Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1901-05-22
WEDNESDAY, M A Y %, 1901
THE RAILROADS COMMISSION.

THE RAILROADS. COMMISSION.
During the campaign last fall the
allied reform force made an especially
earnest attempt to defeat two of the
candidates for railroad
and warehouse commissioners, on the
ground that their antecedents and
earlier connections were such that
they would be liable to favor the rail-
roads and discriminate against the
people Those candidates were Mills
and Miller. However, the people,
blinded by party prejudices, "voted
straight and elected those friends of
the railroads along with the rest of
the republican ticket. The result can
now be seen. Last December the old
commission filed an order directing
the Duluth Iron Range and the Du-
luth, Missaba & Northern roads TO
reduce their rate on iron ore 20 cents
a ton. Those roads are owned by the
United States steel company, which
also owns the principal iron mines in
Minneso ta, and by fixing the ore rates
unreasonably high they have the in
dependent companies at their mercy.
It was too late for the old commission
to enforce the order, and the new one
let several months elapse before touch
ing the matter. Finally, on May the
commission fled an order offering to
give the roads a new hearing in the
matter if they wonld kindly file their
rates and acknowledge that the CON-
mission had authority to regulate the
rates. This the roads refused to do,
and now it is stated that Mills and
Miller will drop the conditions and
give the case a re-hearing anyway.
The Minneapolis Journal (rep J in an
nouncing this decision scores Mills
and Miller severely for thus running
the errands of the trusts. For the
benefit of those who thought that the
reform forces fought those two men
last fall merely for partisan purposes
we reproduce part of the Journal arti-
Gle:
"BIG TRUSTS ABLE ALLIES.
'Two Railroad Commissioners Are
That in Effect. Mills and Miller Will
Vote for Compromise. An Easy
Victory for the Roads.
eff the railroad and warehouse COM
mission is possessed with the idea OF
helping the giant steel trust in it's
war with the Independent ore shippers
of northern Minnesota, it would prob
badly conduct the ore rate case about
the way it is now doing.
| "This is hard thing to say of men
elected to public trust by a vote OF
the people, but the shadow of coming
events gives good cause for the state
ment. This is said with the under.
standing that the commission is about
to modify the order filed May 7. It
proposes to ''compr omise" with the
railroad attorneys, permitting them
to have a rehearing in the ore rate
case without acknowledg ing the legal
right of the commission to regulate
the rates."
The paper then gives an extended
history of the case and shows that the
roads purposely delayed action sc
that it would be too late for the old
commission to enforce their order
Evidently the roads knew what to ex.
pect from their friends, Mills and
Miller. It also states that the attor:
neys of the road had a secret hearing
before the commission. It then gives
the following account of the actions
| Of the different members of the com
mission:
"There has been serious division in
[ the commission from the first. To all
outward appearances, however, every.
thing has been peaceful. The project
ed action of the commission will not
be with the consent of G.. F. Staples.
That gentleman has hitherto kept
quiet, and still refuses to discuss the
ore rate question. In advance of the
commissions action, he can not be
expected to dissent, but when it is tax
en- Staples will be an emphatic minor
ity. When the railroad attorneys
had their secret conference with the
commission, Staples took little part.
He left before it was finished, and
would have nothing to say about it.
The commission has been "roasted''
on all sides for it's action regarding
appointments, and Staples has defend
ed it, but if the commission keeps up
in it's present course he will have to
repudiate it's acts openly, in order to
retain public confidence.
The other two members of the COM
mission are reported to be Indifferent
to criticism. They do not care for a
reelection, and will do as they please
for four years, during which time they
will control the policy of this import
ant body. They are being criticised,
not only by democrats, but by nearly
the whole republican party, but they
are apparently Indifferent to party
welfare. Miller has apparently lost
interest in the work of the commission.
He is seldom found at the Office, and
on account of his absence and the fire.
quent trips taken by Judge Mills, the
sessions of the commission have been
infrequent. =
The reform forces claimed all the
time that Mills and Miller we're Great
ures of the railroads, but that Staples
was a better man, and for that reason
no hard fight was made against him.
Events now bear out our assertions.
Had Messrs: Ringdal and Knox not
=