Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1910-08-03


state commerce commission should be
materially enlarged, and we OF the west.
at any rate felt that there should be
some restriction upon common carrier
corporations engaged In interstate traf-
fc with respect to the issuance OF
stocks and bonds.
The history OF the previous decade In
this respect had been so lamentaoie
that our national platform In 1913
made emphatic references to this phase
Of the subject The president assumed
the initiative, but unfortunately, as
view 1t, he delegated to the attorney
general the task Of preparing blu to
be laid before congress-. nave. no
reason to doubt the honesty Of the at
torney general, but he had just come
from a long professional training and
association which untitled him to deal
wisely with this subject. and there
came from his hands into the house
and senate a bill which, If 1t had
passed, as Aldrich so emphatically de-
clared It should pass. would have con-
signed the republican party to eternaa
disgrace and defeat.
Another Reputation.
Contrary to our solemn promise IN
the platform it proposed to repeal the
antitrust law with respect to traffic
agreements among railways specifying
rates and charges, and to permit such
agreement and the rates and charge
made under them to go into erect
without the approval OF the interstate
commerce commission.
1t proposed to allow single judge to
issue a temporary injunction without
notice. restraining the interstate COM
merce commission from enforcing an
order reducing rates, and took away
the right of appeal to the supreme
court from such an injunction.
1t proposed to limit the period in
which the commission could suspend
changes in rates to sixty days, period
which everybody knew to be altogether
insufficient.
It proposed to take away from the
commission the power to establish
thru rates between steam railways and
electric railways, thereby subjecting
the latter to the arbitrary will Of the
former.
II is proposed to repeal the antitrust
law with respect to the merging and
consolidation of railways, and to sub
stitute for 1t the Unbelievable discre-
ton of the commerce court exercised In
an ex parte proceeding.
It proposed in effect, to validate the
existing capitalization of railway com
panies. and the regulation with re-
gard to the future issuance of stocks
and bonds was attended by series OF
exceptions which practically legalizes
every known method Of oyercapitan-
zation.
It proposed to create useless and
expensive court of commerce to do the
work which the circuit court now does.
am glad to be able to say that,
with the exception OF the court OF COM
merce, every one of these proposals
found their way to the graveyard OF
legislative heresy and reaction. ana
there / hape they will lie buried for
ever.
All that was good in the bill was
carefully preserved. and all that was
bad was either wholly rejected or ma
terially modified.
Remade the Bill.
With the Introduction Of the Dill
there began such a struggle as has
been rarely witnessed between the
forces of progress and reaction. The
progressive republicans did not get all
they wanted, nor all they ought to
have had, but they succeeded In con-
yerting a measure which in its original
form would have been long step back
ward. into measure that is crafty
ing step forward.
We earnestly commended that no IN
creases in rates should hereafter go In
to effect until approved by the COM
mission This seems fair and just. IN
asmuch as the carriers made the rtaes
that are now in force. and 1t may.
therefore, be assumed that they are re-
munerative.