Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1910-07-07


court procedure which have often
been a refuge for offending railroads.
1t summons to the aid of the public
the services of the attorney gener-
ais office without inyalidating the \
right of tne Interstate Commission .
or interested shippers to take part
in the defense of the Commission I
decisions. At brings telegraph and tel 1
ephone companies under the control
of the Commission and the provi-
sions of the Interstate Commerce
Law. Ii empowers the Commission 90
establish through routes 1t prohib-
it's railways from imparting TO one
shipper information about the ship
meats of other shippers, and re-
quires railways to be responsible for
giving shippers correct information
about rates 1t puts the burden upon
thd railways of showing the reason
ableness of charging in any instance
more for a short than for a long
haul, and prevents the railroads from
first stifling water competition and
then raising rates And it does all
this besides enabling the Commission
to Investigate rates OF its own init
iative, to suspend new rates for ef-
fec5 pending hearings. and even TO
require a railway to show the reason
ableness of any rate increase made
after the first of January.
No bill in recent years has so man
ifestly grown under the direct stim-
ulus of popular opinion What has
happened to this bill may be likened
to what often happens in the build
ing Of house. The owner tells the
architect what sort of a house he
wants, and the architect draws the
plans. Meantime the owner has some
new ideas. and when he looks at the
plans makes several suggestions
which are Incorporated. Then the
builders begin their work No sooner
however are the foundations laid
than the housewife sees that a root
cellar must be added
Then the young people coll for mu-
sic room Then the master of tn,
house wants a wing constructed tc
contain den. So the house grows un
der the public sentiment Of the fam
ily Al last when il is finished, SOM
disappointment may be expresse,
that the roof was not built higher O
a chimney built to provide for NOR
open fire places; but the house is fa
r more elaborate when completed thar
was originally planned. So with thi
r bill. Provision after provision wa
put in because of the demands mad
by those representing public senti
ment.
+ In two respects the original plai
> was carried out. In the Repubicai
> platform it was proposed that permis
d sion be granted to the railways Z
: make traffic agreements subject t
the approval of the Interstate Com
merce Commission Such provisio
F. was put into the bill as drafted b
IL the Attorney General, but because
q seemed to open the way to unregt
e lated combinations, it was dropped
d We believe that it is entirely possibl
d to draft provision which shall tax
l. rate agreements o1t of the categor
l. of the prohibited and put them int
s. the CATEGORY of the regulated
r In one other respect the origin'
is plan was not carried out. The autl
al ority of the Interstate Con
ID merce commission should be e.
e. tended to apply to the fnancii
b. operations Of common carriers
at Interstate commerce, as such an
ne thority has been given to the Publ
r. Service Commission in New Yoi
TO state over the financial operations
ty public service companies within
a. jurisdiction. and as similar authori
ne has been granted to public commi
ie sions in Massachusetts. When al
al common carried engaged in inte
state commerce desires to issue nc
n securities, it should first be requir
,l- to apply to the Interstate Cor
n- merce Commission, and the Cor
e- mission should be empowered
Id ascertain the physical valuation
re the carriers property The cost
Ist the necessary Investigation cou
er Justly be charged to the applica
is carrier AS a consequence, not on
10 would there be protection offer
W. to investors in railway stock al
ed bonds, but there would be establis
en- ed basis for determining VIII
as rates could be regarded as reasc
ur able, and what sort of service con
zee be justly demanded. In this respe
he however. the bill is not altogeti