The Washington herald., 1907-09-28
Interstate Commerce Commission
By FREDERIC j. HASKIN
By FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

Though the Interstate Commerce Com
mission has the regulation of some four
teen billion dollars worth OF property in
vested IN the railroads OF this country.
and has been in the spot light for years.
It's workings are understood IN only the
most general way. Congress established
the commission and gave it its powers,
so that the people OF the country could
have recourse against the evil practices
that have been growing up in the rail-
road world. The commission finds op-
pOrtunity to carry out the spirit OF the
law In so many ways that the average
man has never heard Of them all Be
sides its role as a body combining the
legislative, executive. ana judicial func-
tons of government, Il also plays the
role of peacemaker. and if the beatitude
about peacemakers being blessed extends
10 the official acts Of a governmental
body. then the members of the Inter
state Commerce Commission will have
SIS benefit in no small degree. Although
they are supposed TO settle differences
officially. yet the work Of adjusting dit-
ferences Ia an informal way constitutes,
perhaps. their most far-reaching line of
endeavor.
Under the old interstate commerce
law, passed In 1857, the railroads did
pretty much as they pleased. They did
not have any too much respect for 1t.
since it never did more harm than 20
give their attorneys a chance to earn
some of their salary But under the
new one they are usually pretty sure
that the outcome Of a complaint is go
ing 10 be favorable before they will al
low the matter to come TO a formal
hearing. Under the Old law, as soon as
a ruling was made by the commission.
the railroads carried the case 10 court
but under the new law it has been dif-
ferent. In the year and more since the
reorganization there has been but a
single decision of the commission ap-
pealcd from, and that Is an appeal by the
Delaware, LackaWanna and Western Rail-
road from a decision on discrimination
II was alleged 20 have made against in
dependent oil men in favor Of Standard
where formal complaints have been made
and afJeTwaTd dismissed, the defendant
having voluntarily agreed 10 grant the
conditions sought to be imposed on IL by
the commission" out Of a total of about
400 formal complaints filed since the new
law took effect, there have been some
forty such compromises. This don't
shoot; I'll come down policy OF the
railroads argues for the justice Of the
complaints in those cases.
When a formal complaint is filed with
the commission the newspapers get It,
for on the desk IN the Office OF the chief
clerk the correspondents ind the com
plants filed for that day. But back Of
this there is much that even the wide
awake newspaper men do not know. Be
fore q complaint Is filed in formal way
there is an Informal one. The man who
thinks he needs 10 resort 10 the haven
Of refuge for the shipping world writes
the commission and tells it his troubles.
The commission considers them, and then
writes 70 the railroad against which the
complaint is made 10 see If some ami
cable adjustment cannot be effected be
fore adding % q crowded docket another
formal complaint If such an adjust
ment. satisfactory 20 both parties, can
be made, that is the end Of the matter,
the difficulty Is adjusted informally and
the world never knows that there was
such "a case. But If the efforts at COM
promise fail then the matter comes up
in the shape of a formal complaint, and
the correspondents get it. The number
of complaints adjusted thus is vastly
greater than the number settled through
formal hearings and decisions. An Of
fetal Of the commission who has 20 do
with the correspondence in these cases,
says there are about six cases settled
in this way where there is one by formal
complaint A report OF the commission
shows that during the past year there
were over 300 informal, and only 400
formal complaints.
The humblest citizen of the land finds
that the commission gives the same at
tentiOn to his complaint as ii does 10
that OF the wealthiest corporation The
different cases range IN importance from
those involving a few dollars TO others
representing as many millions One OF
the most interesting cases was that OF
the Loop Creek Colliery Company, Of
West Virginia. against the Chesapeake
and Ohio Railroad i'm which the coal
company sought 10 compel the railroad
20 give It as good rates as il gave 10
other shippers on its own line. Stated
that way, the case appears 10 be a per
fectly undressing ons. But the Loop
Creek Colliery Company has back Of IL
the new One-hundred-miliOn- On-dOllar, built
without-a-bond railroad, which II. II.
Rogers and others are constructing from
Norfolk, Va. 10 the Great Lakes. and
thence probably West 70 the Pacific. IT
is a case of two gigantic corporations
fighting the preliminary skirmish for the
control Of the coal fields OF West Vir-
ginia- In the arguments the colliery COM
pany was represented by its counsel to
be perfectly harmless little coal com
pany, with its life i'm danger of being
crushed out by a great railroad, backed
by the powerful Pennsylvania system.
On the other hand, the counsel for the
defendant represented the colliery COM
pany 10 be but the impersonation Of ttg
big interests that were building the new
Virginia railroad. which eventually
threatened 20 swallow up the defendant.
and might also in the end make a break
fast of the powerful Pennsylvania sys-
TEN.
Here is a sample complaint Of an ordi-
nary citizen. A gentleman from Tennessee
vert 70 the jamestown Exposition with
his wife. He bought a ticket from the
Louisville and Nashville Railroad which
entitled him TO passage from Norfolk 10
Washington on the steamer, including
sleeping accommodations. He could not
get the berth he had paid for. and the
commission will find the reason why. In
this case his recourse will be on the rail-
road selling him the ticket, and the com