Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1919-05-03
straining Suits Should Be
| Dismissed.
Ericsson HAS
| SUPREME POWER
10 Regulation Is The Exercise OF
Power To Control q Pri ate
Business.

Washington, May 2.-Increase of in
state telephone toll rates by the
stmaster general was defended in a
lief filed by the government today
the supreme court in conn ection
til pending appeals from South Da-
TIA and Massachusetts courts. The
ate authorities in their appeals have
Intended the increase was an undue
reference with their police powers.
fgments in the proceedings will be
lard next Monday.
The government in it's brief, declar-
the suits instituted by the South
akota and Massachusetts authori-
les to restrain the postmaster gen
ral from increasing the rates were in
eality brought against the United
tates without its consent and should
e dismissed. The government also
ontends that in taking over control
i the telephone systems of the coun-
ry, the president "placed them in
he hands of the postmaster general
hs his representative, under the broad
power given him by the resolution to
manage as he saw fit" and they thus
were in effect added to the postal ser
vice and became as much part of
|the means of conveying news or COM
lmunication as the mail"
Is Exercise of Power.
The regulation Of rate" the brief
said, "as an exercise of power is the
assertion of a right to control pri-
Yate business, affected with public
interest and subject to,,a public use,
50 as to subject the private property
to the public service upon the pay
ment of just compensation. To this
end, in order that the private right
may not be asserted to extort undue
compensation for use, the power is
exercised to regulate the price for
use just as it might be to regulate
the price for the property itself if the
fee was being taken" ',as
The government brief, prepared by
solicitor General King, denies that
state police powers are impaired or
afeeted by not submitting the rates
nxed by the officers of the United
otates to state CONTROL" because not
only the police regulations of the
state DO not affect rates made by the
government itself, but the police
power does not extend to such a SUBJ
ject. I
~ Public Fixed Rate.
The public" the brief adds, "has
acted and fixed the rate when the
pubic officer of the United tSates
fixed it.
1T seems clear that if congress had
~ to confer upon the states
' lne power to regulate the rates at
winch the United States will furnish
'eiephone service, it would not have
expressed that intention by re-
to the states Of their 'po-
nee regulations
WShen a private corporation leases
~. III however short time, the prop
er'y OF another such corporation, it
IS certainly with the expectation of
. making enough from it's operations
~ pay the rental and even profit to
leseiI. 1t was therefore to be sup
poseo That the government would ex-
4 10 charge in the operations of
.nese properties sufficient rates to
Fay Tor the increasing expenses of
upera1lon and discharge the rental
S Mllich 1T was to pay. 1t would have
peen legitimate to have even con-
se!nplated some additional sum to
the government for the
t 'ime of public officers consumed in
this work"
me government contends that
s'ate public utility commissions were
usvef authorized when created by
.ne state nor since to deal with the
aa.es OF public utilities operated by
agencies.