The Washington times., 1923-05-26
RAIL VALUATION
BIC TOP|COF
DEBATE
La Toilette Group Of Progress
siVes Out to Overthrow
Policy Of !. c. c.
By WILLIAM HARD.

farm leaders and unattached eX-
perts and rowing celebrities, the ma
tional conference on railroad valua-
ton, meeting here today in its
second daily session under the au-
spicies Of the national progressive
group" and Of Senator La Toilette,
has managed to reach the follow
ing tentative intentions:
1t will support the valuation
theory which Charles Evans
Hughes, formerly Judge of the
United States Supreme Court and
now Secretary of State, advanced
as referee not long ago in a New
York public utility case.
It will call attention to the fact
that this theory was advanced also
by Mayor Hylan Of New York, "the
peoples champion" and by Mr.. JUS
tice Holmes, champion high-brow of
the Supreme Court and champion
mental aristocrat of Massachusetts
and America.
Would Cut Valuations.
It then, by means of this Hughes
Hylan-Holmes theory, will try to
shear off some $25, 900 900 900 mot
$25 900 900. but $25, 900, 900 ,O0O) from
the valuation which might other
wise get assigned to the railroad
companies. the interu an compan.
les, the street car companies, the
gas companies. the electric com.
DaDies, the electric power compan-
les, the telephone companies and
the other public utility companies
Of this country.
It will ask this country II It
knows any other political PROPOSE
ton which could get it $4,000, 0o0,-
900.
1t will approach the campaign of
1924 with $25, ZOO 900 900 held out in
its bountiful hand to the electorate.
Unless the two established politi-
cal parties bestir themselves in such
matters" said Ex-Governor Dunno
of Illinois, Democrat, to this writer
today, IT greatly fear that the ele-
nents here represented will tend to
merge into new party"
This conference will project the
railroad valuation issue into the
1924 campaign. irrespective Of party
and REGARDLESS of party benefit or
party injury.
Leaders Present.
Senator La Toilette Rep.) Of Wis.
consin and Senator Copeland Dem.)
VI NE" IOLh hIIu 0SHdlOT SdppCT
(RepO of Kansas and Senator Owen
(Dem0 of Oklahoma, and numerous
other Senators, and Congressman
Huddleston (Dem) Of Alabama and
Congressman Sherwood (RepO of
Ohio, and numerous other Congress
men. and Governor Dixon Rep) of
Montana and Gov ernor Richie
DemO of Maryland and Governor
Blaine (RepD of Wisconsin and
Governor Hunt DemD Of Arizona.
and various other governors, and
President Johnston, Of international
Association of Machinists, and nu-
merous other labor leaders, all pres
ent here in person or by proxy or
by common declared membership in
the progressive group" are on
their way to making the railroad
issue superior to any party issue
whatsoever.
AS the alleged essential part OF
the railroad issue. this conference
will keep the subject Of railroad
valuation bubbling up around the
edges of the political lid every
minute between now and the next
election.
New Law Proposed.
BY suggestion of Senator Owen it
is considering the proposition of ap.
preaching Congress next December
to ask it to pass another railroad
valuation law telling the Interstate
Commerce Commission to proceed
forthwith to obey the present valua
ton law in the matter of assigning
to the railroads a valuation based
on Original cost to date
The Hughes-HylanH Holmes theory
calls for original cost to date
So does the present valuation law
1t also calls, however, for cost OF
reproduction new" That is the
valuation theory which the railroads
want. The law calls for both valua.
tons. The charge which this con
ference makes is that the Interstate
Commerce Commission Is finding
one of these valuations and not the
other. 1t is finding the "cost OF
reproduction" valuation, according
to this conference and it is not
finding the original cost to date
valuation.
Donald Richberg. Of Chicago, the
anointed, if not the appointed, chief
legal expert Of this conference, said
today:
ION the cost of reproduction
theory the value Of the railroads
of the United States increased $12,'
| 000,000,0 900 between 1914 and 1922
This conference regards that
theory accordingly as preposterous
1t proposes to supplant it utterly
by the Original cost to date
theory-the Hughes Hylan Holmes
theory-the theory supported also
by Justice Brandeis, of the United
| States Supreme Court, who takes
the following view:
The owners of the railroads have
right to fair return not on the
| fluctuating and uncertain sum OF
money which from varying time tc
varying time it would cost them
to reproduce their properties but
on the definite and fixed sum which
they in fact took out Of their poe
kets, and in fact put into those
properties for the public service.
Crux Of Battle.
Such is the fight 1t is between
two theories. each Of which has
highly respectable adherents. This
conference will attempt to popu
lariZe the Original cost to date
theory, and it will attempt to force
it upon the Interstate Commerce
Commission both through action by
Congress and by action through The
Supreme Court
If the advice of some Of thu
most influential members of thu
conference is followed, Mr.. Rich