The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-08-20

profit from the use of it's property.
Whether the federal courts were ex-
pressly given this power in the law or
not. they would have had it under their
general Jurisdiction. If their power
had not been recognized and a pur-
rose of congress had ben expressed to
prevent an appeal to the courts, the
law would have been invalid. The ex-
tent of the judicial remedy could not
be either diminished or enlarged by
congressional action, with due regard
to the validity of the act. Congress
was wise, therefore, in not attempting
to define what the court should or
should not do, and in merely recognize
ing the right of the companies to ap-
peal to the federal courts to test the
validity of the action of the commits
sion. No victory was gained by either
the conservative or the radical party
in this regard.
Importance of Courts in UNFOLDING
Constitutional Guarantees.
BY what 1 have said, however.
would not for a moment be thought
to favor any legislation which would
exclude railroad companies or any one
else from a recourse to the courts to
protect them in their statutory and
constitutional rights. The courts and
especially the supreme court of the
United States, are the part of our gov
eminent indispensable in making good
those guarantees of life, liberty, prop
erty and the pursuit of happiness given
i'm the constitution and placed there
by the people themselves to curb their
own hasty action under stress Of sud
den impulse or with too little dellb-
Grafton. The administration of exact
-. -Ng ~ 80 fnnT
unmoved by the influence of the veal
thy or by the threats of the dema-
gogue, is the highest ideal that gov
eminent of the people can strive for,
and any means by which sutton,
however unpopular or poor, is deprived
Of enjoying this is to be condemned. 1t
is important, however, that appeals TO
judicial remedies should be limited In
such a way that parties will not use
them merely to delay and so clog eff
cient and just executive or legislative
action.
New Amendments Needed.
The rate law does not go far enough.
The practice under it has already dis
closed the necessity for new amend
ments and will doubtless suggest more.
Such is the true methOd-the emplrical
and tentative method-of securing prop
er remedies for a new evil. The ciassi-
fication of merchandise for transpor-
tatjon is a most important matter In
rate-fixing, for by a transfer from one
class to another the rate is changed
and may work injustice. With the
power of rate-fiXing, it would seem,
should go the power in the commits
sion to classify and to prescribe rules
for uniform classification by all rail-
roads.
Amendment Needed TO Prevent over
Capitalization.
Recent revelations have emphasized
the pernicious effect of the so-called
Observation-Disclosures of railroads which
aids INSCRIPTIONS stock manipulators
in disposing of railway securities at
unreasonably high prices to innocent
BUYERS. This evil would not of itself
Justify federal restraint or control be-
cause such stock and bonds are usually
issued under state charters Inc prac-
tice, however, has tendency to divert
the money paid by the public for the
stock and bonds which ought 10 De
| expended in improving the roadbed'
track and equipment of railways INTO
the pockets of the dishonest manipdla-
tors and thus to pile such an 1nprofit-
able debt upon a railway as TO make
bankruptcy and receivership prob
able in the first business stringsncy.
| This result i'm an interstate railway,
necessarily interferes with and bur
dens interstate commerce and Justities
| the exercise of the regulative power
| of congress to stop the practice. A
railroad company engaged in interstate
| commerce should not be permitted,
therefore. to issue stock or bonds and
nut them on sale in the market OK
cent after a certificate by the inter-
state commerce commission that the
| securities are issued with the approval
of the commission for legitimate
| railroad purpose. The railroads that
are honestly conducted would accept
| the certificate of the commission as A
valuable one in the markets of the
world. and only railway stock manipu-
lators who look to the floating of
watered securities as their best source
| of profit would have reason to COM
plain.
Purchase of Stock in Competing Lines
| A much used means of eliminating
| competition among Interstate lines
| serving the same territory is the ac-
| QUESTION by one company OF the stock
/ in another and the election of direc-
tors to represent that stock. This
process is facilitated by the uncon-
trolled power to issue securities beyond
| the needs of the company for its legi-
innate business and would be curbed
by the restriction proposed. The evil
ought further to be directly restrained
hv making il unlawful for an inter-
state railway to acquire stock in q
competing line. This is simpler
remedy of meeting the evil than by
recourse TO the antitrust law under
the Northern Securities case. In addi-
ton to this, competing lines should be
prohibited from having common direc-
tors or officers.
Amendments Plainly Constitutional
These suggestions Of additional legis-
lation in respect 10 the supervision and
| control of interstate railways have
been made by the interstate commerce
| commission and 1 heartily concur ir
them. They are plainly within the
federal jurisdiction under the inter.
state commerce clause. l do not think