The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-07-19
WOULD RACES HAVE ID RIDE TOGETHER Question Discussed Relating to
 Esch-T townsend Bill  TWO VIEWS OF HE MATTER Former Senator Chandler Maintains That the Proposed Law Would Do
 Away With All "Jlm
 Crow" Laws.
TWO VIEWS OF THE MATTER

Washington, July 17.-(special)-In recent interview former Senator Chandler of New Hampshire, brought forward a question that was not discussed when the Esch-Townsend bill was under consider atlon during the last session of Congress but that is sure to come up if a similar measure Is brought forward next win ter. MT. Chandler favored the Esch- Townsend bill and one of his reasons for doing so was that If national control of railroads Is allowed all discrimina- tions between whites and blacks in the enjoyment of railroad facilities will be abolished. In other words, there will be no Jim Crow cars. and the white man ana the negro will have to sit side by side in the same cars all over the south''
 Would Have No Such Effect.
 This utterancc by Mir. Chandler has al- ready given rise to considerable discus sion and some of the friends of the Esch- Townsend bill have endeavored to ex- plain that 1t would have no such eff.c. as he believes, and that 1t would not be construed as nullfying the laws that have been passed in southern states requr- ing the railroads to afford separate accom- modations for whites and blacks. It is certain that 1t would not affect these laws so far as they apply to transportation wholly within the bounds of a single state. It is not so clear that 1t would not be within the power of the interstate com merce commission and of the courts to compel the roads to grant equal accom- modations to whites and blacks travelling across state lines.
 The language of the bill which MT. Chandler believes would place negroes on an equality with white men and womer in southern railway trains is found in section 1. This section provides, that whenever upon complaint duly made un- der section 13 of the act to regulate com merce the interstate commerce commits sion shall, after full hearing, make any finding or ruling declaring any existing rate for the transportation of persons or property, or any regulation or practice whatsoever affecting the transportation of persons or property to be unreasonable or unjustly discriminatory the commission shall have power and It shall be It's duty to declare and order what shall be just and reasonable rate, practice, or regulation to be charged, imposed, or followed in the future in place of that found to be unreasonable or unjustly dis crlminatory, and the order of the com mission shall, of it's own force, take ef- feet and become operative thirty days after notice thereof mas been given to the persons or persons affected thereby"
 Is Very Broad.
 The chief purpose had in view by the framers of the Townsend bill was to give the interstate commerce commis- sion increased authority over freight rates. but they did not stop there. The bill proposed to confer upon the com mission power to change any regulation or practice whatsoever affecting the transportation of persons or property that might be found to be "unreason- able or unjustly discriminatory" This Is very broad language. Some of the op- ponents of the bill have gone so far as to contend that 1t would give the com mission practically absolute power over the management of all of the railroads In the United States. even enabling them to prescribe the schedules which trains should move and the stations at which they should stop and to fix the wages of employees. A much less extreme con- strnction would seem to make 1t cover a 'regulation or practice" that might be all legged to be "unjustly discriminatory as between a white man and a black man.
 Reading this section of the Esch-Town- send bill in the light of section 13 of the original interstate commerce law to which 1t refers, the commission would seem to have no discretion as to the con- alteration of any complaint that might be made. even though the complaint be not an interested party for section 13 says that mo complaint shall at any time be dismissed because of the absence of direct damage to the complainant" If. therefore. the Townsend bill should be enacted into law and complaint should be made that negro passengers were being discriminated against it would seem to be the duty of the interstate com merce commission to hear the complaint
 It Is contended by advocates of the bill that the commission would be power- less to enforce an order that would do away with a regulation or practice that was not voluntary on the part of tho railroad but was prescribed by the law of the state. In other words. 1t is urged that the bill simply proposes to give the commission authority over regulations prescribed by the roads or practices which they adopt voluntarily. There can be no question as to the supremacy of the state law when applied to transpor- tation wholly within the territory of a single state There seems to be good ground however, for the belief of MT Chandler that the Esch-Townsend bill would make the orders of the commission | effective over the law of any state when any question was raised involving the | transportation of either persons or prop l erty across a state line.
 Authority Is Supreme.
 It has never been questioned that the authority of Congress Is supreme over inter state commerce or that Congress has the power to confer upon a commits sion authority over freight rates. This is the theory upon which the present in- ter-state commerce law rests and upon which it is proposed to enact the Esch- Townsend bill The advocates or that hill certainly believe that 1t would give the commission authority over all lhter- state freight rates regardless or what the rates might be inside of the several states Yet the rates in the states are not all merely matters of railroad regu- lation In many states they are maue oi- rectly by the legislatures or by commas sons to which the legislative power nus been delegated In either case they are laws of the state Yet the theory oh which the Esch-Townsend bill IS aoVo- cated is that on any shipment or lrslsne from any such state to point ou'sioe ~ lie territory the orders of the Inter -s.a.e commerce commission are to pc sup enas ss to the rate for the entire oistanee'
 eard,ess of whether the rates III .hc states through which 1t may pass are nneio regulations of the railways or state iaMs. The language of the bill reiatins .o .ne transportation of persons IS identiea, w.t..