The Washington times., 1910-12-30
Changes Planned In Com
missions Method of Hand
ling Its Work.
CLEMENTS TO SUCCEED
KNAPP AS CHAIRMAN
Nov Proposed to Change Head
OF Body Each
Year.
By JUDsoN C. wELLIvER.

important business that has eve-- .-0g1e
20 81 for determination, the Interstate
Commerce Commission VIII meet early
In January Important reorganization
OF the commissions methods Of handing
It's work VIII be among the first things
taken up
With the retirement Of Main 4
Knapp, after many years Of se--ice as
chairman, the commission must r.eIect 4
new executive IN recent time Prasf-
dents have not attempted to dictate who
should be Chairman. and Mr.. Tus ID has
succeeded himself from year 10 year.
parity BY reason Of his position as senior
member and partly because OF his long
experience and qualifications for execu-
i've duties Early in the history Of the
commission, according 10 tradition. a
situation arose which involved q. possible
struggle over the Craftsmanship. Mr.
Cleveland then vas President and II
was his desire that Mr.. Knapp should
be chairman Having an a7p0iutrre7t
10 make the President is said To have
specified that this aDDointee must SUI
port Mr. Knapp for chairman
Since that time, however, there has
never been serious intImatiou Of execu-
tive Interference with the commission in
choosing its chairman.
N4cutAES SENIOR Mem heT
COMMISSIONS Judson c. Clements. OF
Georgia becomes the senior member
with the retirement Of Judge KnapD-
and the heir apparent to the chairman
ship he is Democrat, and the -eor-
CANNED commission vii include four
Republicans and three Democ-ars- F7o7i-
ticS' however. has never been a recog-
nized factor and Il Is expected J-.7ra
Clements
Chairman
There Is, however, a distinct dfz,,=7-
ton to have a new deal in this mare
Of the Craftsmanship The idea o. =
permanent chairman, succeeding him
sell year after year by reason Of s.
nioTiIy, is not regarded with much
favor by the younger members Of the
commission
Accordingly II fs stated that a p-opo-
sItiOn VIII be made 10 have the chair
manship rotate among the members.
each holding a year at q time Under
this arrangement Judge CIemeats viii
be chairman during 1911, and TIE mex
member IN seniority Judge Pros-ty
y ould Be chairman for 1912, and 50 Oh
II IS felt that this IS q much more
democratic method than that OF hav-
ing a single member attain To so-7a-
thing like general recognition as TIE
permanent head and spokesman OF tbz
body The chairman has no more ar7-
tAor1ty or influence in. guiding the poll
cy OF the commission than any other
member, but long continuance in the
CHIEF executive Office Inevitably gives
him q certain credit and standing with
the public which Is quite out Of pro
portion 70 his real authority
Members Are Cheerful.
Despite a general impression that t.
IL 2 Ffarr
mission is decidedly cheerful about its
prospects OF digging out from under the
load dumped on II by the Hepburn act
and the more recent Elkius-Nann bill.
Organization has been effected and
methods devised for delegating much
OF the work OF administration and In
vestigation 20 s1fbordinates- This sys-
TEN is necessarily extended and tx
banded whenever Congress imposes new
duties
For example. the long and short haul
clause contained in the EIkins-AIan1
law Will unavOidabIy impose a heavy
burden Of new work, consisting largely
Of investigation, before the commission
viii be able to lay down its iu.erpretz-
ton OF this provision. and formulate
policy in conformity with that inter
probation This work Of studying pres
ent rate conditions, and hndi1E the
facts concerning the application Of the
! long and short haul TO them, VIII be
iutrUSted largely TO examines When
these have reported the facts the COM
mission VIII make them the basis for
its final determination
Clause a Puzzle
It Is going to be no easy task to de
eide what Congress meant when L
passed the new long and short haul
clause. The commission IS made the
repository Of a large discretion 20 de-
terruine, In each particular case. wheIh-
er there are circumstances relating u
competition which justify permitting
a lower rate for a longer haul than for
a shorter If the commission should
decide on a pretty uniform enforcement
Of regulations prohibiting the lower
charge for the longer haul, II would
pTecipitate g revolutionary reOrganiZG-
ton Of the whole fabric of rates es-
peCially in the West
commission viii prepare a careful IN
depreciation Of this provision, and make
regulations adapted 20 general apphca-
| ttOn for the. guidance OF the railroads
/ IN adjusting their rsteSr No matter
/ how liberal II may be in granting power
| to the railroads In this regard. the com
] mission viii be unable to avoid a vast
number of changes IN rates and the re-
/ Iationship OF rates Many OF the new
I tariffs which will have TO be fled IN
/ the effort to conform 70 these resula-
| shippers, and viii have TO be suspended
/ by fat of the commission pending de-
tailed investigation
Do Not Expect Long Delay.
| Contrary TO general impression. the
| commissioners do not expect a long de-
| law before they can decide the pending
| cases invoicing proposed advances Of
| freight rates Arguments in these cases
viii begin the first week in January,
| and the commissioners hope to be able
/ TO decide ali the cases in a comparative
| " short time.
! Several cases OF national importance.
/ involving express rates are pending,
/ and are likely 10 be the subject OF eariy
| decisions These various cases involve.
/ directly and Indirectly express rates
among all sections OF the country, and
| there is a vigorous intimatiOn that the
| commission is going TO find that express
| rates are about the worst hodge-uodSs
| of unreasonable, Illogical, unjustiiabies
\ and. IN mary cases. extortionate ulala-
| iustmentS nat ever got introduced into
4 q scheme OF TRANSPORTATION CHARGES