The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1906-03-16
Senator Culberson De-
clare.s Railroad Rates
Are Arranged on Oes.
potic Standard Of
"What Traffic Bears. 4"
Wants Legislation That
Would Protect the
People From the Self
ishness Of the Men
in Charge.

IN CnafS6.
Washington, March 12.-Senators
became involved today in profound
discussion over just what the consul
tuition meant when it provided against
the taking of a persons property with
out due process of law.
MIR. Culbertson Dem, Tex), Mr.
Rayner, Dem, Md, MIR. Knox.
(Rep.. Penna), Mr.. Nelson, (Rep.
Minn), Mr. Foraker, (Rep., Ohio). and
Mr. Fulton, (Rep Ore.) were among
those who tried to define legally the
difference between the terms "just and
reasonable" Just compensation" and
'cOnfisCatory" as dealing with the
right of judicial review in case CON
gress empowers the interstate COM
merCe commission to fix railroad rates.
Mr.. Nelson gave notice that he
would speak on the rate question to-
morrow, following Mr.. Simmons, OF
North Carolina
w G1A COUhl oA >.
Todays discussion was precipitated
by Mr. Culbertson in set speech. He
attempted to confne himself to
strictly legal treatment of the doc
trine that congress had the power to
fix rate and that it could delegate
that power if it saw fit" He cited |
many supreme court decisions to up !
IrII 4, Il, ;x,,, IL
involved, if not the direct question it
self, had been repeatedly passed upon |
by the supreme court.
His remarks were in the nature of |
a reply 20 the recent speech of Mr.. |
Foraker who stands as the single out
and-out opponent in congress to the
policy of rate regulation.
The senator from Texas pointed to
cases of the delegation by states to
commissions of the power to regulate
rates exclusively within the states ana
asserted that the numerous cases OF
the right to control and fix dates and
control of the franchises of turnpikes
represented the identical principle.
These cases are persuasive but not
tOhNluoIN0, vi iOul5 u6 thCidlIuGu.
Mr. Knox interrupted with the re-
mark that a number of states had re-
fused to attempt regulation on the
ground that 1t was a power vested in
the federal government.
Mr.. Rayner. who was in sympathy
with the view, saw some confusion in
the dissenting opinions in the North
&c ~ |
court.
Mr.. Culberson pointed to the legis-
lation prohibiting the importing of
impure tea into the United States,
which vested the secretary of the treas
TRY with the discretion to establish a
standard of purity. This was upheld
by the supreme court, although the
principle went further than in the
proposed legislation.
Mr.. Culberson argued against at
tempting any limitation upon the con-
stitutional rights of carriers to go into
courts, where the rates were held by
them to be confisCatOry because he
held that 1t would be declared void
INTERFERE IN REVIEW.
Mr.. Fulton inquired whether the
constitutional principle did not in
yolye more of a fair return and wheth-
er the courts in that case, would not
hold the rate to be confiscatory.
Mr.. Culberson held that 1t did not
but that the courts would only inter-
fere for review when the action OF
the commission was arbitrary and
despotic.
Mr.. Nelson thought 'Just compensa-
tion" was the counterpart of "rea-
sonable rate"
Mr.. Foraker tried to involve the
senator from Texas into a discussion
of the fairly remunerative" term or
the Hepburn bill but the latter did |
not wish to enter that phase of the
question, although he declared that
he was opposed to the use of the words.
lie said he was trying to guard against |
the establishment of new constitu-
tional standards which would give the
railroads an additional advantage as
he thought this would.
BOARD DICTATES RATES.
Mr.. Culberson. in closing, declared
that the railroad rates of this country
were dictated by small board OF !
railroad men, and he wanted legisla-
tion that would protect the people
against the selfishness of those men.
whose merciless Rnd despotic stand
ard was what the traffic would bear.
He thought that special interests might
for time prevail but that the people
would come into their rights.
The rate discussion was preceded !