Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-06-04

III. +. DAVIS VIEWS
|OE TRANSFER ORDER
Defends His Contention That
Action of Utilities Com
mission Is illegal.
REPLIES TO Mr.. SYME

REPLIES TO Mr.. SYME
- me Editor Of The Star:
Mr.. Conrad Syme. counsel for the
Public Utilities Commission. IL re-
ported as saying that my position
that the transfer order recently made
by the commission is illegal and vohe
| is entirely. wrong. reiterate that my
position Is entirely right: but moth
| ing is gained by this sort of assertion
and counter assertion; let US go to the
| law.
According to Mr. Syme. when Con-
gress gave the commission power to
regulate charges for service II dele
| gated to the commission all the pow
ers 1t (Congrsss) could exercise over
such matters"
your issue Of last Saturday ! stated
| succinctly, though sufficiently. all the
! essential provisions OF the law Great
| ing the commission that bear upon
| OF reminder let me restate these pro-
visions in another way.
Duty Of Public Utility.
Every public utility shall nle with
the commission schedules showing
| all rates I'm force at the time for any
f pistriet p Of Golumbis," which rates
shall net exceed those now allowed
by law"-that il, at the date OF the
4! act, March 8. 1918; shall be the law
lumbia, and shall remain and be In
force until set aside by the commits
sion (par. 2D.
At the time Of the passage OF the
act there was not. and never had been.
| any rate allowed by law" fer
| transfer. and the only rate that a
! street railroad company could charge
or could show to the commission was
a single nat rate Of fare giving every
passenger paying the same the right
| to travel between any two points OF
the company's lines, whether main or
branch. or both.
| Upon complaint that any rate
charged by any street railroad com.
passenger or insufficient for the com
pany the commission may hx such
rates as shall be just and reasonable.
| (par. ~. meaning. of course, such
rates as it was contemplated and pro-
yided by the charter of any company
that 1t had a right to exact. This
again excludes from consideration any
| rate for q transfer and any other rate
| than the basic nat rate for transpor-
/
| panys lines as aforesaid.
Cites COMMISSIONS Only PowerG
These are the only powers respect
| ing rates which Congress- has given
the commission; and very clearly they
do not include the power to cancel
the right of every passenger to trans
for one fare. II Mr.. Syme can ind in
| the law any other power In the
premises than I have cited he will
i do much toward Quieting public re-
| sentiment at the order in question.
have reason-which " necessary l
| will give-to believe that when max
ing IT'S order the Public Utilities Com
mission wholly overlooked the pro-
vision in the street railroad company
charters that I have pointed out, and
provision in mind Mr.. Syme would in
advance of the order have advised 9ts
The case simply is, and It is use
| the order in question wassinteneed for
the relief Of one of twv companies.
and that to avoid the appearance OF
discrimination it was made to apply
to the two; the result being. Is
| have heretofore stated. that in order
| to aid the stockholders and bond
holders of a corporation whose capt.
| talizatfon, equipment and manage
| ment have rendered 1t incapable OF
giving the public the utility for which
| 1t Is supposed to have been created
and to exist, an onerous, unjust and
unlawful charge has been laid upon
the public as much to the advantage
of another utility not needing nor
asking for the aid as to the utility in
| distress.
Right to adjust" Rates.
Mr.. Syme il also credited with
speaking of the power expressly
just rates" If the word adjust" is
to be found in the law. It has dened
my search. What the law says is
| that, IL upon investigation the rates
shall be found to be unjust, unreason-
able or insufficient, "the commission
shall have power to determine and
by order fix and order to be substi-
tuted therefor such rate or rates as
shall be just and reasonable" (par.
AZ. Very clearly this would seem to
mean. and to mean only, that II any
rate fixed by a street railroad com
pany for any service performed by
1t within the District of Coiumbiay
(par. 24)-that is, Of course, for such
being the transportation as aforesaid
Of every passenger paying the rate
be found unreasonable or insufficient
the commission may substitute for it
another rate for such SERVICE this
and this alone. And IL the commits
sion's view of its powers as defined by
it's counsel be correct, there il no rea-
son that, in addition to making a
charge for transfers. the commission
may not establish zones on either
main or branch lines of any railway,
and this Of course 1t cannot do.
The mistake of the commission is,
and always has been, that in respect
Of street railroad fare it can do
nothing more than simply change
the rate of fare, beyond doing which
its powers cannot be made to extend