Lower coast gazette., 1914-06-20
MUST YIELD
TO THE COMMISSION
SUPREME COURT DECIDES STATES
CANNOT DISCRIMINATE IN
INTERSTATE TRAFFIC.
Western Newspaper Union News Service.

Western Newspaper Union News Service.
Washlngton.-A long step toward
placing railroads under zone master
instead of many" was taken by the
United States Supreme Court in up
holding the power of the Interstate
Commerce Commission to strike down
state rates that discriminate against
interstate commerce. In substance,
the court said that the Minnesota and
other recent state rate cases in which
the railroads lost might have been de-
cided otherwise had the roads gone to
the commission for relief instead OF
the courts.
The decision was announced by JUS
tice Hughes, Justices Pitney and Lur-
ton dissenting. The case arose out
Of complaint by Shreveport, La, mer.
chants that the Texas Railroad Com
mission had shut them out Of all Tex
as business by compelling the rail.
roads to reduce Texas state rates far
below what the Interstate Commerce
Commission allowed the railroads run
ming from Shreveport to Texas cities
to charge. >.
The court first decided that Con.
gress had power to control interstate
charges owe an interstate carrier to
the extent necessary to prevent In.
furious discrimination against inter.
state traffic, and, then that Congress
had conferred this power upon the In.
terstate Commerce Commission.
"The fact that carriers are instru-
ments of i~ntrastate commerce as well
as of interstate. commerce." said JUS
tice Hughes, docs not derogate from
the complete and paramount authority
of Congress over the latter or pre-.
clude the federal power from being
exerted to prevent the intrastate oper-
atoms Of such carriers from being
an~aa neaas OF fuJurystU r1aI wn1cN
has been confined to. federal care.
Wherever the interstate and intra.
state transactions of carriers 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, for otherwise Congress
would be denied the exercise of its
constitutional authority and the state,
not the nation, would be supreme with
in the national field"
In removing determinations against
interstate commerce, the court held
Congress was not bound to reduce the
interstate rates below what it may
deem to be a proper standard to thu
carrier and the public.
"Otherwise," said the opinion, %'
could prevent the injury to interstate
commerce only by the sacrifice Of it
Judgment as to interstate rates."
Justice Hughes who wrote TIL
courts decision in the state rate case!
of a year ago, pointed out that tn
present case did not conflict witt
those cases. He said that it the ah
sence of a finding by the commission
OF unjust discrimination ~intrastat
rates undoubtedly we're left to b
fixed by the carrier and subject t
the authority of the states.
I'VE. are not unmindful Of the gray
ity Of the question that is presente
when state and federal views conflict,
the opinion concluded, "but It was RET
ognized at the beginning the natio
could not prosper if interstate an
foreign trade were governed by man
masters and where the interests {
the freedom Of interstate commerce
are involved the judgment OF Congress
and of the agencies it lawfully e.
adjustment must control" /,
Members of the Interstate Con
merce Commission regarded this cas-
as one Of the most important in whic
the body ever has been involved.
The decision was written by Seer
!, tary Lane before he left the commi
sioe to become a member Of the pres
dents cabinet.