Evening star., 1922-07-25
HOOVER FUEL PLAN
o.k.DAT MEETING
Entirely Legal and in Conflict
With No U. S. Law, Says
Attorney General.
PURPOSES MADE CLEAR
Coal and Rail Men in Joint Con-
ference Agreement With Fed >
eral officials.

Representatives of the Interstate
Commerce Commission, the Depart
ments of Justice and Commerce, coal
operators from six states and the
American Railway Association reach
ed an agreement on the principle of
Secretary Hoover's plan for protect
ing essential industries at meeting
at the Commerce Department. yester-
day, according to the Associated
Press.
Mr.. Hoover's plan, which was de-
signed to insure fuel distribution to
railroads, public utilities and other
necessary consumers and the main
tenance of fair prices through pref
erenrial ALLEGATION of freight cars,
was declared yesterday by Attorney
General Daugherty in an opinion to
be entirely Legal and in violation
OF no law Of the United States"
The proposed emergency program.
Mr.. Hoover declared, was very well
outlined by Mr.. Daugherty in ~his
opinion attesting the legality of the
plan.
Purposes Interpreted.
AS I understand it." Mr.. Daugh-
erty said, your plan Is to form as
sociations acting under your direc-
tlons whose. sole purpose will be to
meet the emergency in distribution
and stop profiteering; and at the
proper time you intend to apply to
the Interstate Commerce Commission
70 promulgate rules governing car
distribution. during the existing
shortage, to the end that the avail
able eauipment can be placed at
mines Affording the greatest oppor-
tunity of service and willing to
charge for their coal no more than is
fair and just
AS between two mines whose out
put Is the same, your plan contem-
plates. during the existing shortage,
raVor1ng the mine in the supply of
cars which charges the public fair
prices as against the mine which
allows its greed to exact whatever
can be obtained. however unwarranu-
ed anu extortionate the price may be-
You nave no purpose other than to
promote the welfare of the public by
inaugurating a plan of distribution
designed to maintain national life
ltself and 20 restrain eXtortion by
the stern hand of repression. Your
IDEA is to have both operators and
miners furnish You with statistics
along the lines just mentioned. thus
enabling you TO place before the com
mission from time to time whatever
information is necessary to enable
II 10 give proper and Intelligent di-
rections.
Plan "Entireiy Legal,
IN thus acting you intend to rep
resent Ahe commission as one of IT'S
designated agencies, or to go before
II IN any other capacity, whichever
method meets with its approval In
view OF all these conditions causing
the present emergency, the inevita bI
result OF which is to disrupt and de-
morallze interstate commerce, you IN
quhe whether the plan YOU have ont
lined would be Illegal and whether
authority exists for its adoption and
enforcement.
In my opinion the plan is entirely
legal. tail to see wherein any law
OF congress will be violated. The in
terests of the public are deserving
OF paramount consideration, and /
have no misgivings In giving. it my
unqualified approval. Moreover | feel
convinced that full and ample au-
thority exists for its adoption and eff
state Commerce Commission finds the
existence of an emergency such as
you describe. that body has ample
and unauestioned authority to pro-
vide such rules and regulations as
will enable the plan you suggest to
be carried into operation
I'm concluding l want to say that
have no hesitancy in advising you
that in my opinion where and when
an emergency exists on account of
the shortage of coal for use in inter-
state commerce and in the transpor-
tation of the mails, and when the price
of coal for such purposes and for the
general necessities of the people has
been unjustifiably and unbearably in
creased by operators who produce a
large supply, associations such as
your plan contemplates. to act with
and under governmental agencies to
meet the existing emergency. more
equitably to distribute coal, and to
prevent ex:ortion in the price there
of while acting with and under gov
ernmental agencies for the purposes
aforesaid, are legal and do not violate
any provision of the so-called Sher-
man antitrust law or any other
federal law.
"In carrying out such plan for the
sole purpose you propose all persons.
firms or corporations chosen by gov
ernmental agencies to assist you, as
long as they act in good faith to
carry out such plan with and under
governmental agencies and not other
wise. will violate no law Of the
United States"
Representatives of the various
agencies who met with Mr.. Hoover to
draft the plan for submission to the
operators tonight included Interstate
c. E. Bocl<us of New York. heading a
committee of operators: NJ ]. CORN
leigh and r. H. Ashton OF the Ameri-
can Railway Association and officials
Of the departments of Commerce and
T,1S