The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-02-27
A SPECIAL TO DALLAS
Louisville and Nashville Will Ar
range With Southern Pacific.
Other News and Gossip
Of the Railroads.

ing TO make, arrange ments with Colonei
Ely of the Southern Pacific ABOUT the
special trains to be run from Montgom-
cry to Dallas during the Confederate
veterans reunion They had a confer
euce with Col. Harvey Jones In regard to
the itiner"ry. and the special trains VIII
be announced ir,me diately. Mr.. Basiey
SAYS that the indications are that tina
number of visitors from Birmingham ana
the surrounding territory will be larger
than the veterans. An unusually large
crowd of visitors will go from Montgo:n'
cry, and for that reason the special trains
will start from here. the Birmingham
contingent joining them at the Union
Station. $3.50
The outlook Ii that the reunion business
this year will be the heaviest ever known
and all the railroads have begun some
lively hustling. Several explanations are
made for the Increased traf7ic-one Is the
rate. one cent a mile each way--and an
other Is that SO many Alabama people
have friends and relatives In Texas whom
they are going out to see. Then. again.
a number of homescekers from Alabama.
Georgia and other States will take ad-
vantage of the low rates and do soma
prospecting in the Lone Star state.
Yesterday morning the Louisville and
Nashville people here received instruc-
tions to forward the big Southern Pacific
engines to Birmingham. These are the
engines mentioned by The Advertiser
when they were brought to Montgomery
some weeks ago by tho Western from
Atlanta. The Louisville and Nashville
refused to handle them between here and
New Orleans on account of their weight
and they have been standing In the South
and North yards ever since. The A. g. 3.
will probably take them from Birmingham
to New Orleans. as they did the big guns
last year.
Mr.. Walker d. Hines, First Vice Presi-
dent of the Louisville and Nashville. Is
hot on the trail Of some of the would-be
arnenders of the Interstate Commerce
law. Early in the month he published
two brochures dealing with proposed
amendments.
In one pamphlet. he replies to the ar
guments by Mr.. E. p. Bacon. as pub
lished in the January North American
Review. in behalf Of the rate-making
power for the Interstate Commerce Com
mission.
The second pamphlet analyses and
criticises the last annual report OF the
Interstate Commerce Commission.
Mr.. Bacon is in the grain business In
Milwaukee.
Mr.. Bacon asserted in his article that
in the year 1900. the railroads had wrong
fully wrung from the pockets of the peo~
pie $142, 100000,
Mr.. Hines insists that the surplus of
$142. 900. 900 left after dividends, was not
unreasonable. especially as 1t frequently
happens that there are years when the
roads do not earn dividends at all.
Railroad transportation Is no more a
| function of the Government, says Mr..
| Hines, than transportation by dray, stage
or boat. But IL it be admitted for the
| sake of argument that railroad trans
| portation 10 governmental function
| the nt1e Government should insure divi-
dends in poor years.
| AS to the "pevasoveness" of the cost
of transportation. Mr.. Hines points out
that the cost of raw materials and the
| cost of labor are also 'pervasive.'
| Speaking of the effects which would
| flow from granting rate making power
| to the commission, the fact is cited that
in one case the commission made an or
der materially reducing the rates on four
| teen hundred articles from Chacago and
Cincinnati to eight Southern cities. The
| order never went into effect because the
United States Supreme Court announced
| that the commission did not have the
| power to make rates.
Should the commission be invested with
the desired power, Mr.. Hines fears 1t
would upset the existing rates over a
large section of the country and seriously
injure the railroad properties.
| The argument that If the commission
possesses this power Of making rates, re-
batting would be stopped, does not appeal
| with force to Mr.. Hines. He does not
| believe that a rate by the commission
would be any mare sacred In the eye of
| those who want rebates and those who
give them. than rate made by the trafz
| fic officials of the roads. He shows that
the commission has all along had the pow
| er 40 prosecute the viOlatorS of the law
and that it knew the law was being vios
lated constantly. but purposely refused to
prosecute.
There has so far been an utter failure
| to demonstrate that the commission 8
| power to order the discontinuance NJ I'M
lawful practices Is not adequate to af-
ford substantial protection. Mr.. Bacon
comments upon the facts that the repre-
sentative of one railroad admitted that
that company had never compiled with
an order of the commission without test
| ing it's validity in the courts l am the
representative to whom he refers, and I
| take this occasion to state that In every
contest. with one exception. the courts
| have set aside the commissions orders
| on the grounds that the commission had
exceeded the powers given 1t by the act.
| OF naO ignored competent evidence wnlCH
| was offered by the railroad company.
| These decisions, however. fail utterly 10
| show that unlawful practices are not
| susceptible of adequate correction IL the
commission proceeds according to law.
' When it So proceeds its orders of dlscon-
tnuance directed against any existing
1 unlawful practices WILL OF course, be up
| held by the courts. and the long delays
| which were incident to the cases wherein
the commission had exceeded its powers
| will not exist.
| in concluding. Mr.. Hines says:
The fact is, that since the courts have
decided against the commissions cher
ished views, the commission has been
sulking. II has done everything II could
| TO create the impression that the courts
| had destroyed the very grave and i'm
| pcrtant powers and duties created by the
act. 1t has apparently sought to discour-
age attempts to enforce the act. Indeed.
it's whole course leads one to the con-
clusion that 1t has preferred to see the
act fail rather than succeed, apparently
with the hope that IL it can bring about
the complete failure OF the present act
II can thereby secure the qualification of
its ambitious desires. There has never
been an earnst and continued effort to
enforce the act according to its pro-
visions. There has been practically no Sc
rious effort to enforce the provisions as
70 the maintenance OF tarin rates, and
the numerous attempts which the COM
mission has made In other directions
| have entirely forsaken the lines laid
tha oct preaapt nnpdftiops 80