The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-11-14
KNOX ON RATE LEGISLATION.

KNOX ON RATE LEGISLATION.
 Senator Knox speech before the Pittsburg chamber of commerce, is one of the best statements of the case for President Roosevelt's railway rate pol icy yer made. MT. Knox is a great lawyer and his argumtnt in support of the constitutionality of the proposed policy is fOrcibIe. His argument in fa- VOr of its justice and expediency is equally so. MT. Knox was formerly counsel of one of the eastern trunk lines, and is close to many big railway men. His statement that the best rail- way conscience of the country does not approve the extravagant propaganda being carried on against regulative legislation is significant.
 It is usually represented by oppo- nents of the administration policy that it is proposed to give the inter- state commerce commission power to fix all rates. As Mir. Knox points out, the plan is to give the commission power only to substitute fair rates for rates which, after hearing, have been found unfair. No railroad could be affected by such legislation unless it is guilty of unreasonable and unjust practices. As things are now, the rail- roads enjoy complete remedy against injustice, which it is not proposed to take away, while the pubic has no ef- fective remedy against injustice"
 The advantage the railways have over the public under present laws is Illustrated by the Chicago Terminal charge cases, which have been before the interstate commerce commission and the courts ten years. Suit was be- gun against the Burlington railroad to rstrain it from exacting two dollars per car for delivering live stock at the stockyards. The interstate commence commission ruled that a charge of two dollars was excessive and said one dollar would be fair The case was carried to the supreme court, which remanded it to the commission, and the commission has now again ruled that rate of two dollars is excessive, Meantime, for ten years, shippers have had to pay the rate the railroad exact ed, and if the case is again carried to the courts they will have to continue to pay 1t for an indefinite period lon- ger. It is a fair presumption, under the circumstances, that shippers of live stock have been done grave in- justice.
 If the interstate commerce commits sion had power to replace an unfair with a fair rate shippers could not thus be wronged, nor, as MT. Knox points out, could the railroads be wronged, for if the commission fixed a rate which plainly was too low the railroads could start an independent proceeding in the courts to enjoin the commission from enforcing that rate until it's justice or injustice was final ly settled.
 It is said the commission Is not fit to make rates because 1t is not composed of rate experts. That might be eso if 1t was proposed to have la initiate. rates, but, as MT. nox says, this is not the plan. It would sit in the first in- stance to determine the reasonableness of rates. This would be a judicial function and, like the courts in cases of many kinds, it could and would call experts to give 1t needed light.
 MT. KnoX's fair, dispassionate speech is in strong contrast to the rnisrepre- sentations restored to by many of the opponents of rate legislation. The ad- vocates and the opponents, too, of the administrations policy are right in as- suming that clear understanding of it by the people is all that is needed for its success.-Chicago Tribune.