Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1909-08-27
GRANTED PERMANENT INJUNCTION
AGAINST INTERSTATE COM
MERGE COMMISSION.
CHICAGO JUDGES DECIDE IT.
Famous Action Involves Schedules in
Many States in the Missouri
River District.
HAS LONG BEEN IN THE COURTS.

CHICAGO, Ill, Aug. 24.-The perma
nent injunction sought by western rail
WAYS against the interstate commerce
commission in the famous Missouri river
rate case, was granted here today by
Judges Grosscup, Baker and Kohlsaat
of the United States circuit court. The
case has been In litigation for some time.
Judge Grosscup delivered the opinion
of the court. Judge Kohlsaat concurring,
! while Judge Baker delivered dissenting
! opinion. ............. ...
Commission Will Appeal.
| The commission, thus defeated, in its
| first attempt to bring about what is al
| legged to be a new system, or prlnclpe,
| of rate making, will, it is asserted, carry
the case to the supreme court of the
! United States.
| The parties which petitioned for the
! injunction were the Chicago, ROCK ISL
and & Pacific Railroad company, the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad
company; the Chicago, Milwaukee q st.
Paul Railway company; the Chicago u
North Western Railway company, and
the receivers of the Chicago Great West
ern Railway company ct al; the Illinois
| Central, the Santa Fe, the Alton, the
Missouri Pacific, the Frisco Railroad
| companies and number OF important
! shining interests interviewed as COCOON
| plainants.
Involves Commissions Power.
The bill for injunction was filed on
| complaint of George Kindell, manutac-
turer of Denver, Colo. against the order
entered by the Interstate Commerce
commission on March 2, 1909, relating
| to Joint rates from Chicago and St.
Louis to Denver. The fight against this
order is the crux OF the Missouri river
rate case and involves to considerable
degree the power of the interstate COM
merce commission.
! .'The question raised" said Judge
Grosscup. in rendering his opinion, lin
its larger aspect, is not SO much a ques-
ton between the shippers and the rall-
roads as between the commercial and
manufacturing interests of Denver and
the territory east of the Mississippi river
on the one side and the commercial
and manufacturing interests of the Mis-
souri, river cities on the other
Missouri River Cities Losers.
By the decision announced the Mis-
souri river cities lose the advantage
which the enforcement Of the commits
sion's order would have given them.
Besides granting the permanent in
junction in the Missouri river rate case
the court also granted a preliminary In
junction in the Denver rate case which
| is based on similar principles as the Mis-
! sour river case. The Denver case IN
volving shipments to Denver instead of
| Missouri river points is still pending
finally on a demurrer filed by the In
| terstate Commerce commission to the
| hill of tho cOmOlainlnR railroads.
The railroads in the Missouri river rate
| case sought to have the interstate COM
merce commission enjoined permanently
| from enforcing an order of the commits
sion made June "a, 1908, relating to
| Joint rates from the Atlantic seaboard to
| Missouri river cities.
Wants Through Rates.
This order sought to create a system
| of through rates from the Atlantic sea
! hoard TO the Missouri river for a reduc-
| tiOn from the sums of the local rates.
| This. according to western roads, threw
| the burden upon them.
Powers of Federal Body
In the present case the railroads main
| tain that the principle laid down by the
interstate commerce commission would
| be proper if applied to but one road, but
| that its application to more than one
| would work a hardship because of the
| expense OF OpefdtIOH oL teiAllihalo ny
| each road.
! The railroads also contended that the
reductions ordered by the commission
meant discrimination against western
| manufacturers and merchants, in favor
of the Atlantic seaboard shippers.
| Speaking of the power Of the commits
| sion the opinion says:
I'VE are not prepared to say that the
| commission has not the power to enter
upon Il plan looking toward a system
| of rates wherein the rates, for longer and
shorter hauls, will taper downward ac-
! cording to distance, providing such taper
| ing is both comprehensively and sym
metrically appled-applied with a de-
cision of carrying out what may be the
| economic fact that, on the whole, 1t
| IS worth something less per mile to car
| nv freight long distances than short DIS
| tances.
Cannot Divide Country.
| But it does not follow that power Of
| that character includes power, by the
| use of differentials, to artificially divide
| the country into trade zones tributary
| 10 givan trade and manufacturing cen
tiers, the commission, in such cases. hav-
| ing as Il result to predetermlne what
! the trade and manufacturing centers
shall be; for such power, vaster than any
! one body of men has heretofore eXer-
cised, although wisely exerted in specific
| instances, would be putting in the hands
| Of the commission the general power OF
| lie and death over every trade ana
| manufacturing center in the United
| States
The opinion holds that the commission
| i'll attempting to enforce its order sought
| TO exercise this colossal power.
|