The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1910-06-02
Thought That A teFaey-Gen-.
eral is Planning Wide Cam
paign Against Them.
RAILWAYS ATTEMPTED
TO PRESERVE SECRECY
New York Commuters Have Con.
test az Their Rates
Go Up Like
Rockets.

- WASHINGTON. D. c.. june THE
action Of the attorney general against
the twenty-five railroads composing
the Western Trunk Line Association.
enJoining them from putting INTO eff
rect increased rates the first of this
month. Is belies ed here to-day TO be
only the beginning OF far-reaching
and general campaign, The Omaha
committee upon whose complaint the
attorney general acted confined its
protests - the proposed increases III
rates To Missouri river points.
But the shippers of the middle West
ara almost as greatly interested in the
higher tariffs which went into effect
yesterday on all roads going out OF
Chicago tn -St--Iau- which range
from 10 To 80 per cent Apparently
the Omaha committee MRS uninfonn-
ed as TO these proposed increases
which were filed with the Interstate
et-fnfsavree et,fff f1ftsstuu month ago.
When the attention OF the attorney
general Was called to them to-d&y he
said that ne could take no action be-
cause there had been no complaint
filed against them. Some such pro
tests are expected, however.
foor commuters.
Vigorous complaints also are ex-
pected from tho thousands oil com
muters who traveT daily from New
ork tn points in New England and
New Jersey and whose monthly tickets
soon Will lie increased In. cost any
where from Sc to So.
Some comment has been made upon
the action OF the Encouragement In
proceeding against the traffic assocta
which make "a - AnfE
rates for the railroads composing their
mcm bcrship, because President Taft
and his advisers heretofore have held
that. such agreements should he
legAltzed and var" in fact necessary
for the business interests uf the coun-
frg.
Kept Secret.
1t is pointed out however. that in
the case Of the Western Tran AS
sociation the proposed increases were
not only alleged to he exorbitant but
there was an apparent effort upon the
part OF the roads to keep knowledge
"t them from jhe shippers until IL
was too late to take action At the
prlnfipa sh-rTiuk Centers Of the mid
die West. su rs Omaha. st. Louis.
81. JoSe pin, Kansas City, etc, II was
impossible to procure copies of the
new tariffs through the usual agencies
until near the middle Of May,
Attorney ,Gsenarai Wickersham
pointed out to-day that from ina be-
ginning Of the present session of con-
gress the administration has been
urging that a law hc passed which
would give tho Interstate commerce
commission the authority to invessi-
gate proposed increases in rates he
fore they go ito effect.
The controversy which has develop
ed between the house and senate as
TO whether the period of time during
which the rates could be held mp ny
the commission should be sixty days
or 1870 days. affects merely detail. in
his opinion.
~ to the amendment offered nv
Senator Cummins to the pending rail-
road bill. which provides that all pro-
posed increases should he first sub
fnittea to the commission, the attor-
ney-general said that II would swamp
the commission because there are
several hu..dret thousand changes of
rates eVe~y year.
Many OF them are unimportant and
the inve litigation of all would involve
an enormous labor, mucn of which
would be was, I'd. Wickersham urges
the passage cf taw which will enable
the commits Ion 10 hold up pro-
posed rate before II goes into effect.
either upon complaint or upon
motion OF the commission itself, when
II has reas6 II tn believe that the pro-
posed rates would he unreasonable,