Connecticut western news., 1911-01-05
COURT OF COMMERCE.
PRESIDENT MELLEN WRITES
 HIS VIEWS ON LEGISLATION

Does, Not Believe a Public Utilities
 Commission Would Solve the Prob
 lem of State Supervision in Sat
 isfactory Manner.
 President Mellen has written another letter to the officers of the Connecticut Editorial Association-Preside Hill and Secretary Barnes-giving further his opinion as to why "court of com merce" is preferable to a public utilities commission. MT. Mellen writes:
 l have said in such previous letters as l have had time to write, that in my judgment all who serve the public in any way, whether they are corporations or individuals, whether they are en- gagged in railroad. manufacturing, mer- cantile or any other business, may right fully be held by the State to the honest performance of the service due from them to the public. at reasonable rates. wish now to point out that do not mean by this that the State may prop erly appoint commissions to manage these peoples business for them. The highest court of the State of New York has recently pointed out that so long as a railroad is held ill private ownership it's owners cannot be constitutioually divested of the right to manage their own property. In my opinion, the State can properly interfere with the manage mert of any property by it's owners, only so far as IS necessary to secure the public against the failure of these owners to perform their duties.
 Moreover, do not regard it as practi- cable for the State to secure a political board or administrative commission which would be competent to manage the business of the so. called public ser vice corporations. The details of the railroad business are so various and of such vast complexity that we are com pelled to have highly paid speclalists at the head of different departments of the serv1ce, who do not necessarily know anything about the problems which oc. cupy the attention of the heads of other departments. For example, even the most experienced operating man on the railroads of this county have, as rule, no familiarity with the complicated con- ditions which control the fixing of rail road rates by the traffic officials. It is practically impossible that a merchant or manufacturer, however experienced in his own line of business, or however able, should be qualified as an all-round railroad expert. do not think that the State could obtain as members of Com- mission (even if 1t were willing to pay the market price of their servicesl three men qualified to be presidents of great railroads, or even heads of railroad de- partments. And if the State could get such men. they would probably have TO expert knowledge about the telegraph or telephone service, or about the produc- tion or distribution of gas or electricity, or about the problems of water supply.
 VII bhC ObuOL bhC SOdItS Ol OulS State are. in many cases, called upon to decide questions as to the reasonableness of conduct complained of, and in these and other cases to analyze and apply the law to very complex conditions. The traditions of their high office secure the judges of our courts against temptations to partiality to which political boards or administrative commissions would be more or less exposed; and their life training especially qualities judges for the determination of intricate and diff ficult issues of fact and law, such as are inevitably involved in controversies con- cerning the reasonableness of services or of rates. As one of the managers for the many stockholders who are the real owners of the principal railroads of Con necticut, I believe that we are giving the public good service at reasonable rates If am wrong in this belief i'll any par ticular, an impartial judicial tribunal, after getting the relevant facts ill evi- dence, would quickly so adjudge, and l admit that we could then be properly enjoined to desisC from our neglect of our lawful duties.
 It cannot be too often reiterated that the true interests of the owners of rail roads aud of the public are identical and not divergent. I believe that such laws as have been recently enacted in this country, creating political boards or ad- ministrative com missions for the deter imitation of controversies essentially judicial in their nature will, because they are unjust to the railroads. in the long rnn be also severely injurious to the public. I sincerely think that it is possible for the thoughtful people of Connecticut, as legislative pioneers, to show clearer understanding of actual economic and legal conditions governing the relations of railroads and the public than has yet been shown anywhere. As ,,,v coptr;b,, E;or to fba ratiOna1 6iscus-