The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-10-12
FEDERAL CONTROL
 IS NUT THE BEST
The Minnesota Commissioner
 Makes Important Report
NO GENERAL RATE CUTTING
Railway -eonmissioners of the United F States Adjourn Meeting at Wash ington After Discussing Rates
 and the Rate Laws.

Washington October 1l.-After a four days session the 18th annual convention of the National Association of State Rail- way Commissioners adjourned late this afternoon. Today a report was submitted by Commissioner Staples of Minnesota on Rates and Rate Making that antagon- ized. federal control of railroads to some extent. The report. which was adopted declared:
 So far as we are advised, we know of no general reduction in railroa.: rates due to any action by the federal authorl- ties. We believe the best interests of the people would be served by placing the entire responsibility for rate control in the federal government"
 Discussion of the report took a wide range. H. Warner Hill of Georgia, de- clared that in the unsettled state of rail- road securities today if he were asked to part from what he had accumulated in the world he would feel that he would not invest in railroad securities. He thought that both carriers and shippers were entitled to fair considera ton in the matter of rates. Commissioner Hughes of Ohio; Wood of Indiana, and Earle of South Carolina were appointed to attend the anti-trust conference at Chicago, Oc- tober 22 to 95
 II. Warner IIill of Georgia, presented an elaborate report on demurrage, in which he said that Congress ought to amend the act to regulate commerce so as to empower the interstate commerce commission to adopt rules upon reciprocal demurrage"
 The report was adopted. It was decided to hold the convention next year in this city, beginning October g.
 The following officers we're elected: C. (. Mcchord of Kentucky president will- jam H. Connolly, District of Columbia secretary.
 Commissioner Staples of Minnesota in his report on Rates and Rate Making" said there is q growing public sentiment that the rates charged by the railway companies for transporting or interchang- ing the various products of the country from ~one section to another should be d subject of supervision and regulation by the various state and national authorities, and supervision should be intelligent and fair to both the people and the transpor- tation companies. "Passenger rates" the report adds, "are little complicated as compared with freight rates. and whether right wrong the controlling factor in their making is that of comparison. We believe, however, that public authorities should carefully consider when inquir- ing into passenger rates, the question as to whether that branch of the railway business is bearing it's proper share of the entire operating expenses. 'If the railway mileage within each state was owned and operated exclusively by state corporations the matter of rata regulation would be mnch simplifed. The cases are rare where a road Of any ln- portance K not an Interstate road and d large share of the business Interstate business.
 This may be argued as reason for entire federal control something we be- lieve to be impossible without amending the constitution. This we do not believe the states will concede until it is demon- fstrated that 1t is more practical than ex- perience has yet shown it to be.
 There have been many general rate reductions in different states, followed by reductions on interstate traffic. and SO far as we know these have all been brought about by the affirmative action of the state authorities. So far as we are advised we know Of no general re- duction due to any action by the federal authorities. We believe the best inter Asts of the people would not be served