Evening star., 1928-02-09
|RAlL N! VALUATION. IA :.
/ TEST APPEAL:.F|tED|
st. Louis and 0'Fallon Line
to Take lie. c. Fight to-
Supreme Court. =
yy the Associated rress.

| ~ the Associated rress.
! ST. LOUIS. February e.--The. St.
Louis and OFalion Railway Co. late
yesterday filed m District Court an ap-
peal to the United States Supreme
Court from the recent decision OF three
Federal judges upholding validity OF an
Interstate Commerce Commission val.
uation order for purpose Of rate-makins
and recapture OF excess earnings:
The case has been termed the biggest
law suit In history" because or It's &C.
cep,ance by both the railroads and the
Commerce Commission ~ test OF the
principles and methods to be employed
In valuation Of the Nations railroads.
Forty allegations cf error are made IN
the appeal.
Holds Elements Overlooked.
One allegation is that the court erred
~in not holding that the order offs the
commission was void because in deter
mining the valuation Of the property
Of the O'Fallon road the commission
failed and refused to give due conSio-
Grafton to all the elements or value
recognized by the Law OF the land Tor
ratemaking purpcSeA." - :.
The references to "lAw Of. the land"
Is understood 70 mean. decision .of the
Supreme Court. especially In the m
dianapoliS water case. which nave ap-
peared to give approval to tfle repro
duction new" method OF va!uanon IoE
which railroads are contendtng. The
Commerce Commission In the O'Fallon
case held more nearly to the prudent
investment" theory that the roads
should be entitled to earn only on the
money actually invested In them.
Another allegation 10 that the court
erred in not holding the recapture pro-
vision of the transportation act invaalo,
an A delegation OF legislative powers
The court erred. It q further alleged.
in holding the recapture clause ana lts
application did not constitute connsca-
ton OF property without due process
Of Law.
A further error. it is charged. was In
the courts holding that the verify OF
the commissions valuation "neeo not
he examined and cannot affect the re-
CAPTURE order" and that 1t was unnec-
essary for the court to determine the
various contentious made by the ORAL
lon road concerning proper valuation
methods. >
T.. S. Constitution. Involved. ~.
The court erred. 1t Is charged, In
holding that the OFallon ana Manuiac-
turer's Railway Co., which joined IN
the appeal, were not TO be considered as
constituting one group or Hines.
II they had been 30 considered. the
petitioners contend. there would have
been little or no excess earnings SUBJ
ject to recapture, as the combined earn.
inrs would have been below per cent
on the valuation allowed them.
Further error was committed. 1t Is al
Legged, In the courts failure to find that
the commission had not 50 established
rates. in the group In which the ORAL
lon had been placed. that the carriers
therein earned IN an international net
operating income equal. as nearly as
may be, to q fair return upon the value
Of their property. and that by reason
thereof the Tecapture provision xas ip-
applicable.
The due process clause OF the Con-
0itution- Is involved In an allegation.
Court erred "in not needing that the
reserve fund provisions (of the trans
portationS acD were null and yoid"r