The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1908-03-19

4
Granting and Accepting Rebates.
Washington, Speciality a divi.
sion of 5 10 the Supreme Court
OF the United States has affirmed the
decision of the United State Circuit
Court of Appeals for the eighth cir.
euit, imposing fines on the Chicago.
Burlington & Quincy Railway Com.
pany, for granting and the packers
OF Kansas City, Kan, for accepting
rebates on shipments Of packers pro.
ducts intended for export. The de.
cislon was announced BY Justice
Day and his announcement was COLI
Cured in by Justices Harlan. White
Mckenna and Holmes The Chief
Justice and Justices Brewer and
Peckham dissented In an opinion an.
nounced by Justice Brewer. which
pungently critized the controlling
OPINION. Justice Moody took no part
| IN the disposition of the case.
The Points Involved.
In his opinion Justice Day dis.
cussad the various points of con.
troversy involved in the cases.
Taking up the first question as ia
what constitutes a crime. In the
matter of granting rebates he said ::
Had it been the intention of Con-
gress to limit the obtaining of such
preferences to fraudulent schemes
or devices, or to those operating only
by dishonest, under-handed methods.
1t would have been easy to have SO
provided in words that would be I'M.
mlstakable in their meaning. A de-
wee need not be necessarily fraudu.
tent; the term includes ANYTHING
which Is plain contrivance.
Discussing the effect of the ruling
on the usual construction of con-
tracts Justice Day said:
There is no provision for tho
fling CT contracts with shippers and
no method of making them public
defined in the statute. If the rates
are subject to secret alteration bv
special agreement, then the statute
Will fail of its purpose to establish
rate duly published, known to all.
and from which neither shipper nor
carrier may depart.
"1t is said that if the carrier saw
fit to change the published rate by
contract the effect will be to make
the same evailable to all other ship
pers. But the law is not limited to
giving equal rates by indirect and
uncertain methods. It has provided
for the establishment of one rate to
be filed as provided, subject to
change as provided, and that rate to
be while in force the only legal rate.
Any other construction Of the statute
opens the door to the possibility Of
the very abuses Of unequal rates
which it was the design Of the statute
to prohibit and punish.
"1t may be as urged by petitioner,
that this construction renders i'm
possible the making Of contracts for
the future delivery of such merchan-
disc as the petitioner deals in, and
that the instability of the rate intro
duces a factor Of uncertainty, de-
struetive Of contract rights hereto
fore enjoyed in such property. But
such considerations address them
selves to Congress, not to the courts
1t is the province of the judiciary
to enforce laws constitutionally
enacted, not to make them to suit
their own views of propriety or
justice.
''The statute being within the con-
stitutional power of Congress and
being in force when the contract
was made, is read into the contract
and becomes part of it. If the ship
per sees fit to make contract cover
ing a definite period for a rate in
force at the time he must be taken
to have done so subject to the pos
sible change of the published rate
in the manner fixed by statute, tc
which he must conform or suffer the
penalty fixed by law"
In the course of his opinion. JUS
tice Day gave the following general
definition of the intent of the Elkins
act:
ElknS' Act Defined.
"The Elkins' act proceeded upon
broad lines, and was evidently in
tended to effectuate the purpose Of
Congress to require that all ship
pers should be treated alike, aad
that the only rate charged to any
shipper for the same service under
the same conditions should bs the
one established, published and
posted as required by law. It Is
not SO much the particular form b.
which, or the motive for which this
purpose was accomplished, but tha
intention was to prohi bit any and
all means that might be resorted to
to obtain or receive concessions and
rebates from the fixed rates, duly
posted and published"