The Green Forest tribune., 1910-01-14
PRESIDENT SkDS
 SPECIAL MESSAGE Makes Recommended hs as to Conn., I merce Law and lhe Trusts WOULD CONSTITUTE A SPECIAL COURT Judges to Have Power to Act Certain Specified Cases Wisdom of Federal ctporation of Indus
 trial Companies su Fssted---scope
 of Present. LaYfo0 Wide
) CONSTITUTE A SPECIAL COURT

tilf when the business of the court of | offi the judges to reassign the judges degnated to that court to the circuits | to 'alch they respectively belong; and it | sh@d also provide for payment to 1 suN judges while sitting by assignment | in me court of commerce of such addi- | tiptl amount as is necessary to bring t1f ahnuol compensation up to Sl0,000 | lPnly Second to Supreme Court. F[e regular sessions of such court stFld be held at the capitol, but it | stFId be empowered to hold sessions in 4Frent parts of the United States if fIno desirable; and it's orders and judg- 4hts should be made final subject only IrevieW by the supreme court of the Yted states, with the provision that
 4 operation of the decree appealed WI shall not be stayed unless the su- Tene court shall so order The com Pee court should be empowered in it's jfFeuon to restrain or suspend the op- Iflon Of an order of the interstate com ce commission under review pending
 F hnal hearing and determination of
 ne proceeding, but no such restraining
 fer should be made except upon mo-
 tEe and after hearing, unless in cases
 NhTe irreparable damage would other
 1. T that court might be empowered to al PNsa stay of the commissions order for ? ,eriod of not more than 60 days, but peding application to the court of its or CT or injunction, then only where his ,I CT shall contain a specific finding Ted upon evidence submitted to the titge making the order and identified by
 Ference thereto that such irreparable lnase would result to the petitioner
 HcifViue the Datl1ra Of the daula
 Under the existing law, the interstate hhnrnerce commission itseld initiates and Hends litigation in the oourts for the V1 -ceemnt, or in the defense of it's or s and decrees, and for this purpose it ,vnloys attorneys, who, while subject to : control of the attorney general, act
 bn the initiative and under the instruc- ahs of the commission This blending n administrative, legislative and judi . II functions tends. in my opinion, to 'rbair the efficiency Of tie commission
 | clothiIT; it with partisan characteris-
 Is and robbing it of the impartial judi I'll attitude it should oc9upy in pass
 E upon questions submitted to 1t. In
 E opinion all litigation affecting the ,ivernment should be under the direct 1ntrol of the department of justice and therefore recommend that all proceed | lgs affecting orders and decrees of the
 terstate commerce commission be
 bought by or against the United States
 nomine, and be placed iri charge of an
 stant attorney general acting under
 De direction of the attorney general.
 Would Permit Agreements.
 In view of the complete control over and other practices of in erstate carriers established by the acts if congress. and as recomu eneed in this I see not reason why lgreemnts between carriers subject to he act, specifying the classitications of 'reight and the rateI fared and charges or transportation sE passengers and ,reisht which theykyly al rec to estab- ish. should not be I.rmitted, provided. copies of such agr Ents be promptly fled with the comm aon. Put subject to all the provisions o1the interstate com nerce act, and suHct to the right of any parties to such tt-ceem1t to cancel it IS to all or any pr the agreed rates. fares, charges, or ciasslf9auons by 50 lays notice in wrlf fng to the other par lies and to the ofmlsslot.
 Under the eXist1g lawI the commits sion can only act Fith respect to an all eged excessive ra1 or un4uly dlScrimin- atory practice by Ia carrifr on com nlaint made by sdne individual affected thereby I see no reason Fhy the com mission should no be authorized to act on its own initiatite as wei! as upon the complaint of an ildlVldual In fnVeStigat- Ing the fairness q any existing rate or practice; and l rcommenv the amend nent of the law t so provide; and also that the commisso on Shall< be fully em- powered, beyond bny question, to pass tipon the claSsifHtlons of commodities for purpose of fiSng rates,l in like man ner as it may nov do with respect to the maximum rate aphcable 10 any trans- portation.
 Existing aw PoWfrless.
 Under the existlg law tbe commission may not investigte an incfease in rates until after it sha become defective; and one ormore car4lers may file with the commiSon a prolbosed increase in rates or chagc In clasISlhcatonS, or other alterationbf the exifting rates or tibecome effective at the expiration of 30 ays from Auch filing, no proceeding can be taken kc investigate the reasonableIs Iss of slSch proposed change until aer it becortles operative. On the other bnd, If thFs commission shall make an fder finding that an eX- isting rate is ecesslVe, ana directing It to be reduced, Inc carrier iaMecIed may by proceedingSin the co,Erts, stay the operation of sth order ofy reduction for months, and esn years. It has, there fore been susested that the commis- sion should bI empowered whenever a proposed incrase in rates} is filed, at once to enter hpon an investigation of the reasonabls sess of the increase. and to make an der postponFng the effec- tive date of uch increasle until after such investigabn shall be ,tompleted. To this much obction has been made on the part of ctriers. TheN contend that this would be.a effect to take from the owpers of thd.ailrOadS thth nanaeement of their propiies and to clothe the in terstate comrrce commission with the original ratenakiIlg poNyer-a policy
 which was nch discussed at the time
 of the passas of the Hepburn act in 19O5-6, and wch was ther and has al- ways been dEnctly rejected; and in re- ply to the slEestion that they are able, by resortingp the courtsI. to stay the taking effectf the order elf the commits sion until it treasonablene4ss shall have
 been inyestijted by the courts. where
 as, the peoP are deprived of any such
 remedy witfrespect to alction by the
 carriers. thd point to the provisions of
 the interstaq qcommerce act providing for
 restitution tEhe shippers by carriers, of
 excessive ras charged irN cases where
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