The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1906-06-15
THEY ARE CRIMINALS.
President Roosevelt Insist. That I'm.
prisonment Clause Be Kept in
Rate Bill

President Roosevelt Insists That I'm.
i prisonment Clause Be Kept in
| Ill.,. Rate Bill.
Washington. D. c.. June 6.-The
president let it be known to the rate
conference committee that the penal
servitude provision for those guilty OF
| rebating should not be cut out of the
rate bill, and he forced his point. This
president is a firm believer In the eff.
cacy of the criminal brand for law.
breakers and has informed members OF
the committee who came to the White
House that the prison feature must
stay.
The president has taken similar
position on the meat bill. and hold.
that any law that is passed by con.
| gress whether 1t be the Wadsworth.
Lorimer bill or the Beveridge bill. must
provide for both fine and Imprisonment
for those who tamper with the laws
Of the people.
Tho Bill as Revised.
Chicago. June Ga special to the
Tribune from Washington says:
| The rate bill as finally framed by
the conference committee is an excel
lent measure. 1t marks. in fact, as
! great an advance as the interstate
| commerce law itself was. The right
| OF government tribunal to fix rates
on public highways is determined now
by act OF congress-
The courts are given right OF re-
| view, to be sure but they had that
right under the constitution itself, and
| not even congress could take 1t away
| from them.
A distinct curb has likewise been
J put upon the Standard Oil company. II
has defied one state sovereignty after
another, and 1t has eluded the anti.
| trust law because the federal author
! ity could not assume to interfere with
| the process Of manufacture, which is
! always local and to be dealt with by
| local laws alone. But the Standard OH
company Is absolutely dependent upor
| the transport OF It's commodity from
| states where there Is oil to states
/! where there Is not 1t seems to have
| been the weak joint In the armor Of the
( gigantic system, and the curious thing
| about 1t Is that the wound was inflicted
| by haphaZard thrust, for no one even
dared to think of including oil pipe
| lines under the designation of common
carriers when the president first rec
commended the passage of a bill put
ting the power to regulate freight rates
| into the hands of an executive admin
| istrative body.
Pullman Cars Escape.
But the pipe lines are there hard and
fast and SO are the express companies.
The Pullman cars have escaped. They
| owe their salvation to Colonel William
Sherman, of New York. They were the
republican conrerees on behalf Of the
| house.
The paragraph which put the sleep
Ing car companise under the jurisdic-
| ton of the Interstate Commerce COM
mission was an amendment to the
house bill passed by the senate. If ac-
cepted by the house 1t became a part of
the law forthwith. 1t required distinct
and affirmative action In behalf of the
Pullman Car companies by Colonel
Hepburn and Mr.. Sherman to keep the
sleeping car companies away from the
| Jurisdiction of the Interstate Commerce
| commission.
There will be good deal of discus
| sion on this subject later on, and 1t is
| Just as we'll that the responsibility Of
this action should be determined in ad-
vance. An overwhelming majority Of
the house desired that both the express
and the sleeping car companies should
be made amenable to the interstate
commerce law, exactly as the private
car line companies are. A vote of the
house was not permitted on this section.
and it probably will not be permitted
when the conference report comes up
will be forced to vote upon the report
as a whole and will not be given an
opportunity to go on record on that
particular amendment.
| The agreement of the conferees to let
| out the sleeping car companies has
aroused a storm Of dlsapproval in the
| senate, and Mr.. Foraker and others say
they will insist that the Pullman cars
shall go back into the bill and be treat
ed exactly like all other subsidiary
transportation companies.
1t may be that the sleeping car COM
panies ought not to be made amenable
to the interstate commerce law. ! am
| rod tn cav ct1s,ty he
The present law, at least, was aimed at
| freight carriers rather than passenger
carriers, after all, and possibly the
| Pullman company, which has not been
offensive in it's treatment Of passengers,
should be let alone.
| But the fact remains that the senate
| by an Overwhelming majority voted to
| include the sleeping cars and 1t there
| fore becomes important to realize that
the sole responsibility for the myster-
ious favor shown to the Pullman COM
pany lies upon Colonel Hepburn, Of
Iowa, chairman OF the house commit
tee on interstate commerce. and James
| s. Sherman, OF New York. who sue
ceeded Mr.. Babcock, Of Wisconsin, as
chairmon Of the republican congress
sional committee.
Deadheads Arc Hit.
There will be wailing and crashing Of
teeth among the deadheads generally,
and a corresponding degree of COM
placency among railroad managers
when the pass amendment agreed upon
by the conferees is finally promulgated.
It does not go into effect until after the
end of the year. but then it will be ex-
| tremely hard TO secure free transport
tation on railroad. The Pullman COM
pany, not being a common carrier, will
| be permitted to issue all passes it
wishes to give out.
! There was a stringent pass paragraph
{, in the old interstate commerce law, and
1t was followed strenuously for while
| but as there was no penalty attached
to the violation of the section, the rail-
roads gradually dropped into the habit
Of disregarding 1t entirely. The con-
! ferees have swept away all claims to
i free transportation and the hard
| worked country preacher and the pluto
cratic holder of railroad shares by the
barrel will alike pay or walk.
The pass amendment agreed to today
is 30 stringent that think it worth
quoting in full, as follows:
mo carrier subject to provisions Of
this act shall, after January 1, 1907, d.
rectly or indirectly, issue or give any
Interstate free ticket, free pass, or free
transportation for passage. Any car
rier violating this provision shall be
deemed guilty of misdemeanor and
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