The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-11-03
1919 RAILROAD FIlE DUE 10
THE ELINNS ANTI-REBATE law.
New York
Central Caught

| OF the 'llephT LtuEut vi JuStlSC are WV
| well satisfied with the fines Of sos.
COO on the New York Central Rallroai
1 and $4,000 on F. l.. Pomeroy, its gen
eral traffic manager. for granting re
bates to the Sugar Trust on shipments
to Detroit. The man who has the mos
reason to be pleased with this result
however, is Senator Elkins, of Wes
Virginia, for It is a complete vindica
ton OF the efficiency Of the Elklnt
law. The offenses involved in TIKI
case were committed before the Hep
burn law was enacted and the iniic
ments were found and the convic
lions obtained under the Elkins act,
The agitation in favor Of additional
railroad legislation that led to til,
enactment of the Hepburn law was
based almost entirely upon whole
some public opinion against just such
acts as the New York Central and Ills
traffic manager have been found gull
ty Of in this case. Small shippers and
consumers interested In fostering com
petition were properly made indig
nant by the knowledge that great cor
porations, such us the Sugar Trust
by threatening to divert their traffic
to other routes, could force the rail-
roads to give them secret preferential
rates or to discriminate in their favor
In other ways. The knowledge that
such things were being done led Pres.
ident Roosevelt to recommend TO Con
gress legislation that would keep the
highways Of commerce open to all on
equal terms
Singular as II may seem the Inter
state Commerce Commission and the
Department of Justice had been over
looked the fact that all that was need
ed to insure perfect equality of treat.
ment on the highways of commerce
was the enforcement Of the Elkins act
that had been on the statute books
for two years and that provided for
the imposition Of heavy penalties both
on the giver and the beneficiary Of a
rebate or other discrimination. Il
was not until some of the distinguish
ell lawyers who testified before the
Senate committee on Interstate Com
merce last year had declared that the
Elkins law was broad enough to reach
and punish transportation discrin.
nations of all kinds that any serious
effort was made 10 enforce it. When
these opinions came to the attention
of President Roosevelt he gave orders
for the enforcement of the law. The
Department of Justice the Bureau Of
Corporations, and the Interstate Com
MERGE Commission all went to work
with the result that violations of tho
law were discovered, indictments were
found and convictions are being oh.
tanned Just as fast as the courts can
dispose of the cases. All Of the many
indictments and convictions for re.
batting within the past few weeks have
been obtained under the Elkins law
and they show that the Senator from
West Virginia. in drawing that law
and getting it on the statute books
had placed 1t in the power of the exc
cutive branch of the government to
punish severely any railroad company
or railroad official granting rebate
or other discrimination to shipper
and also to punish shipper accept
ing such a. favor. Senator Eliins has
accomplished more than this. He has
put an end to rebates AMI discrtmina,
lions of all kinds. for as soon as II be-
came known that the Elkins law Wis
to be enforced these evils w2ro
brought to an abrupt stop. and the
most dilyigent search Of the officials
of the administration has failed to re.
veal single offense that has occurred
since railroad officials and shippers
realized that they we're in danger Of
the penalties of that act.
Even before the administration
took up the enforcement of the ElkinS
law Ill along the line its value had
been recognized by the legal advls
ers AMI shippers here and there
throughout the country. An illustra'
ton Of this was afforded by the case
in West Virginia in which compliant
was made that railroads were discrim'
mating against certain coal miners in
the distribution Of cars. Judge Coff
heard the case and. exercising q pow
err conferred upon the United States
Courts by the Elklns law. he issued a
mandamus fixing the proportion Of
the total car supply that SHOULD be,al.
lotted to each mine.
Tho new Pure Fond md Drug Law