The Kendrick gazette. [volume] (Kendrick, Idaho) 1892-1968, 1908-03-27

DECISION
BY INTERSTATE COM
MERGE COMMISSION.
HAS NO CONTROL OF TRAFFIC
FROM U. $. TO FOREIGN hoers
BY WATER ROUTE

by the interstate commerce commits
sion in one Of the most important
cases 1t has been called upon to de-
termine for some time. 1t is that OF
the Cosmopolitan Importing company
a Philadelphia organization, chartered
under the laws of New Jersey, against
the Hamburg-American Packet com.
pany, the North German Lloyd Steam
ship company, the Wilson lines, and
the Scandinavian-Ameri lines.
The compliments petition was filed
with the commission nearly year ago
Some time subsequently the defend
ants filed a demurrer, attacking. the
jurisdiction of the interstate commerce
commission. The opinion in the case
which is very voluminous, was pre-.
pared by Commissioner Franklin X
Lane.
In brief, and in effect, the commits.
sion decided against itself. 1t holds
that it has no authority over oceanic
transportation and this determines the
case adversely to the contention OF
the complainant.
In this case the complainant alleged
that the defendant steamship com.
panies transport traffic under the bills
of lading between inland points of the
United States and foreign ports, and
are thereby subjected to the jurisdic.
ton of the commission; that defend
ants have made an arrangement for
the pooling of eastbound export traf.
fic maintained by rail to Atlantic
ports and thence by steamship lines
to points in Denmark, Sweden, Nor.
way, Finland and German ports in
the Baltic, and that this so-called
Baltic pool" arbitrarily determines
the ultimate rates from such inland
points of the United States to such
foreign ports, the North Atlantic
ports; and that the Hamburg-America
Packet company maintains monopoly
of westbound and eastbound traffic
forwarded on local and on through
bills of lading between Germany and
other continental countries and inland
cities of the United States.
The prayer of the petition is that the
commission declare the Baltic pool
to be an illegal pooling of freights un
der the interstate commerce act; that
the monopoly of the Hamburg Ameri
can Packet company be declared un
lawful and that relief be granted tc
the complainant, which is also trans
Atlantic steamship company, doing q
freight business between American
and continental ports.
Lane Explains Decision.
In his discussion of few of the
reasons for the commissions decision
Mr.. Lane says:
1.-THE commission may regulate in
terstate traffic, whether by rail or by
combined rail and water route, from
point of receipt to point of delivery
but the commission in its control ovel
foreign commerce is limited to the
regulation of such traffic, whether BY
rail or by combination of rail anG
water carriers, from and to the points
of transshipment
"The pooling of traffic by, water
carriers is plainly matter over which
the commission has no Jurisdiction.
"A rail carrier may control, and con
meet with line of steamships engaged
in foreign commerce, with which i
may interchange business as freely al
with another rail carrier, and it ma!
quote a combination rate for thu
through movement, the agents of thu
railroad company acting as the agen
of the steamship company in so doing.