The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-03-28
.ucCUMBER PICKS
RATE BILL FLAWS J
North Dakota Senator Predicts
Failure of Measure as
It Stands.

Washington, March Ex-senator Nc
Cumber of North Dakota, deyoting him.
self to railroad rates exclusively, adj
dressed the senate yesterday. He picked
innumerable flaws in the rate bill, pre-
dieting that. if passed it would fail
entirely to meet the demands of the
public He said, ~, hc ~ y he would
amended. ~.ss
Mr.. McCumber read resolution, of
fered several weeks ago. setting forth
a number of subjects that should be
provided for by amendments to the bill.
These included terminal charges of ali
kinds, private car line charges and.
many other subjects not covered by
the BILL s.' s.-.<5
He referred to the popular demand
for the passage of the pending bill and
contended that when it becomes law
they expect. He pointed out defects
in the bill, saying that an effort to fix
rates would not result entirely to the
disadvantage of the corporations or to
the advantage of the public; hence the
lack of opposition on the part of the
big companies. He traced the popular
dissatisfaction to a worldwide restless
ness and not to the narrow field of the
fixing of railroad rates. 4.
Mo Wonder He Is Restless.
cit is contest between the indi-
vidual and the corporations, he said.
The Individual sees opportunity cut
off in all directions and there can be
no wonder that he IS .restless:'
The general luminosity is directed at
the railroads most especially, he said
because they are more in evidence than
other corporations. He did not be.
| hot of Io
way was found to control the corpora
tions that control the railroads.
.l'Of what avail is it,'2' he asked "to
reduce rates on beef 5 per cent if the
beef trust gets the benefit of the reduc
| ton? What we want is a law that
will break each Of the trusts into a
THOUSAND pieces, and then another that
will prevent the pieces from getting
| together again.
"If,' he said, "the people gener-
ally count on great relief by the trans,
fer Of the ratemaking power from the
hands of the railroad men, where it
properly belongs, to the hands Of a
political board they will find that the
senator from South Carolina was sin
| gularly inspired when he spoke of it
as farce, as he did before he assumed
the role Of step-father to it.
He said that the public was asking
for the enforcement Of the existin g
law rather than the enactment of a
new law.
"An editor has uncovered a number
Of cases OF rebates in the sugar trust,
be said, ''and surely the attorney gen
eral with his experts and his assist
ants can do AS much as an Individual
Rebate System Intolerable.
He spoke of the rebate system as
intolerabe' and the private car system
as even worse He said that a private
car will earn $3.50 a year, or rs pei
cent, whereas it should not earn more
than $50. The difference is equiva
lent to q rebate in behalf Of the cal
owners. He would have the railroads
divorce themselves from outside com
panies.
! Discussing the legal difficulties il
the way of the bill, Mr.. McCumbe
said he was less concerned on. accoun
of them than on account of the polio,
of entering upon such legislation a
all. He considered it an approach
toward paternalism, the abode o
"buried hopes, destroyed ambition an
surrendered aspirations.
Mr.. McCumber traced to the rail
roads the development of the interio
of the country. He said in reply to Nj
Beveridge that he expected to vot
for the pending bill, but expressed tn
opinion that it should be amended. H
said that the rigid enforcement Of tn
existing law would have prevented tn
development Of the west.
.He gave it as his opinion that tn
passage CT the proposed law would ak
soIutelv prevent competition betwee
rival lines, because in effect it amount
, cd tc pooling. 1t would PRACTICAL
have the effect of putting all competin
:, roads under one management. 9TH
proposition not only legalizes but i'm
poses pooling,' he declared.