The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1904-11-25
THEY SEEK REVISION
Not of the Tariff, But of the
Railroad Rates.
Governors Van SAINT and Cum.
Minis Call on President.
From Tuesdays Daily.

from tuesdays Dauy.
Jermane, The Minneapolis Journal
Washington correspondent, writes as
follows under date of Washington, Nov.
III:
l. An important delegation waited on
President Roosevelt ,eday Ia ask him TO
recommend to congress the passage of
the bill introduced at the last session
by Representative Cooper of Wisconsin,
providing that the interstate commerce
commission shall have the power to de-
fine what changes in railroad rates
ought to be made in cases where it is
found that the railways are violating
the provisions of the interstate COM
merce act. This bill is now before the
interstate and foreign commerce commit
| tee of the house and the commerce COM
mittee of the senate.
The president listened with great in
terest to what his visitors had to say,
but no attempt was made to draw him
out or to ascertain whether he felt
there was any justice in the position
taken by those who favor this legisla-
ton.
Governor Van SAINT Present.
The delegation was headed by Gov
ernors Cummins of Iowa and Van SAINT
| of Minnesota. Governor La Toilette of
Wisconsin was to have been one Of ihe
party, but found at the last moment
| that he could not come and wrote a
statement setting forth his views, which
was laid before the president.
With the two governors were E. p.
| Bacon, chairman of the executive COM
mittee of the interstate commerce law
convention which met in st. Louis last
month; Secretary Frank Barry of the
same convention, and R. w. Higbie of
New York, representing the wholesale
lumber dealers association of the coun-
try.
The convention held last month
adopted series of resolutions express
i've of sentiment among commercial
| bodies generally as to the Cooper bill
and empowered its chairman and secre-
tary to lay resolutions before the presi-
dent and ask him to take up the sub
| ject in his message to congress. 1t was
Mr.. Bacon who invited the governors
| named above to accompany him to
Washington.
| Governor Van SAINT, on account of his
factivity in merger matters, is deeply in
terested in the question of railroad
rates, which he thinks are surely in need
of more effective regulation than they
now have. He is thoroughly in SYM
pathy with the movement set under
| way by the convention in st. Louis and
feels that the president, after study
of the question of rates, will almost in
evitably agree that more power should
be given the interstate commerce COM
mission.
Should Restore Lost Power.
For ten years after it's formation the
interstate commerce commission held
the authority which the Cooper bill now
seeks to restore to it, but an adverse de-
cision of the supreme court removed it.
Governor Van SAINT thinks that the
question of transportation is one of the
most important domestic questions now
/ up for consideration, and he expects to
see something done during President
Roosevelt's administration to establish
a more equitable system of rates and
more perfect control of these rates by
the general government
1t was this matter which brought
Governor Van SAINT to Washington at
this time. Governor Cummins had
other business here, as is pointed out
elsewhere in this correspondence today.
1t is not understood that either of them
is to take any active steps beyond what