The Twin Falls times. [volume] (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1905-1916, 1910-06-30
THE new RAILROAD BILL.
Some Improvement, and Better Con-
troll of Railroads.

Some Improvement, and Better Con-
troll Of Railroads.
Since the railway rate regulation
law, known as the Hepburn Act, was
passed under Mr. Roosevelt's admin
istraton, public sentiment regarding
national control of the railways has
made an astonishing advance. An in
dication of the degree of that advance
is the Interstate Commerce Bill on
which the Republican majority of the
conference committee of congress has
lust now agreed. In this case, as in
many other cases, it was the first step
that cost. Up to the time of the pas
sage of the Hepburn Bill the prevailing
opinion was that a railway was a COM
mercial concern engaged in selling an
Observation-Disclosures that it
might legitimately get from each pur-
chaser what price it could. Very
slowly, and only after much public dis
cussion, public opinion accepted,
guardedly, the principle that rail-
way is primarily a public servant OPP
Grating public highway, entitled to
fair compensation, but not entitled to
get all it can, and not entitled to de-
termine the conditions under which its
work should be done. Although this
principle was not unrecognized in
court decisions, and was in a fashion
involved in the creation of the Inter-
State Commerce Commission some
years before, it was established beyond
dispute when the Hepburn Act was
adopted. To that principle was added
another, that every one who used a
railway should for the same service be
entitled to the same terms as every
one else.
Now, though these principles were
far-reaching, the specific provisions
by which they were established unmis-
takably in law were very conservative.
They allowed the Interstate Com
merce Commission to fix a maximum
rate, but only after hearing upon
complaint from somebody who had a
serious grievance and had sufficient re-
sources to institute proceedings They
also prohibited rebates, and, when due
qualifications, passes, but did not en-
able the Commission to deal effectively
with the many devices by which favor
ed shippers received advantages.
For a year the Commission exer-
cised it's new powers. 1t was evident
that the law was justified Then came
a new suggestion. 1t was that the
Commission, instead of being limited
to such action as it might be called
upon to take in response to COM
plants, should have the power to ini-
tate investigations, and even to sus-
pend increased rates peHding a hear
ing as to their reasonableness. This
suggestion was regarded as radical,
and even by many of those who had
advocated the Hepburn Act was re-
ceived with great caution The pub
lie, however became convinced that
the Commission, representing the pub
lie interests, should have this larger
power Moreover, in response to pub
lie opinion, the Republican party put
into its platform plank in favor of
giving enlarged powers to the Com
mission, and of allowing traffic agree
ments subject to the approval of the
Commission
This was the state of public opinion
when the new Congress assembled a
little more than year ago. Congress,
however, always lags somewhat af-
ter public opinion. It would have been
entirely natural If there had been an
other struggle against remonstrant
private interests over this proposal to
allow the Commission to initiate in
Vest1gatfons and to suspend rates. Pub
lie opinion however, has in the mean
time advanced so far that this propos-
al has not even been questioned The
struggle has been over other propos-
ais. Fer four months the Interstate
commerce Bill has been under discus
sion in the House and the Senate. and
the outcome is bill in which powers
are granted to the Commission and
restrictions are placed upon the rail-
ways which no one could reasonably
have anticipated a year ago. It estab-
fishes Court of Commerce, which has
no greater jurisdiction than the pres
ent courts in hearing appeals from the
decisions of the Commission, but
which can prevent the delays in court
procedure Which have often been a re-
fuge for offending railways. 1t sum-
mons to the aid of the public the SER
vices of the Attorney Generals office,
without 1nvalidating the right of the
Interstate Commerce Commission or
interested shippers to take part in the
defense of the Commissions decisions.
1t brings telegraph and telephone COM
panies under the control of the Com
mission and the provisions of the In
ter-State Commerce Law. 1t empowers
the Commission to establish through
routes. 1t prohibits railways from i'm
parting to one shipper information
about the shipments of other shippers
and requires the railways to be res
ponslble for giving shippers correct
information about rates. It puts the
burden upon the railways of showing
the reasonableness of charging in any
instance more for short than for a
long haul, and prevents the railways
from first sitting water competition
and then raising rates. And it does
all this besides enabling the Commits
sion to investigate rates of its own ini-
uatlve, to suspend new rates for eff
feet pending hearings, and even to re-
qulre railway to show the reason
ableness of any rate increase made
after the first of January.
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