The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1914-05-20
srNFEuENclNG ~rHE"couRT,

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A pretty good case is now being.
made in favor of the contention that,
pressure from outside should not be
brought to bear on the interstate
commerce commission to influence its
decision in the pending railway
freight rate case.
1t is pointed out that the commits
sion is acting in judicial capacity; that
it is supposed to decide an issue with
reference to matters Of fact rather
than matters Of opinion. The main
question, it is pertinently suggested,
is whether the revenues of the car
riers are. so Inadequate that a raise
in rates is warrantetE An answer to
this. question naturally must be sought
by a process OF mathematics. What
We're the revenues and expenditures
of the carriers last year? What are
current revenues and expenditures?
What will future revenues and ex-
penditures be, according to the best
,obtainable forecasts of coming condi-.
.tions?' Can additional revenue re-
quiremcnts be met by economies,
without imposing on shippers the bur
den of a new rate Increase? If SO,
what are they? These, it is submitted.
are the issues upon which the rate
question must be decided by the in
terstate commerce commission. 1t is
a fair statement of the case.
While the protest against the intro
duction of sentiment in the rate case
is based on sound logic,eit is doubtful
if the plea of the present protestants
would be given great weight in an.
equity court. This is because they
do not come into court with clean.
hands. They are now right IN prin-
ciple, but they have been a bit slow
in applying the principle. The al
legged undue influence in the present
situation has been exerted in favor OF
tleacarriers and thearate increase for
which they are suing. AS between
recent expressions for and against the
proposed increase, the balance seemed
to be largely for it. While a. good
deal of tile sentiment thus reflected
may have been worked up, GER
tainly a good deal of it has been due
to spontaneous conviction founded on
observation Indicating financial strin-t
gency in railway treasures. sf4,s
Whatever may be thought of the
legitimacy OF bombarding the commits
sion with expressions in favor, OF a.
rate increase, as a matter of cold
logic it will have to be admitted to
be as legitimate as the s preceding
bombardment of similar nature
against a rate increase. The record
shows that the plan OF bringing out
side influence to bear on the court to
affect its ruling on rate questions was
invented by opponents OF the pro-
posed increase. 1t originated several
years ago, when the rate increase was
first preached, and the present affirm
alive campaign must be described as
tame in comparison with the cam.
paign waged in the first place to con-
vince the commission that popular
sentiment was opposed to granting
the carriers requests. Petitions and
resolutions of opposition then poured
in upon the commission from all
quarters The; petitioners and re-
solvers did not pretend to know much
of the inside of the rate question, but
they wanted the court to understand
their opinion was that no increase
was necessary. a5 =., g. NJ
If, as is wholly likely, the court,
consciously or unconsciously, allowed
the publicity campaign of the ants
to influence its first adverse decision,
the OF justice could not be ma
terially injured by permitting SINH
lar campaign to acquaint the court
with the fact that there has been a
change in public sentiment.
On the main question this news
paper stands firmly for the principle
that. no outside. influence should be
brought to bear to affect any decision
by the interstate commerce commits
sion. Two wrongs do not make a
right, but one error sometimes may
be cancelled by another error. If the
interstate commerce commission I'M
derstands that it is now free to decide
the rate case on the facts, without
fear of public disapproval, the situa-
ton will be as near right as it can
be in the circumstances.-Sioux City
Journal. .eH.