The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-03-19
Senator CuTnnnins Attacks
 Certain Clauses In Bill
MERGERS ARE TO BE BARRED
Cummins Calls Attention to the Fact That Electric Lines Might Gaie Control of All the Railroads
 in the Country

Washington, March 1S.-After holding the floor four days Senator Cummins to- day completed his speech in opposition to tho administration railroad bill and the Senate adjourned until Monday next. The Iowa senator's discussion today dealt principally with the provision regu- lating the consolidation of railroads and with this provision he found much fault. Pointing out that the regulation extends to railroads alone, he declared that in the omission of water lines there was pos sibility of great abuse. He referred to tho prospective completion of the Panama
 canal and said it would be impossible to
 prevent the transcontnental railroads from acquiring the water lines. thus cut ting out all competition. He also called attention to the fact that
 electric lines were specifically excluded from the provision and declared it would
 be possible for an electric line to gain
 control of all the railroads in the coun- try.
 MT. Cummins also criticised the words
 directly competitive" as defining the lines of consolidation, giving the roads
 much margin of elasticity Mir Cum
 mins engaged in a colloquy with Senator
 Ellzins during which he declared:
 q want to prevent competing lines from
 consolidating"
 That is what we all want replied MT.
 Elkins.
 T am glad to see that the senator from
 Iowa is bring himself into substantial ac- cord with his committee
 You mean that the committee is being driven gradually to accept my position" retorted MT. Cummins MT. Aldrich interpreted this statement
 as an ultinatum and remarked that it seemed to be one of several ultimatums which that senator had undertaken to lay down.
 MT Cummins dsavowed any such pur- | pose. Senator Nelson suggested the strik- ing out of the entire provision regarding
 railroad mergers. leaving the antitrust
 law to control in such cases. "If we
 adopt this section it will be folly to carry on further the prosecution of the Union Pacific merger' he said. MT. Cummins took Up the provision placing the approval or disapproval on consolidation agreements in the discre- ton of the proposed court of commerce.
 and declared 1t to be extraordinary and
 unconstitutional because, as he contend | ed, it delegated legislative authority to the court.
 Senator Borah inquired who was the | author of the provision. Search us" ejaculated Senator Clay
 MT. Cummins suggested the Attorney
 General as the probable author, and inti-
 mated that he believed the President to
 be responsible for the original sugges- tion
 "It is plain," said Senator Nelson, that
 the bill is an orphan"
 MT. Overman did not agree with him in view of Senator Cummins statement
 and Senator Ellkins thought its paternity
 quite unimportant.
 Tt is here" said he, .'and the question
 is whether 1t Is right and whether we
 ought to vote for it regardless of its
 origin"
 Senator Borah said he did not believe
 that as lawyer the President would contend for the constitutionality of the provision.
 Senator Cummins pleaded for an impar- tial consideration of the question, saying
 that it was one of the most important
 subjects with which legislation could pos sibly deal. When he concluded he was congratulated by a number of senators. Corporation Tax Argued Washington, March 1S.-The last word by the lawyers was said this afternoon on the constitutionality of the corpora ton tax provisions of the Payne-Aldrich tariff law, and the supreme court of the United States took the Is cases in which the question arose under consideration. The second day of the argument on the tax was consumed largely by the presen- tation of the government defense of the law by Solicitor General Bowers William D. Guthrie of New York led a flank movement with the object of pro-
 curing a decision from the court holding that the tax Is not to be collected on income from national, state and munich pal bonds, and property of corporations not actively employed in business.
 To John c. Johnson of Philadelphia fell the task of closing the attack on the tax just before the court adjourned.
 One of the biggest side fights in addi- tion to the great contest over the consti- tutionality of the tax was laid bare when MT. Bowers insisted to the court that
 'the net income from all sources" mem toned in the law as the basis of meas uring the tax included all the property of a corporation.
 William D. Guthrie and his associates. Victor Morawetz and Howard Van Sin deren, counsel for the Home Life Insur- ance company, were present to insist that the law. did not mean to include the in- come derived directly from United States, state or municipal corporations. or from real or persona! property, not used or em- ployed in business. They advanced this on the theory thatsi if the tax was not levied on such property the law would become clearly constitutfcnal. MT. Bowers argued thas corporation cannot hold property that is Neot devoted to the corporate business eithes actively or passively. He cited the deci.ton of the supreme court holding the b>>ited States could levy an internal revenue esx on the dispensary of South Carolina as showing that the United States may take public service corporations In closing the solicitor said the pub licity feature of the law was not raised in the cases which involved only private individuals as parties to them. Tom Johnson Again III New York. March 1s.-Tom l.. Johnson, formerly of Cleveland O.. is again at