The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-02-20

lines of railway, but it ,is.not easy to FORE
see much relief in that direction. In these
days of capitalistic combinations it is not
likely to make much difference whether
the ownership, of our entire system of
railways is concentrated in the hands Of
one man or divided among many whose
interests are Identical
It seems plain that the true solution of
the problem is embodied in the joint reso-
luton now awaiting action in our state
Legislature, which requests our national
lawmakers to enact legislation empower
! ing the interstate commerce commission
| to fix maximum rates for the transporta-
ton Of freight and passengers. 1t is con-
coded that the power of congress to so
| regulate interstate commerce is plenary.
| It can fix the freight and passenger rates
: Of every common carrier, or delegate the
| power to the interstate commerce COM
! mission, subject only to the requirement
that the rates so fixed shall be reason
able. The railway commissions of this
and many other states are empowered
I by statutes to fix rates on traffic within
i
! this authority has been we'll established
| by the courts. But the trouble lies in the
| fact that no other power than congress
| can fix the rates on business in more than
one state; and congress has so far failed
! to do SO, or to enact law that will au-
| thorize the Interstate commerce commits
| sion to do SO.
In recent case, the United States SUI
preme court, IN an opinion written by
Justice Brewer, said ''The Importance of
the question of railroad rates cannot be
! overestimated. Billions of dollars are in
vested in railroad properties. Millions of
| passengers, as we'll as millions of tons
Of freight, are moved each year by the
railroad companies" and then added
"Our conclusion is that congress has not
conferred upon the commission the legis-
latfve power of prescribing rates either
maximum or minimum or absolute" In
a later case, celebrating the same opin-,
ion, Justice Harlan dissented and urged
as his reason that such decision rem
dered the interstate commerce commission
"a useless body for all practical pur-
| poses.'
1t therefore seems plain that the people
must look to congress for the enactment
of a law that will give the interstate COM
merce commission the power that should
have been conferred uoon it when it was
created-the power to prescribe the rates
to be fixed by every railroad corporation
In the country. And it is the duty of the
people to insist that their representatives
in congress shall favor such measure
until at last we will "rouse the conscience
Of majority, screw their courage to the
sticking point, and get the appropriate
Legislation" which we need so sorely.
Our national solons must be made to
realize the fact that the authority to con-
struct and operate a railroad is not the
natural right of a citizen, but franchise
proceeding from the government, and that
the government therefore has the right
and should assume the duty re debating
the terms upon which that franchise can
be enjoyed. The proprietary right re-
mains in the government and IS held by it
in trust for the use of she people Those
who own and manage these interests are
always public agents, without having the
slightest proprietary right or title to the
roads themselves. To say that they had
would be as preposterous as to assert that
township roads are the private property
Of the supervisors. A railroad corporation
is part of the civil government as much
as municipal corporation. The officers
of the former, as well as the latter, are
agents and trustees of the people, and the
public has an interest precisely similar in
the fidelity of both.
The nearest approach to government
ownership is government control, and ev-
cry effort should be put forth to bring this
about speedily. &C. w. Stanton,
Appleton Press.
The adjective is the part OF speech that
lends beauty to it, and yet one could write
d book without an adjective in it. Moral:
Well, there isn't any particular moral to it.
~
You can tell a. journalist from a newspa-
per man aby the way he sharpens pencil
The journalist shaves from him to keep rhe
lead from soiling his fingers. The newspaper
man hasn't got time.
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