The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-06-10


ceptance of results which depend upon
mere conjecture"
Justice Hughes said that the railroad
would have no ground to complain ii
IL were allowed a value for its lands
equal TO the fair average market value
or similar lands in the vicinity without
ADDITIONS by the use of multipliers. or
othefWise TO cover hypothetical out
lays.
In criticising the apportionment of
valuation between interstate and in
trastate business upon Tie gross rev.
ehue basis, Justice Hughes said that
the division should be made according
TO the use that is made of the prom
erty.
lie declared that this use could not
be measured by the return, when the
return itself was iii question. "If the
return be taken as the basis" said he.
then the validity of the states reduc-
ton of rates would have to be tested
by the very rates which the state de-
nounced as eXhorbitant." He added that
II would be possible to ascertain some
Kind of use units by which the prop
erty could be divided both between
interstate and intrastate on the one
hand and between freight and passen-
ger business on the other. He did not
point out what this unit would be-
tie next considered the lower courts
plan OF apportioning expenses on the
oasis that 1t cost two and a half times
as much to do intrastate freight busi-
ness as 1t did to do interstate, as well
as a larger amount to do intrastate
passenger business than to do inter-
state lie said that the expenses had
not been kept separately in the ac-
counts or statistics of the company and
that testimony as to the difference in
expenses varied widely, and that the
intricate question of whether the rates
were conilscatory could not be decided
on proof of such a general character.
Applying these principles to the
Northern Pacific, the Justice held that
neither the value of the property em-
pioyed nor the share of expenses at
trlputable' to intrastate business had
been proven satisfactorily to show thai
Inc railroads property was confiscated.
similar conclusion was reached by
appiylns the principles of the Great
Northern railroad
Coming to the Minneapolis and st.
Louis, he found that the net return
IN 1903 to that road was less than
80 per cent and that the errors of es-
timating value and of apportionment
were not sufficient to change the re-
suit.
Justice Hughes said:
l. The constitution gives congress au-
the freedom of interstate commerce in
teroourse from state control and to pro.
vide effective regulation of that inter-
course as the national interest demands.
%. The commerce that is confined
within one state and does not affect
other states is reserved to the state.
This reservation is only of that type
which is consistent with grants to con-
gress, The authority of congress ex.
tends to every part of interstate com
merce and to every instrumentality or
agency by which it Is carried on. and
the full control of congress over the
subjects committed to it's regulation is
not to be denied or thwarted by the
comngling of interstate and intrastate
operations.
80. Even without action by congress the
commerce clause necessarily excludes the
states from direct control of subjects
embraced within the clauses which are
OF such character that IL regulated at
All their regulation should be like that
of the miller and prescribed by a single
authority. There is such secured the es
sential immunity of Interstate course
from the imposition by which the states
of all parts of the union are relieved
of burdens and restraints.
Territorial Jurisdiction
T. There remains to the states the
power TO govern their territorial juris- |
olctions appropriately in making suit |
able provision for localized needs. The
state may provide local improvements.
create and regulate local facilities and
adopt protective measures of a reason |
able continental character in the interest
Oh the health, safety, moral and general
weitare of its people. although interstate
commerce may specifically, incidentally |
'r indirectly be involved. Where mat
xxrft H. L.
,oove described are also by reason Of
heir relation to intrastate commerce
within the reach of the federal power,