The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-02-07

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ulato our conduct if wrong, supervise our
business, but do not throttle us by taking
actual possession Of our property.
Contending that this was the question
at issue. the speaker proceeded to show
wherein the majority report in effect TOOK
the management Of their business out of
the control Of the transportation compa-
MES and placed it in the hands of three
men who, in all probability, would not
know if they cared. how to manage IT,
Afterwards he outlined the minority plan
and demonstrated how it would guarantee
tc the State complete power Of super.
vision and regulation without any &c
struction or radical features.
or" said he. the State should take
control of the business Of the railroads
would it not be fair for it to become re-
sponsible to them for mlsnanaSement
and the resultant financial loss? Wouio
not common decency and common honesty
dictate either this or the purchase out
right Of property which would be newt
ably rendered unproductive and worthless
to the helpless victlns?
IN FULL CONTROL
He read from the printed speech or MT.
Braxton before the committee to show
by a reply of Chairman Bra1ton thatE ne
contemplated the commission taking con
troll of the business Of railroads just aS
their superintendent Of the traffic and
general freight departments now control
them.
If the chairman construed control 10
mean that much in relation to the tralllc
in freight departments was it not lar
to assume that he placed the same con-
struction in relation to the fixing of sched
ues and all other matters, leaving to the
railroads only the responsibility of pay
ing damages for loss or Injuries that
might be attributed to the bad manage
ment of the commission itself.
Judge Brooke contended that the pow
ers AND privileges possessed by the rali-
roads had not been given them by the
State The State had SOLD them and the pul
chasters had paid and were paying goou
round price for them. TO now pracucal-
ly take away from them the earnings or
their brains and results of their invest
ments would be worse than a crime
Had these Ishmaelite public carriers
been guilty Of high crimes and ms
demeanors, such penalty could be e1-
tenuated, but not even then excused. Such
conduct in individuals would be denounc-
ed by the State as highway roboery under
the forms of law Why should olI-
ferent philosophy Of government be pre-
the individuals? Why punish corpora
tons in advance Of an offense when IN
dividuals were sacredly protected not only
until the offense was committed but untn
it was proven according to law!
AN EXPERIMENT.
He claimed that the great merit OF the
minority report was that its provisions
| had been tested and found to be usefu1
and, corrective without being disastrous.
no 9th nd ha majority reDOrt
| was at the best an untried experiment,
| too drastic to be even passed by Legls-
| lature, which could repeal it within two
| years when it's harnfulness had been
| demonstrated. TO place it in the Const1-
| tuition untested, unsolved and with every
| element of confiscation in its makeup
would seem TO be too serious matter to
| be seriously entertained
| He showed how within twenty DAYS az
| ter a complaint by any citizen miscon-
! duct on the part Of a railroad could be
| corrected or punished by the commission
| provided for by the minority report Not
| only this, but the whole power Of the
| State was put at the back Of every COM
plainant without cost to him to prosecute
| his case if it did not involve the loss
| If more than fifteen cents.
! Other beneficial and corrective features
| of the minority plan were gone into by
| the speaker and he closed his able argu-
| ment by an earnest appeal to the con-
| vention to reject the dangerous untr1ed
| provisions of the majority report, ana
| to accept the conservative, safe, and
| sure plan recommended by himself and
! Mr.. Hunton. and which had been ap-
| proved by actual experience to be ef-
| fective and sufficient
| WARMLY CONGRATULATED.
! Chairman Braxton was the first man
| who walked forward and grasped the
| speakers hand. when the applause which
greeted his concluding remarks had su b.
sided He had spoken an hour and fifty
minutes, seemingly with laborious eff
fort but with strong and convincing eff
| feet on his attentive hearers.
Judge Kendall next spoke in support of
the majority report He ridiculed the
position taken by Judge Brooke that the
1 State proposed to confscate the property
/ of corporations reading from charters
| granted to railroads prohibition from
charging excessive rates. and. denying In
toto his assertion that the provisions OF
i the majority report were radical or grant
i ed oppressive power to the commission.
/ He showed how the committee had sought
1 with absolute fairness to do justice to the
i railroads and individuals alike, and read
4 from standard authorities on corpora-
i lions to support the principles followed
1 and embraced in the majority report
Il DID NOT CONTROL.
1 The Judge strongly resented the claim
made nv Messrs. Hunton and Brooke thai
j the commissioners were given the power
to manage the business Of shA ral!roaal