The farmer and mechanic., 1907-09-10

Here's the difference between Law
and Do-As- You-Pleass. The Bel
Telephone Company gave notice thai
rates would be doubled OF night mes
sages on the first u Septern Der. The
Corporation Commission OF North
Carolina. when the matter was called
TO its attention. ordered the company
20 show good reasor for the ad-
vance. and Immediately the company
countermanded its order for doubling
the rates between North Carolina
towns. but il is published that the
rate viii be doubled on interstate
business. II you wLsn TO ialk 20 a
man in Ashevtlle ar night, the old
night half rate prevails, II you wish
10 talk az the same hour TO man IN
Richmond, the price is twice as much
as il was in August.
Why the difference North Carolina
has sound public sentiment and a
Corporation Commission given the
power and charged with the duty or
regulating rates. When. without noti-
flying the Commission. the double
rate was put in operation. the Com
mission gave the telephone company
the law and the company withdrew
its double rate in North Carolina. II
must now satisfy the Commission that
the higher rate is necessary or II
cannot be charged As TO interstate
rates, ii seems that not ody is charged
with fixing rates or regulating prices.
0r - action
Therefore the telephone company
may arbitrarily increase It's rates and
the public has no prompt redress. But
within State lines, there is authority,
and therefore arbitrarily increasing
rates don't go' IN North Carolina,
and excessive rates cannot prevail as
long as the Corporation Commission
does it's duty
The above object lesson is another
reason why the Roosevelt program to
confer by judicial construction ex-
elusive power OF regulation on the
Federal Government is dangerous
and retrogressive The govern
ment at Washington has great func-
tions and within its limitations can
do much, but TO turn over to that
government the matter of regulating
express, telephone. or telegraph. or
freight or passenger charges between
Ashevllle and Raleigh would be to
give it a power that is contrary to
express constitutional limitations, and
would be to decrease proper degula-
zion and supervision. 'Beginnng at
Jerusalem should apply in govern
ment as we'll as in religion. The best
government is that nearest home. The
State should not control city matters
but leave the enforcement of city or
dinanceS to city officials. city
knows best how to regulate hacks
A State alone has power to regulate
railroad rates wholly within the State
just as the Federal Government has
exclusive power to regulate inter-
state business. Consolidate all these
powers at Washington, and you loose
efficiency and promptness. If proof
of this Is demanded, you need only
turn to the intra-state and Interstate
freight and passenger rates II you
travel from Raleigh to Asheville, the
rate is 2 Ia cents because the State
of North Carolina has fixed a fair
charge, but if,you go from Raleigh to
Columbia you have to pay IA cents
in North Carolina and cents in
South Carolina. In freight charges,
the difference Is even greater The
State controls rates and within the
State the rates have not been in
creased during late years and known
rebating and determinations are not
permitted. But because the Inter-
State Commerce Commission does not
nix rates and prevent determinations,
Interstate freight rates have been
greatly increased on many commod-
tiles in the past few years and the
railroads charge Charlotte, Green's
boro, Raleigh and other towns twice
as much to haul freight from the
west as they charge Lynchburg, Roa-
noke and other Virginia towns If
there were no State regulation, the
same determinations would exist be-
tween towns similarly situated on
business. State regulation
is our salvation