Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1906-05-22
TEXT OF RATE BILL
AS PASSED BY SENATE
Act Points Out Common Car
riers Of Country.
CITES DUTIES AND RESTRICTIONS
Bill Now Awaits Only Concurrence OF
House on Senate Amendments and
Signature of Presldent-WII Have a
Far-ReachIna Effect.

House on Senate. Amendments and
Signature of Presldent-WIII Have a
Far-ReaehIna Effect.
Washington, May 21.-The railway
| rate bill, which has now passed both
branches Of congress and awaits only
the concurrence of the house on the
senate amendments and the signature
of the president, will have more far
reaching effect than any law Of recent
years.
The most important provision of the
act confers on the interstate commerce
| commission the authority, on com
plant, to examine into any charge or
practice of a carrier alleged to be TN
just, and when such allegation is sus-
tanned to prescribe what shall. be
Just and reasonable maximum rate or
| charge, regulation or practice.
The act defines as common carriers
owners of pipe lines engaged in the
transportation of oil or other commod-
ity, except water and natural or arti-
fetal gas; also sleeping car and express
companies, and all forms of private
cars, terminals, switches and spur
| tracks.
! The issuance of passes or free trans
! portation in any form to all persons,
except employees of carriers and their
families and certain exempted classes,
Is forbidden, and q penalty Of not less
than 500 nor more than $4,000 Is pro-
vided, not only for the person issuing
such free transportation, but also for
the person applying Tor or accepting it.
Common carriers are prohibited, on
and after May l, 1908, from transport.
ing across any state or territorial line
any article or commodity other than
timber and the manufactured products
thereof, manufactured, mined or pro-
duced by it or under its authority.
They are required to construct and op.
crate upon reasonable terms sldetracks
and switch lines and to furnish cars
for the movement of traffic without dis
elimination and to furnish equally good
accommodations to all persons paying
the same fare.
Carriers must print and post in con.
spicuous places all tariffs and charges,
and such charges, cannot be changed
] without thirty days notice to the pub.
lie and to the interstate commerce com.
/ mission, except where the commission
valves such notice. They are required
IN time of war or threatened war, on
demand Of the president, to give pref
erence and precedence to the transpor.
tation Of troops and munities of war.
Every person, company or corporation,
whether carrier or shipper, is prohib.
tied from offering, granting, giving, so.
liciting, accepting or receiving any re,
bate, preference or discrimination.
Heavy penalties, and in some in,
stances Imprisonment. are prescribed
for violation of the provisions of the
act, individuals and corporations alike
to be held guilty of misdemeanor for
any violation, willfully committed, and
the corporations and individuals are
held responsible for the acts of any
agent. Failure to public tariffs entils
a fine Of not less than $1,000 and not
more than $4,000.
Granting or accepting of rebates or
kindred determinations entails a fine
of not less than $1,000 and not more
than $4,000, and the individual guilty
of such act is liable to Imprisonment
for not more than two years In addl.
tion to the fine, in the discretion OF
the court.
Any shipper who willfully accepts
rebate or discrimination must, in addi
ton to the above penalties, pay to the
United States three times the value OF
such rebate or discrimination, and the
| attorney general Is required to bring
civil suit to recover this penalty when
ever he believes such violation of law
has occurred
The authority of the interstate com
merce commission to fix maximum
/ rates refers not only to single, but joint
rates, and applies where one Of the
parties to the joint rate is water line
For failure to obey an order Of the
commission the carrier forfeits to the
United States $4,000 for each offense
and each day of a continuing viola
ton is deemed a separate offense.
Where the interstate commerce com
mission orders a refund to a shipper
and the carrier fails to refund. the
shipper may institute civil suit to re
cover: the finding Of the commission
constitutes prima facie evidence of the
facts, and the petitioner is not liable
for the costs in the court or at any
subsequent stage Of the proceedings
and If the petitioner finally prevails a
reasonable attorney fee is allowed him
The interstate commerce commission
| or any person injured by failure of a
| carrier to comply with an order of the
commission, other than the payment OF
money, may apply to the circuit court
and if the case is established the court
shall issue writ of injunction, man
datory or otherwise, to restrain such
| carrier from further disobedieuce. and
from such action appeal shall lie direct
10 the supreme court Of the United
States, where the case shall have pri
ority of hearing and determination.
The commission is authorized to re
quire the most comprehensive stats
tics from all common carriers regard
Ing their business under a penalty on
the carriers of 500 for every day in
| default. 5
Hunted Man Arrested.
San Francisco, May 22-S. A. D. Pu