The Washington herald., 1914-05-13
Another Ra;Iway Rate Tansle.

Il will be remembered thar Mr. Brsndeis, the spe-|
cia counsel for the interstate Commerce Commission
in the application recently made by the railway COM
panies for increased freight rates. admitted in his
closing argument before the commission that the
railway companies had demonstrated that they were
in need of additional revenue But Mr. Brandeis
contended that this additional revenue could be Sc
cured by the railways by cutting off many of the so-
called privilege granted by the railways to indus
trial concerns
One of these privileges" referred to class of
agreements. services and regulations with so-called
tap line" railroads connected with large steel manu-
facturng plants The basis of these agreements was
the fact that many of these steel manufacturing plants
have lines of railroads many miles in length running
from their plants to the lines of the large railway
companies Because of their ownership of these pri-
vate lines known "tap lines" the steel companies
have been in the habit Of receiving certain demur-
RACES amounting to abatement Of the regular
freight tariffs for freight transported from the large
railroad companies their plants and also freight
transported from the plants to the large railroad COM
panies
The counsel for the railroad companies replied to
Mr.. Brandeis that while in future permanent ar
rangement might be made regarding this matter some
what different from the now prevailing such an
arrangement would take great deal of negotiation
and would be bitterly objected to- not only by the
industrial companies concerned but by the different
State railroad commissions inasmuch the present
arrangements had been made in most at the
distinct behest of these different State commissions
The whole difficult and complicated matter of the in
trepay of ntrastate and interstate freight tariffs
would be upset if any change of the present arrange
ment was to be made. The railroad companies urged
that if such complicated problem were to be taken
&c. ,nI, ad1
was afforded them until it settled, year or so
might elapse before the relief so urgently demanded
at the moment could be granted.
Nevertheless some time ago the Interstate Com
merce Commission made formal order to many of
the railroads affected directing them to cut off the
tap line privileges whose prppriety was called in
question. But developments within the last forty
eight hours emphasize the soundness of the answer of
the railroad companies counsel, made to Mr..
Brandeis before the commission, and show how diff
cult it will be for the railroad companies to get ad
ditional revenue if they to follow out Mr.. Bran
deis ideas. On Friday the Public Service Commits
sion for the Second district of New York notified
certain railroad companies doing business in that
State that by May IS they restore the joint rate
and line agreements and other special service and
tap line privileges that they had made some time ago
with the South Buffalo Railway Company. but which
early in April they had cancelled in conformity with
an order granted by the Interstate Commerce Com
mission.
Thus the Interstate Commerce Commission and
the Public Service Commission. of New York are in
direct and immediate conflict, 1t is understood that
similar conflict will certainly arise in many States,
notably in Pennsylvania where the railroad comis-
sion il represented as about make an order regif-
ing the railroads in that State restore the tap line
privileges to the steel plants which the latter enjoyed
prior to their cancellation suspension by the Fed
eral commission.
1t is, of course true that these conflicting orders
only concern themselves with intrastate and interstate
business is to say the order of the Public Serv
ice Commission of New York affects only business
originating in New York State, while the directly op-
posite order of the Interstate Commerce Commission
affects all traffic in which the shipments out of
New York into any other State. Nevertheless, it is
obvious that business cannot be done by the steel
companies and the railroads under any such COM
plexity and diversity of method would prevail If
the Federal commission and State commission are to
adopt entirely different points of view fundamentally
regarding the justice of these tap line privileges.
The present status of the forms another
weighy argument why the railroad companies should
have an advance in freight Immediately and why
all such questions as those raised by Mr. Brandeis
should be deferred for settlement only to be reached
through conferences between the different State COM
missions and those of the general government