The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1913-12-12
RATE SITUATION
Legal Department of State Rail
way Commission Makes
Statement

Pierre, Dec. IL. account of
complaints made about the rate situa
ton in this state the legal department
of the railway commission makes The
following statement of the situation
for South Dakota:
'.When the Minnesota rate cases
were decided by the supreme court of
the United States, the interstate com
MERGE commission notified the railways
doing business in Minnesota hat they
would be required to line up their
interstate rates into and ont of Min
nesota to and from Wisconsin, Iowa,
North and South Dakota SO that the
through rates would not exceed the
sum of the locals. A hearing was
granted the railways of which the
states had no notice, and as a result
of that hearing the Interstate com
merce commission gave the railroads
until May /, 1914, in which to check
their tariffs and put into effect the
new basis of rates.
Recently complaints have been
made to Governor Byrne and to the
railway commission of the higher
basis of rates from South Dakota sta
tions to the Twin Cities, and these
complaints were referred by Governor
Byrne to the rail way commission. at
the legal department of the state with
instructions to do what could be done
to have the rates put into effect at an
earlier date and to have the interstate
commission modify its order
fixing the date as May /, 1914. The
legal department of the state has pre-.
sented the matter to the interstate
commerce commission and to the
~trafice officials of the railroads and to
the membership of the railroad com
missions of the states of North Dako
ia, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa. Ne
braska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Mis-
souri,. these states constituting, with
South Dakota. what Is known MS the
Mississippi Valley association of
railroad commissioners A confer
ence has been called of this association
to be held in Chicago, December II for
the purpose of taking action in the
matter.
Because the attorney general and
his assistants In this state are all en-
gagged In litigation ON behalf in the
being engaged ia the trial of the
Mcclellan case at Sioux Falls; Mr.
O'Brien engaged a. n term of court in
Kingsbnfy county at DeSmet. ard
Mr.. Dougherty having two cases for
trial before the interstate commerce
commission at Sioux City, December
II. it will he impossible for any
,nenber of the legal department to at
tend the conference mt Chicago on the
sane date. and the state will there
for be represented by Mr.. Robinson,
one of the railroad commission. Tbs
only action which can be taken by the
conference will be to appoint IA com
mittee to wait upon the interstate com
merce commission and urge a modifica-
tion of its order and insist that the
lower basis of interstate rates be put
in immediately.
The state railway commission has
been notified that the Milwaukee and
M. and s. L. railway companies have
appealed from their orders for connect
ing tracks at Mellette and Bradley;
and hat the Milwaukee company has
appea led from the order of the com
mission for a sidetrack between Yank-
ton and Tabor. This track was or
dered in after a hearing before the
commission at which all parties in
terested were given a hearing, and
the railway company put up a strong
fight against such order. Under the
new law such appeals go to the circuit
courts for action.