The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1908-03-26
CANNOT CONTROL
RATES ON WATER
interstate Commerce Commits
son Makes Important De-
.sisn on Itself,
HOLD O ) IS G
aight Of Rail Lines 20 Make Traffic
Arrangements and Rates With
Steamship Companies, Can
Not Be Disputed.

--------
washington, March 25.--A decision
has been promulgated by the Interstate
commerce commission in what prob
ably is the most important case which
che commission for a long time has
been called upon to determine. II is that
If the Cosmopolitan Shipping company,
u Philadelphia organization chartered
under tho laws OF New Jersey, against
the Hamburg American Packet COM
pany. the North German Lloyd Steam
ship company, the Wilson (HulD lines
ind the Scandinavian American lines.
The com~plainant's petition was filed
with the commission nearly n year ago.
some time subsequently the defend
ants filed q demurrer attacking the
jurisdiction OF the Interstate Commerce
commission. Oral arguments on the
demurrer were heard by the commits
zion, Ward w. Plerson appearing for
the Cosmopolitan company and former
Senator John c.. Spooner, Judge Will
lam g. Choate and Huntington Putnam
Tor the defendants. The oral argu-
roents were followed by extensive briefs
which the commission has had under
consideration for several weeks.
The opinion in the case, which is
very volumitlous, was prepared by
Commissioner Franklin K. Lane. It Is
IN exhaustive discussion Of the law
UedTlllB uDOIl ItlG CdSo dllu ~ tuClu SldLE-
ment of the conclusions OF the COM
mission.
Powers Affected.
The decision is peculiarly important
not only because IL affects large inter
ests which hitherto have not been
brought before a judicial tribunal of
Ghis country. but because it affects ma
terially the powers of the Interstate
Commerce commission. In brief and in
effect, the commission decides against
Itself. 1t holds that it. has no authori-
ty over oceanic transportation M thus
deterplineS the case adversely to the
contention of the complainant.
In this case the complainant alleged
that the defendant steamship cOmpa-
MES transport traffic under through bills
of lading between inland points of the
United States and foreign ports and are
thereby subjects to the jurisdiction Of
the commission; that the defendants
nave made an arrangement for the
pooling Of ~eastbound export traffic
moving by rail to Atlantic ports and
thence by steamship lines to points in
Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland
and German points on the Baltic; that
chs so called Baltic pool arbitrarily
determines the ultimate rates from
such inland points OF the United States
70 such foreign ports via North Atlantic
ports; and that the Hamburg-American
HdChCL CDIIlpdly lllaIDIdlllS IL llO1OpOIy
Of w~estbound and eastbound traffic for
Warded IN local and on through bills of
lading between Germany and other
continental countries and inland cities
Of the United States.
Prayer Of Petition.
The prayer Of the petition is that
the commission declare the Baltic
poor to be an illegal pooling of
freights under the interstate commerce
mt AAnt thn YnnnnNnlrv 30 &hn IIaNn
burg-American Packet company be de-
clared unlawful and that relief be
granted to the complainant, which also
Is q transatlantic steamship company
doing a freight business betVeen Amer
lean and continental ports.
To this complaint the defendants ce-
INJURED, IN the ground, first that the
commission has no jurisdiction Of the
subject matter or power to proceed
against the defendants, and secondly,
that the complaint sets forth no mat
ter which Is c~ogniZable by the commits
sion or which It has been given author
lty to remedy.
The commission sustains the demur-
er and directs in an order that h
complaint be dismissed.
In effect the commission decides hat
It has no power to restrain, control or
regulate the practices of the trans-At-
lantlc steamship lines which appear as
deIenuanIS III THIS case
COMMISSIONS Lane says that It is
clear, under a plain reading Of the in
terstate commerce act, that no basis ex-
lists for the contention that the coin-
mission has Jurisdiction as to ship
ments from ports of the United States
to a foreign country not adjacent when
such shipments are not carried by rail,
or by rail and water from an inland
point Of origin to q point Of trans
9hinInnnf 1fharn NAV ne ON unlimited
volume of all water from
the American Seaboard to the European
seaboard. but over such or
the carriers engaged therein h COM
mission has no regulating power what
soever s long as the shipments orig
mate at the seaboard Inc are not trans
shipped to the ocean carriers.
Don't Need to Publish.
Accordingly" continues Commission
er Lanes opinion, 1T has been the uni
form Interpretation OF the law that an
all water carrier engaged In carrying
freight originating at New York or New
Orleans may engage in such traffic be-
tween such ports without publishing its
rates with this commission. and so
may the steamships plying between
Seattle and San Francisco. or h car
rier which transports freight from Du-
iuth TO Chicago on the great lakes, or
the river carrier from Memphis to New
Orleans; but If such water carriers are
controlled or managed by the same
corporation as controls a rail and water
line. or between q rail and water line
there Il An arrangement for continuous
carriage, then such water line ecomes
subject to all the provisions mandatory
and prohlbItory OF the act to regulate
commerce.
The commission. not having been
given control over the ocean carriers,
cannot compel observance Of the law
by such carriers, and II they so choose
they may alter their rates at such times
as they please or for such patrons as
they please. Therefore the line nus
be drawn decisively between those car
rters whose rates and practices this
commission can control and those