Evening star., 1947-02-09

EAA
half before that any area which
can import raw materials cheaply,
add greatly to their value by proc
essing and then export, will keep
for its people the increased value,
the cream of the arrangement. They
also reflected somewhat on various
events of 1776, resulting in large
part from Great Britain's attempt
to do that very thing with her
American colonies.
Through the tangle of freight
rates, they thought, they could see
the outline of a pattern. Glass
freight manufactured goods-in
general moved cheaply throughout
the North and East, and to the
South and West. But the other
way, no. The South and West
could ship their raw materials, but
ia manufacturer who sought to proc
ess them there would find his mar
ket limited. To given consuming
point he would pay higher freight
rate than his Northern competitor.
Conference Swings Into Action.
So the Southern Governors Con-
ference was organized, with one
purpose. 1t began action before the
ICC In 1899 to get nationally
uniform rates on manufactures. Aid
was picked up as Governors Of more
States joined the conference, and
from public bodies and shippers
associations in some States west Of
the Mississippi.
Since 1887 the ICC had Endorsed
the principle that uniformity was
desirable, but had not done too much
about it. Now, under prodding, 1t
really began to investigate the Situa-
tion. "Official" territory registered
! its opposition. Lengthy hearings
began. There is no doubt there were
a multitude Of facts to determine.
The inquiry was thorough. In only
one phase of it, staff workers
analyzed freight car loadings for the
entire Nation for two given days.
Progress was ponderous, too much
so for Mr.. Arnall, then Governor Of
Georgia. When several years had
gone by, he went off the reservation.
He told the Governors Conference
his State would take its own tack,
a Georgia attitude not without
precedent, as even leaders of the
Confederacys sometimes discovered.
In brief, 1t was Mr.. Arnall's idea
that it was not necessary to wait
on the ICC. He pointed out that
the commission does not entirely
fix rates. A railroad sets a proposed
rate and files it with the commits
sion; if no alert opposition appears,
the rate takes effect in 80 days
without action by the commission.
Ninety per cent of the country's
rates are so set. The railroads, Mr..
Arnall said, have been cagily con-
ferring and agreeing before any one
of them proposes rate. The As
sociation Of American Railroads has
answered that. of course, confer
enceS are held, but that they are
open hearings, iron out knotty
problems and rebound to the public
interest by achieving rate uniform-
ity between various sections of the
country. Not so, rebutted Mr.. Ar
NALL In the aggregate such rates
have favored 'oficial' territory.
That, he pointed out, would be ',on-
spiracy against the State of Geor-
gia in violation of the antitrust laws,
and, since a sovereign State was
involved, under Article III of the
Constitution the Federal judiciary
could take and hear the case, re-
gardless of the ICC. He asked the
Supreme Court to do so.
Arnall Suit of Strategic Value.
Now there is no doubt the other
Southern Governors would have
preferred for Mr.. Arnall to stay
with them in a united attack on
the problem through the ICC. He
sent representatives to the New Or
Jeans and Miami Beach meetings
Of the conference, held after he
adopted an independent course, but
did not attend himself. While noth-
ing was said about 1t at New Or
leans, it was plain the other Gov
ernors would have liked to have
him there regardless of his views
on the freight rate procedure.
But his request to the Supreme
Court to hear an antitrust suit
turned out 10 have a strategic yalua
probably completely unintentionaE
Instead of a divided front, the
Southern attack turned into what
a military man would call a dou-
BILE development.
In early 1945 the court agreed
to near Mr.. Arnail's case. There
is some evidence the railroads and
the ICC were surprised; they ap-
parently had regarded the COM
plant as one against freight rates
alone and were fairly sure the court
would tell Mr.. Arnall the ICC had
Jurisdiction over such matters, and
to 60 there. But 1t did not. It
agreed to hear the State Of Geor-
gia on an antitrust complaint.
Any Washington bureaucrat can
shudder In sympathy with the ICC
at this point. The courts accept
ance of jurisdiction was a threat
to the whole power Of the commits
sion. The commissions sole right
TO regulate rail and water freight
throughout the United States here
tofore had been considered invio.
late. ANY ruling by it might be
appealed in the courts and reversed,
but that did not question the orig.
nal jurisdiction Of the commission
Itself. The Supreme Courts action
did.