Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-12-07
RAILROADS CHANGING FRONT
ihefr New Position More absurd
Than Their Former One.

Their New Position More Absurd
Than Their Former One.
The railroads have changed front
again, FOR they evidently feel that
nemesis is pursuing them for their
Illegal and unreasonable charges.
President Roosevelt declared in his
Raleigh speech that there would be no
turning back until the railroad rate
controversy was settled to the salts
faction of the people. "Meantime,
however" says the Springfield Rcpub-
llcan, the railroads have been shifting
their position. The issues as at first
made up started upon the asSumDtion
tina uniform railroad rates-uniform
as to persons and also localities-were
desirable and were being worked out
gradually under the antirebate and
long II short haul provisions of
existing law. But rates might be uni
form and still uLjustly oppressive, as
falr to Il shipper as to another and
to Il locality as to another, but I'M
fair in point Of being excessive to all.
SO the question arose of comforting up-
on the federal government or some
tribunal thereof the power to consider
the reasonableness Of a uniform rate,
to set aside IL found to be un~reasona-
bic and to name and put into effect a
maximum rate considered to be with
in the bounds of reason.
"At first the railroads directed their
attack against comforting such a power
Oh any government body on the ground
that it vas too great Il power for any
such body to exercise. This was met
by the reply that a power too great for
the government to possess must be far
too great for any private interest to
possess, and if any one was to eXer-
else such q power in the last resort it
should be the government acting on
behalf of all interests rather than the
railroads acting with an eye single to
their own interests.
"And the railroads could not we'll
gainsay such a proposition. So they
retreated ut once to the contention that
rates should not be, could not be and
are not uniform; that no definite prin-
ciple obtains in fixing rates and can
not obtain without turning upside
down the whole present industrial adj
justment of the country, and that, there
fore, rates remaining the sport Of local
and personal influences, as they should,
it would be absurd to confer upon a
government tribunal the impossible
task Of making rates which are proper
ly to be determined individually by a
thousand conflicting interests. Profess
or Meyer Of Chicago was brought for
ward to show that rates are a 'hetero-
geneous mass of determinations and
should remain SO, and this is now the
position on which the railroads have
planted themselves as against the pres
ident.
"Mr. Roosevelt may have noted this
change Of ground, but he manifests no
disposition to follow the roads and face
the new argument. And in this he may
be we'll advised. He may think the
new contention quite too absurd to
merit discussion. He may reflect that
the people Of the United States long
ago decided that rates should not be a
Heterogeneous mass of discrimina-
TONS but should be reduced to uni
formity, and that there is no possibility
whatsoever Of securing a reversal of
that judgment upon which rests the
whole interstate m act as it
now stands. And if so he is quite right.
The people Of this country will never
agree to such a disposition of the rate
question, and blind indeed are those
railroad spokesman who think a sue
cessful stand can be made on any such
ground"
If the sitting Republican congress-
will stick to the plain and simple Dem
ocratic proposition, which has virtually
been Endorsed by President Roosevelt,
that the interstate commerce commits
sion be given power to declare what
shall be a reasonable rate in place Of a
rate thec commission had decided under
the present law as unreasonable the
whole question will be satisfactorily
settled. 1t will also be necessary to
give the commission power over private
car lines to protect the fruit growers
and beef consumers.
Will the Republican leaders serve the
railroads or the people? That is the
crucial question.