail-
road was before the industrial commits
sion today. In the course of his testi-
mony he expressed himself as opposed
to state laws restricting the running of
railroad trains on Sunday.
Il don't think Sunday laws amount
| to anything or benefit anybody" he
said.
The tendency of the companies was
| toward curtailing the Sunday business
as much as possible, but there was some
business that could not be stopped
such, for instance, as through trafnc.
/ He said his road traversed some states
having laws prohibiting Sunday traffic,
! but,th there had been no prosecutions
for violations of the law and no cessa-
! ton of business on account of it.
| Mr.. Cowan said there were $4,000 en-
I ployees on the Baltimore & Ohio proper,
and that since the establishment of a
relief fund, to which both the company
and the employees contributed, for the
! benefit of injured men, there had been
/ comparatively few suits for damages
! in case of accidents.
| Mr.. Cowan said he did not believe the
arbitration law of the last congress
would have any effect, for the reason
that no railroad would allow an out
slider to fix the wage rate of it's en-
ployees.
Opposed to Pass System.
Referring to the pass system, Mr..
! Cowan said it was greatly abused, and
! that railroads would like to get rid of
it, but that would be difficult. While
( he would like to see the pass system
supplanted by pay business the change
1 would not result in large rates.
81 do not believe a law on the sub
ject would be effective" he said, land
therefore consider it unnecessary to
burden the statutes with it,
He advocated the authorization of
/ pooling contracts as the best means of
preventing discrimination on the part
of railroads. He said there was less
! discrimination now than formerly. He
/ thought the government ownership of
railroads would be sublime folly"
Mr.. Stuyvesant Fish, president of the
Illinois Central Railroad company. was
] before the commission during its after
noon session.
Mr.. Fish advocated the taxation of
railroads by taxing their gross receipts,
the abolition of the ticket brokerage
system and the giving of passes.
Passes For Legislators.
Senator Mallory asked if it was I'M
derstood that value was to be received
when passes We're issued to members of
congress, state legislatures, etc.
Il have been told that such is the
case" the witness replied, but don't
know"
He said that the interstate commerce
law opened a loophole for the granting
Z OF passes by making so many exceptions
to the prohibition.
II don't know" he said. why a pass
should be given 10 minister rather
than a shoemaker. 18th do business in
the community, and both do good there
possibly the shoemaker does the most
it is a discrimination"
He did not believe in government
ownership. It would be bad day for
the government and good day for the
railroads, and he did not believe they
could be managed as cheaply by the
government as under the present man
agement