Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1914-12-05
!. C. C. is NOT TO BLAME
FOR MEN OUT OF WORK
Efforts to Plnce 1t Responsibility
VIII Have No Effect ON Freight
Rate Decision.
Especial to The Times Dispatch

WARRINGTON, December 4.-In view
of the efforts in certain quarters to
Influence the Interstate Commerce Com
mission to grant tho per cent rate
increase to tho Eastern railroads. by
attempting to place on it the respon-
siDility for the large number of IN
employed. the International News Ser
vice to-day sounded tho committee on
the subject and found that such efforts
would be fruitless.
Enough was learned to chow moot
lively that the commission considers
itself in no way to blame for the large
number or men out OF employment. or
even Tor the many laid off by tho rail-
roads OF the country
when Commissioner Clements was
asheu II the commission would be In
tiuenced to any extent in reaching its
ueclsloh on tho rate condition by tho
charBe that the commission was main :
~ responsible for this condition. In
dictated this statement:
me only question before the com :
iisslon' under the law, Is tho so-calIed
per cent rate case, whether tho nro-
posed increased rates are Just and rea
sonMole In the light OF all pertinen.
tacts' circumstances and conditions"
an erort was made to-day TO find
out some OF the pertinent facts cir
the railroads urged, as ono OF the,r
main arguments for the per cent
advance, that the war WAS hurting
their business -
INC opinion is known to exist at the
interstate Commerce Commission that
~ aiiroads failed to take advantage
oI the opportunity given them by the
commission to make q complete road
)ustment OF their rates,
inc erect OF this. 1t Is claimed, would
nave been to give the railroads In ,uanv
cases much more than the per cent
Increase they asked. The railroads, It
Is sald. could never have done this
alone. but with the moral support of
me commission. they had nm oppor-
tunity which they may not have again
for long time.
rms applies especially to the rail-
roads IN central freight association ter
ritory, which received the following
Invitations to revise their tariffs In tj,o
oriEinhi per cent decision.
II Is not improbable, In view of the
nominations we have required in those
tariffs, that they Will ind it more de-
adjustment which they assert Ia neces-
sary"
Instead Of this, according to the
opinion existing Mt tho commission
headquarters, the railroads elected to
report TO their demand for horizontal
Such q horizontal increase does not
Impress tho commission us a sound
method OF ratemaking. According to
the best information that can be OBJ.
tanned In the commission building. if
the commission should grant tho
straight per cent increase, 1t would
be doing II only AS n resort to relieve n
desperate condition, and not because 1t
thought principle worthy one. Many
which are other than normal, and adj
opinions are based on local conditions
vance OF such rates s per cent would be
increasing an evil which might work
great injury to the people.
This is one OF the reasons why 1t Is
regarded as almostNertain in Washing
ton that tho application for the per
cont advance Will be percmptorily de.
MED. and that the best the commission
Will do for the railroads will be to Of
fer them some indirect benefit.
Still another factor. which the COM
mission Is considering, Is the possibility
that the railroads themselves might be
to blame for the depression which they
claim to experience. -