Show RAILROAD PRESIDENTS CALL I UPON THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE fW FE CHANGES Will J T TJ Message of Mr Taft However Will Be Split in Two the Part Dealing With Trusts Going to Congress Thursday OTHER SECTION WILL WILLBE WILLBE BE PRESENTED FRIDAY t Railway Magnates Objected to All Proposed Amendments to Interstate Commerce Law Lawin in the Bill PRESIDENT STOOD Washington Jan Ian a forenoon conference with presidents of six of the great railroad systems of the country President Taft late this afternoon announced a change of program in the sending of his mes message i sage dealing with interstate comI corn merce and antitrust laws amend amendments ments to The message will be split into two parts The section dealing with trusts will be sent to Congress Thursday noon The section dealing with the interstate commerce law in which the railroads are directly interested will be deferred until Friday The Presidents special message on the conservation of natural resources is expected to be ready for Congress on In Monday Nonday Soon after the railroad presidents had I ft the White House t was announced that the President stIll hoped to have his ready for tor Congress on Monday It had been his original intention to treat the two ts of f Interstate t and antitrust am It was said late this n that the mes Se s gl t tion it if divided Into two parts neither ot of mon mor than words As a result of the can call of the railroad it was said that only a few erbal changes would be made In the message dealing w th the interstate corn com mErc law and that these would make the ts position more clear Object to Bill President Taft found the tho railroad men most considerate In presenting their views While deprecating the Idea of any legisla legislation tion at all at this time when they de dared clard conditions in the railroad and In Industrial industrial worlds are righting themselves after two years of depression they did not seek to deter the president from sending his nis message They devoted themselves to more or less specific objections to the bUt bill b by Attorney General Wicher sham which forms the text of the ml s sage sag The President It is declared will not at attempt tempt to force the Wickersham or any other bill upon Congress He will say In his message that such a bill has been draftEd and Is at the disposal of Congress The railroad presidents admitted that their to the proposed amendments to HI the Interstate commerce act were general In their o all the amendments Meeting Arranged by Morgan TIll Th President however had made his position clEar to J Pierpont Morgan IlL in a brief interview last Friday morning Mr Morgan In turn arranged for con conference ference and advIsed the railroad men to confine themselves to sUggestion of hanges rather lan tian to an attempt to In flunce the President as to his general course Mr Taft has let It be known that he will not make recommendations for hanges In the law but that he expects to adopt t te 6 suggestions at this St session and thus carry out the promises or of the Republican Those Thos who attended the conference to today day dav Wire were Presidents McCrea of the Penn sylvinia Lovett of the Harriman lines Brown of th the New ew York Central Mellen Meilen Continued on Page Two l e f p 5 tb t 2 V WILLIAM C BROWN JUDGE ROBERT S LOVETT President of the New Nev York Central of E II 11 harriman In the Railway Company Compan railroad world RAILROAD PRESIDENTS CALL UPON THE CHIEf EXECUTIVE Continued from Page One of the New York New Haven Hartford Baer or of the Philadelphia Reading and of the Southern Railway The rail railroad raIlroad road presIdents brought LewIs Case Calis Led Ledyard Ledyard yard of New York with them as general counsel Attorney General Wickersham r represented presented the legal department ot of the government One Change Mr Taft Will Make One of the changes whIch President Taft agreed to make In his recommendations lions has to do with the language of the proposed amendment prohibiting a rail railroad railroad road company from acquiring stock ln In any competing railroad In the future or from holding stock In a competing railroad at atter atter ter a given date I It was claimed that the wordIng ot of this proposed amendment was such that It might be held to apply to lines like the New York Central and the West Shore The latter Is and for many years sears has bas been a New York Central line virtuallY as an overflow system on the western shore ot of the Hud Hudson Hudson son river The Tho law as President Taft Tatt will suggest vIll provide that where a railroad owns fA 50 per cent ir r more of the stock of an another other othel it may acquire the remainder ThIs It Is said would afford a measure of protection to minority stockholders for tor It if a railroad ownIng the majorIty stock should be prohibited from acquiring any anymore anymore more the minority would lose their probable probable able purchaser Where here a railroad holds less than the majority ot of stock in an another another other line however It will be provided that It can acquire no more NothIng In the Interstate commerce amendments will be s sd drawn as to legal legalIze legalize Ize the tho holding of stock In a competing line Une where tile the holding of the stock re results suIts In vIolation ot of the antitrust law President Taft listened to the railroad officials tor fot mOre than two hours lie He had been Informed In advance and had taken fo for granted many objectIons they would make and he practically Informed them that while their heir vIews wo would ld be given every consideration In the final of th message he could not al alter a ater ter his basic recommendations The proposal of an Inter Interstate state comm commerce court ot of five members to consider appeals from the Interstate om corn merce commIssion with an appeal only t to the Supreme court of the United States Staten i iwas was particularly objected to by the rail railroad road representatives They declared that the tho court soon would become nothing more than a second commission They preferred to take appeals direct from the commission to federal courts The recommendation for a court however I will remaIn in the message i Question of Stock Issues The railroad presidents objected most seriously also to the proposed upon the issuance ot of stocks bonds and short term notes President Taft will recommend that no such securitIes shan shall be Issued In the future wIthout the ap approval approval of the Interstate commerce corn com commission mission based upon a finding that the Is Issues issues sues In the future without the approval of the Interstate commerce commission based upon a finding that the Issues are for purposes authorized by law and for a aprIce aprice prIce not less than par for stock and not less than the reasonable market value for bonds Railroads claIm this restriction will se seriously seriously interfere with theIr bo ability The Tho amendments are to prevent s of Old an bonds and the custom known as watering It adopted It Is said the amendment also ale would put an end to what Is known as a speculative constrUction The railroad presidents objected to th proposed amendment giving shippers tb right ot of selecting a through route fn fe theIr gOOC goods J and giving the Interstate corn com merce commission the right to Initial complaInts and hold bold up new ratings ant and andrate rate cla classifications until sufficient cam caus shall be shown for them No Incorporation Bill BillIt It was said that no bill has been bee prepared by the to carry carn carryout out the PresIdents view as to a Incorporation law He will leave th tb p working out of this measure to Congress He will however recommend that th tb laW be voluntary The terms upon whIch charters are to be allowed and granted will have to be Included In th law but It Is that no law can cau empower the executive branch ot of the gov government government to revoke either a charter or license and that such revocation can come through the courts |