The Rathdrum tribune. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1903-1963, 1905-11-24
THAT RATE LEGISLATION
Will be. Important Work in
+, Coming Congress.
sRAlLWAY LOBBYISTS BUSY.
! The,, Newlands Plan and its
e Main Features.
yrrKDy LETTER FROM WASHINGTON.

AAs~AN
WEEKLY LETTER FROM WASHINGTON.
"Uncle". Joe Cannon returned to
town this week. and brought with
him the assuNance that there will be
rate legislation Of some sort at the
coming session Of. Congress. The
next Speaker OF the House met big
| crowd ANne@spaperinen at the White
Housennd after, assuring them that
he did not knoY ANYTHING about any
thing he ialhi tied that rate bill Of
some sort win be among the m measures
,thatwill 70 through the House at
the coming session.
TIE pressure that has been brought
70 bear to defeat any legislation of
this sort is enormous. The President
has made, up his mind and announced
lit in public addresses that there was
gong to be rate legislation Of some
sort. The ranroad lobby has been
working hard For months past to
array all possible, interests against
rakitihketlmx ssWhen the American
BANKERS Association was here a
:. mwth ago. the. railway people got
!, very busy soonvertiug them to the
:. railroads way of thinking. With the
j, b4nkers the lobby did not have much
trouble. but at. the Eecent conven
! .sioN . i.hardware men who do good
doaWof shipping and have personal
integsstin:,hat::.sort Of legislation,
they had d. harder time The best
that, tbsscuald do was to keep the
conyedtlons, there were two Of them
al the:saiha'e time. from making" any
specific recommendation and. Holding
them down to a general endorsement
OF, the Presidents position. There
was a,hse.nHht on the floor OF both
competitions before thesresolution was
passed. Many Of the members who
had been won over we're against hav-
.aiHbglplte ,nlytters ;mentiohed at all.
- .ss.: s1. =
The result Of tHSagreemeut'of the
House that. rate Sill of some sort
had better. be passed will in all pro-
: liability be that q cotnpromse. meas
i ure,Wll1.He pssssed that. -wlll.Hnot be
eiehec what the shipper or the ad-
ministration would have wanted,
wai4e ths railways undoubtedly will
ninf nfeisrssiway of getting around
it jpstps rheyfbase all previous at
tempts to pin them down to equita-
tile rates and to prevent the giving
OF rebates and. other forms OF unjust
uiscriiHtnation. No. amendment Of
: thAasIas ;laws.is likely to do much
to relieve the situation and It may
!. after al cqne *, some radical meas
.ure..tsesthd' Ne~lnuds plan.
Possibly a good many people nave
!. newer heard OF the Newlands plan.
/, 1t is one Of the radical measures that
the .railrdads''dlstinctly fear, but u
: has. .heen. carefully worked out by a
good business man and more may De
heard from it in the future. 1t is
the conclusion Of Senator Newlands
OF Nevada who has. given great deal
Of study to the rate problem. Brlehy
stated it is to remove all restrictions
from the railroads in the way OF com.
:; binationsr srconsolidation and the liKe
and to force them Qnstead as tne'
have prayed for years to permit them
to pool earnings. Then. and that i
where the shoe pinches. to restric'
the-earnings to aAnaxlmum OF II
percent, which is more than the mos
roads pay nowadays.
The plan would not involve govern
ment ownGrship, though it would o.
moyeiin that. direction. II woui'
elins;nate competition and to ina
.extentsprevent cut throat rate wars
apa.iJ would give the roads a chanc'
tqeGSet,all the economies OF manage
ment that. they assertswould come o
.cptnEnationeconsolidation and pool
ing. Tie fxing.scf': the. maximum
..sliMden,l would .largely eliminate IN
gambling featlrs,fn. railway stocks
WHICH wsi)dsbc d. bad thing for
large. scctiou,of-the. New York 'u,l 81
ness world, but it would insure tn
.o,,hfo r9to for serp,c