New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-06-09
Supreme Court Sustains
Federal Commission in
Rate Question.
DECISION ONE OF
DEEPEST GRAVITY
| asst Nail Driven in Coffin OF
States Rights-Credit Due
Secretary Lane.

r
United States Supreme Court to-day wrote
another chapter IN the judicial history OF
the commerce law. The court decided that
IN cases WHERE tho orders Of the Inter
state Commerce Commission conflict with
the orders Of state railway commission
the authority or the federal government
shall prodominate and said in emphatic
terms that the channels of interstate
trade must be kept free and open.
The decision presents another phase ~
the problem dealt with in the Minnesota
rate cases. Then the court held that rates
fixed by the states for tho regulation OF
intrastate traffic could he enforced as
long as they were not Conhscatory IN
effect and as Ions as the government or
its agencies had not made specific rules
for interstate traffic with which the state
rules conflicted
: To-day's decision deals with case III
which the Iotes fixed by a state DO con
! Aict with the federal regulation OF 'Htef"
state traffic The case was brought IL me
! Commerce Court by the Houston East ~
West Texas Railway Company and The
+ Texas a Pacific Railway Company 10 set
n
morce Commission. The Railroad Conn
! mission Of Louisiana intcyvened in opposi-
I ticn.
! The charge vas made that the railrotds,
pursuant 10 the order OF the Texas huI-
: road Commission, charged lower rates on
, shipments from Dallas, Tex, than they
charged for shipments for the same dis
tances from Shreveport, La, involving a
discrimination against interstate com
merce as against intrastate commerce.
The right Of the railroads to disregard the
rates Of the Texas commission and 10
maintain the rates fixed by the Interstate
/ Commerce Commission was upheld by the
Supreme Court to-day.
The decision was announced by Justice
Hughes, Justices Ttney and Lurton dis
sentng The court first decided that Con
gress mad power 10 control interstate
charges over an interstate carrier 10 the
extent necessary TO prevent injurious dis
ordinations against interstate traffic, and
then held that Congress had conferred
this power upon the Interstate Commerce
' Commission
the fact that carriers are instruments
OF intrastatc commerce as well as OF in
terstate commerce said Justice Hughes,
does not derogate from the authority OF
Congress over the latter or preclude the
federal power from being eXerted 10 pre-
vent the intrastate operations of such car
riers from being made a means Of injury
10 that which has been confded 10 fed
eral care. Wherever the interstate and
intrastatc transactions are so related that
the government OF the one involves the
control Of the other, it is Congress and
not the state that is entitled TO prescribe
the final and dominant rule"
Justice Hughes, VINO wrote the court 8
decision in the state rate cases Of year
ago, pointed out that the present case did
not conflict with those cases.
we are not uumindful Of tho gravity
OF the question that is presented when
the state and federal views conflict" the
opinion concluded, but it was recognized
at the beginning that the nation could not
prosper if interstate and foreign trade
are governed by many masters, and,
where the interests OF the freedom Of in
terstate commerce are involved. the judg
ment of Congress and OF the agencies it
lawfully establishes must control"
Members OF the Interstate Commerce
Commission regarded this case as one or
the most important in which that BODY
ever has been involved. The decision
was written by Secretary Lane before
he left the commission TO become a mem
Der of the Presidents Cabinet.
r T. Jeffery. chairman OF the Denver
& Rio Grande Railroad president of the
Western Pacific, aud n director OF all the
Gould lines. said yesterday that the de-
cisicn Of the United States Supreme Court
OH the so-called Shreveport rate case will
greatly simplify the relationship Of the
railroads 10 public authorities.
m the summary of the decision thus far
published proves TO be correct and the
Interstate Commerce Commission is con-
Armed in the powers referred 10. il will
simplify TO a great extent the relation
ship Of the rail lines TO public authorities
having control OF the so-called public
utilities, because the carriers vii! look
10 and be governed by the rules, regula-
tons and decisions of the Interstate Com
merce Commission almost entirely, and
state commissions in forty-five to forty
eight states, which state commissions are
not uniform I'm their Views about railroad
rates and their rules and regulations"
HTC MTTCTCIT