The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1910-04-08
DEBATE
TO Be LONG ONE
Difference Of Opinion Manifested
Among Legislators as to In
terstate Commerce.
BILL DRAWN BY PRESIDENT
Chief Executive Said to Have Given
the Measure His Personal Atten-
tion-Projected Court of Pat.
ent Appeals-The Presi-
dents Tour.


ton that the debate in the senate on
the amendments to the interstate com.
merce act will be long drawn out and
that it will be marked by many of the
acrimonious features of the tariff de-
pate of last spring and summer. The
alignment of senators on the measure
VIII not be exactly the same as that
on the customs measure. but the ma.
9orlty of those who will be in opposi-
ton to the bill as it was introduced
Will be the senators who fought many
OF the provisions Of the Payne-Aldrich
bill.
1t is doubtful if there ever was in.
PRODUCED into congress a bill upon
winch there were exactly so many d..
verse opinions as there are upon this
measure which the senate now has
under consideration. OF course the
measure affects largely the work Of
the members OF the interstate com.
merce commission, and yet the mem.
bers OF the commission themselves are
at variance in their views as to the
efficiency OF the bill in some of its par
dculars. The amendments were pre-
pared IN the first instance by a com.
mittee appointed By President Taft,
every one of the members Of which
was lawyer Of high standing. Then
Mr.. TAT. went over ,he measure him.
self, bringing 70 bear ol il I'll his ia.
dicial training. I.b,- csSiae, officers
took 1t up and sanctioned IL and said
it was proot against ataacs IL the
courts.
| exoe1s Disagree.
There never WEE such & c-sEs per.
haps of supposed experts dissgIeeing
on the efficiency ot biz There is q
provision in the proposed legislation
which allows the railroads 10 enter
into traffic agreements on rates. the
agreements to be submitted to the in
terstate commerce commission, who
shall be allowed TO pass only Oh the
question as to whether the rate as an
average is eXorbitant. ...
Some members Of the interstate
commerce commission declare that
this takes away much from the prop
osition as advanced originally by The
odore Roosevelt. The former presi
dent agreed that the railroads should
be allowed to make traffic pools, bu
said that the interstate commerce com
mission should be given the power tt
nullify them provided it was showr
that the pools were contrary to wha
might be considered public policy
Other members Of the commission sa,
that as long as they have the power
to get at the rate that is all that is
necessary and all in which the people
are interested. Mr.. Taft and his law
yer members of the cabinet hold tt
this view and seem to believe tina
they have smoothed the path through
many difficulties by giving the rail
roads the pooling right under the law
President Taft believes that appea
cases should be put into the hands O
the attorney generals office for de
tense because he has implicit conf
dence in the ability and sincerity O
the law officers connected with til.
cabinet department. Moreover, he /.
aversc to multiplying the legal depart
ments Of the government.
For Court of Patent Appeals.
For years the lawyers of the
country, particularly the patent law
yers, have endeavored to get con
gross to pass bill to establish
United States court Of patent appeals
Senator Beverilge recently INTRODUCES
such a bill in the senate and tn
judicial committee, through Senate
Brown of Nebraska, has just reporte
it favorably.
The day that this bill was reporte
to the senate it happened that Fred
erick p. Fish, an eastern attorney
and who is called the father of tn
proposed legislation, was arguing
case in the supreme court only fe,
yards away from the senate chamber
Mr.. Fish ten years ago began can
paign for court of patent appeal.
and he has been assisted in the wor
by Edmund Wetmore OF New Yorl
at one time president of the America
Bar association, and by other prom
nent attorneys in the work Of attenp
ing to secure the passage Of the mea!
ure.
In discussing the proposed bill, Nj
Fish had something to say about tn
patent system Of the United State
and he gave some interesting inform;
ton concerning what might be Gale
the patent industry of the Unite
States and the inventive genius Of tn
| American people. The pltent law