Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1905-12-14

President R~oosevelt's annual messa
has been delivered to congress. Open
ing with a plea for the cooperation OF
all classes In continuing the country's
prosperity and In correcting existing
evils, for a square dear for every
body, the message first takes up the
question of corporations and railroad
rate legislation. The president says:
Corporations.
! am in no sense hostile to corpora
tons. This is an age of combination,
and any effort to prevent all combina-
ton will be not only useless, but in the
end vicious, because of the contempt
for law which the failure to enforce
law inevitably produces. The corpora
ton has come to stay. just as the
trades union has come to stay. Each
can do and has done great good. Each
should be favored so long as it does
good. But each should be sharply
checked where it acts against law and
Justice.
Experience has shown conclusively
that ii is useless to try to get any ade-
Guate regulation and supervision of
these great corporations by state ac-
tlon. Such regulation and supervision
IA only be effectively exercised by a
sovereign whose jurisdiction Is cock
tensive with the field work of the cor
po~rations-that is, by the national gov
eminent. l believe that this regulation
49, ,Dzu.cs~~ - L. NIAt~-l - A.
enactment of law by the congress. If
this proves impossible, 1t will certainly
be necessary ultimately to confer In
fullest form such power upon the ma
tional government by affirmative ac-
ment of the constitution.
The laws of the congress and of the
several states hitherto, as passed upon
by the courts, have resulted more often
In showing that the states have no
power In the matter than that the ma
tional government has power; so that
there at present exists a very unfortu-
nate condition of things, under which
these great corporations doing an in
terstate business occupy the position of
subjects without a sovereign, neither
uHs CLdtC kONCIhLuCnL nOI Tic ndllOudl
government having effective control
over them. Our steady aim should be
by legislation, cautiously and carefully
undertaken, but resolutely ~persevered
In, to assert the sovereignty of the ma
tional government by affirmative ac-
ton.
This is only In form an innovation.
In substance 1t is merely a restoration,
for from the earliest time such regula-
ton Of Industrial activities has been
recognized in the action Of the law
making bodies, and all that l propose
Is to meet the changed conditions In
such manner as will prevent the com-
monwealth abdicating the power it has
always possessed, not only in this coun-
try, but also in England before and
since this country became a separate
nation.
Railroad Rate Legislation.
AS l said In my message of Dec. 8
last, the immediate and most pressing
need SO far as legislation Is concerned
Is the enactment into law Of some
scheme to secure to the agents Of the
government such supervision and regu-
lation of the rates charged by the rail-
roads of the country engaged In inter-
state traffic as shall summarily and ef-
fectively prevent the imposition Of IN
lust or unreasonable rates. 1t must
include putting a complete stop to re-
bates in every shape and form. This
power to regulate rates, like all similar
powers over the business world, should
be exercised with moderation, caution
and self restraint, but 1t should exist,
80 that 1t can be effectively exercised
when the need arises.
In my judgment, the most important
provision which such law should con-
tain is that comforting upon some con
petent administrative body the power
10 decide upon the case being brought
before 1t whether a given rate pre-
scribed by a railroad is reasonable and
lust. and II it is found to be
able and unjust then, after full investi-
CATION Of the complaint, to prescribe
he limit Of rate beyond which 1t shall
aot be lawful to go-the maximum
reasonable rate, as 1t Is commonly call
sd-this decision to go into effect with
b a reasonable time and to obtain
from thence onward, subject to review
~ the courts.
1t sometimes happens at present, not
hat a rate is too high, but that a ia
sored shipper is given too low a rate.
In such case the commission would
aave the right to tx this already estab-
ished minimum rate as the maximum,
and it would need only one or two such
iecisions by the commission to cure
saiiroad companies of the practice of
giving improper minimum rates. call
-FOUR attention to the fact that my pro-
posal Is not to give the commission
power to initiate or originate rates gen.
rally, but to regulate a rate already
txed or originated by the roads upon
complaint and after investigation. A
ieavy penalty should be exacted from
my corporation which fails to respect
IN order Of the commission. I regard
his power to establish a maximum
ate as being essential to any scheme