The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1911-09-29
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SPEECH
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4 niSh 10.
i / recommended that the commission
be authorized to act on its own init.
/ alive, as well az upon the complaint
Of amy individual respecting the rea-
condolences of any rate or the fair
ness Of any practice, and that the
commission should be- empowered ia
| pass upon the classification OF COM
modities, as well as upon their rates
that having been left in doubt under
the previous law.
/ ] also invited attention to the iniur.
ious delay of remedy which was oc-
casioned to the shippers whenever un-
reasonable advances In rates were
made. The interstate commerce com
mission might find the advance I'M
reasonable only after a long hearing,
and after 1t had gone into effect. and
| after the unreasonable rates had been
collected for considerable period.
! suggested that the Interstate com
merce commission might have power
to suspend such an order for sixty
days and look into Its reasonableness,
and that II 1t be found unreasonable
| 1t should not be permitted
/ invited attention also to the com
plant of the shippers that they did
not have the power to direct the route
over which their shipment should pass
to destination. recommended that
this be given them. subject to such
reasonable regulation as the commits
sion might prescribe.
All these provisions In one form or
another were enacted into the law.
In addition the house of representa-
woe nd dnI -
interstate commerce commission the
power to declare reasonable rates in
respect to telegraph, telephone and
express companies A modification
was made in the senate regarding the
long and short haul clause, which gave
more discretion to the Interstate com
merce commission than that which it
had heretofore exercised under the
decisions of the supreme court. The
time during which the commission
could suspend the raising of q rate
was enlarged to four months, and ar
ter that II necessary, to six months
longer, instead of the sixty DAYS
which / had recommended. had
submitted the question of the proper
amendments to the attorney general
and the solicitor general, to the chief
OF the interstate commerce commits
sion, to Commissioner Prouty and to
Senator Townsend, then q member Of
the interstate commerce COMMITTEES OF
the house of representatives, and ]
recommended to congress for inclus-
ion In the bill the provisions which
they recommended to me. The bill
was enacted in the form which I have
indicated. There were certain amend
ments that / recommend that were
not approved. One was recon-
mendation that no railroad COM
pany be allowed to acquire stock In a
competing railroad company, with
such provisions for existing arrange
ments as would obviate confusion, and
fhe Gecond recommendation in ac-
cordance with the platform of the re-
publican party, and the urgent mes
sages of my predecessor, was that com
peting railroads should be able to make
temporary arrangements for common
rates between common points with
out giving them any binding charac-
ter as contracts. 1t was thought by
congress. however, that this would
seriously affect the operation of the
antitrust act, and it was not APP
proved.
Another Recommendation which 4
made was one forbidding interstate
commerce railways to issue bonds and
stocks without the permission of the
interstate commerce commission. For
this provision was substituted q Sec
ton providing commission to be APP
pointed by the president to make q
report upon the feasibility and wis
dom Of such a provision, and that re-
port will be submitted to congress at
the next session.
New Laws Not Advisable.
/ think 1t Is now generally conceded
by those who understand the opera
ton OF the present law that the regu-
lative power Of the interstate com
merce commission liz sufficiently great
to remedy generally the injustices to
shippers which gave rise to the de-
mand for legislation. Except the in
PRODUCTION of limitation as to the
power of issuing stocks and bonds. I
do not think 1t wise to add to the
present statutes.
The history Of the operation OF the
interstate commerce act is interesting
and instructive. Soon after the in
ception Of the statute the railroads
began to treat the interstate COM
merce commission quite contemptu-
ously. The system OF unlawful re-
bates was very widespread among
them, and the NEGLECT OF the law was
apparent to everyone interested in its
operation. This condition aroused
the indignation Of the people and
pressed their representatives on to
further restrictions. Indeed, II gave
rise to prejudice against the rail-.
roads from which they have suffered
in some cases unjustly. Now, / feel
that they have become reconciled to
the facts; they have come to recog-
nize that the public insists upon reg
ulating their business and seeing to it
fhrnl1nh fha Interstate cnnarnarca com