The Breckenridge news., 1906-01-24
WASHINGTON LETTER.


Washington, Jan. %. Senator Nor.
gan, Of Alabama, has made almost i'm
portant contribution to the current dis
cussion Of the problem of railway rate
legislation by the introduction OF a
bill and by a speech In the Senate ex-
planning his measure. The Senator from
Alabama is looked upon as one OF the
most able constitutional lawyers and
one of the ablest statesmen now in pub
lie life, and the fact that he has DELHI
erately and after careful consideration
taken the position that legislation to
empower the Interstate Commerce
Commission to prescribe transportation
rates would be both unconstitutional
and unwise will have great weight
with those Senators and Representa-
tives who are anxious to enact a rail-
way bill that Will be constitutional
and thar will not work injustice
TO the carriers or 10 individuals or
communities.
Senator Morgan is convinced that 1t
is beyond the constitutional power of
Congress to require an administrative
body to perform the judicial function
of determining whether a trauspo1ta-
tion charge is reasonable and to then
perform the legislative function of
establishing a new rate tor the future.
He not only believes that such legis-
lation would be unconstitutional, but
he believes that if it should be so drawn
as to be held by the courts TO he tech
nically constitutional 1t would be moth
ing short of revolutionary and would
be a direct violation of tine fundamen'
tai principles of free government upon
which the Constitution of the Unit
ed States is based. He goes so far as
to hold that it would be better for the
people of the United States as whole
for Congress to fail to enact any rail
way Legislation rather than to adopt
the revolutionary plan CT uniting lsgis-
lative, executive, and judicial tunc-
tions in the hands of political commits
sion responsible only to the President
of the United States. In his speech
explaining his bills Mr.. Morgan declsr-
ed The present system, much as
il may be criticised or condemned, is
safer than any result that is to be
expected from such a taIing up of the
solid foundations OF the Republic. "
Mr.. Morgan proposes a perfectly
method for the correc
ion of all transportation abuses and one
that is not liable to any of tho pohtic-
al and practical objections that have
been urged so strongly against giving
the rate-nIaking power to the Inter
state Commerce Commiss on. The plan
that his bill proposes is so simple and
provides such an effective remedy for
every conceivable abuse in connection
with transportation as TO commend
it 10 the favorable consideration OF
those who are seeking tor justice to
shippers and communities rather than
for the conversion of the Interstate
Commerce Commission and through it
OF the railroads into a great political
machine that could be used by pfei-
dent to MAINTAIN himself or his party
in power.
Mr.. Morgan's bill is founded on the
idea that the preservation of the right
of trial by jury is essential to the per-
petuation of free government and that
the only safe and proper method of
settling all questions as to the reason
ableness and justice of such contracts
as are expressed or implied in every
transportation of persons or property
is by trial by jury. All proceedings
under the Morgan bill, whether in
case involving an alleged unreasonable
charge of a discrimination between
persons or between communities,
would be in the nature of suit for
damages. The award of the court in
every such case would necessarily in
dicate what would be the reasonable
maximum rate or what would be the
just and reasonable regulation or
practice to he substituted fol that
found to be unreasonable or unjust.
The bill does not provide any method
for the enforcement of the just and
reasonable rate, regulation, or practice