The Washington times., 1914-06-23
THE INTER-MOUNTAIN
CASE.

1
rate case was first started. 1t was
known then as the Spokane case, and
that title still attaches to it in the
recollection of people who have been
following this remarkable contro-
versy through it's devious way to a
decision, reached yesterday, in the
Supreme Court of the United States.
People who take real interest in
the relations between Government
and business, nowadays constantly
getting more complicated, will find
much that deserves study in this
case. When the original interstate
commerce law was passed twenty
five years ago, it contained q long
and -short-haul clause; that is, fiat
provision that railroads should not
charge a higher rate for shorter
than for a longer haul, the shorter
being included entirely within the
longer. That seemed a plausible
condition; but it has taken all the
years since to determine that the
rule can be effectively enforced.
Spokane, Wash, an inland city,
had for many years been a conspicu-
Gus victim of the procedure of charg-
ing more for the shorter haul. On
freight from the East, the railroads
charged a rate to Spokane which
was made up by taking, first, the
charge from the East to the coast
cities, say Seattle; and then adding
to that the rate back to Spokane.
That is, freight from Boston, for ex-
ample, would be hauled to Seattle,
some 300 miles farther, for a much
lower rate than to Spokane. 1t
would 60 right through Spokane, and
900 miles beyond and be laid down
at the Coast cities for less than was
charged to stop it at Spokane.
The railroads defense was that at
the Coast cities they must meet the
competition of the water route-the
shipment of goods around the Horn,
or by way of the Isthmus of Panama.
This competition of routes and
markets, they insisted, justified them
in meeting the rate at the Coast,
where there was competition; but it
could not be held to compel them
correspondingly to reduce their rates
to the interior points, where there
was no water competition.
Spokane, as soon as the old law
of 1887 passed, started a proceeding
to compel a readjustment of its
rates. The railroads opposed. The
Interstate Commission found for
Spokane. The case went into the
courts, and there the railroad won,
the long-and- -short-haul clause being
finally held to be unconstitutional.
Thus the matter stood until the
Dolliver bill of 1906 was passed,
with a new long-and-short-haul
clause in it. This new clause, in
stead of unqualifedly prohibiting
the higher charge for the shorter
haul, provided that such higher
charge should not be imposed until
application for permission had been
made to the commission, and the
commission, on investigation, had
authorized it. Spokane promptly
filed its case anew under this act; in
fact, Case No. 1 on the docket under
the law of 1906 was the Spokane
case revived.
This case is the one that was de-
cided yesterday by the Supreme
Court, and decidedly broadly in favor
of the Spokane contention. Mean
while, however, it has become more
than a Spokane affair. Cases start
ed by Reno. Ogden, and other places
in the intermountain country had
been consolidated with that from
Spokane, making up the so-called
intermountain case. 1t is decided as
whole, and wins for the mountain
country one of the greatest victories
ever placed to its credit.
The discrimination against the
mountain States and cities has
greatly retarded development of that
section; with the discrimination re-
moved, development may be expect
ed to proceed much faster. But at
this moment of the Western coun-
try's rejoicing, it is well worth while
to consider at what cost this tardv
victory has been won.
The injustice of the old discrimina-
tions was just as serious in 1890
as it is now. In order that just such
injustice might be stopped, the old
interstate commerce act was passed.
1t took twenty-five years, even after
the law was passed, to get a final
determination under which its pur-
pose can be put into execution!
Delays such as this have marked
the progress of the whole effort at
regulation of commercial and trans
portation instrumentalities by the
Government. The case of the pipe
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