| Show INTERSTATE COMMERCE LAW Delegate MILLER of Nebraska introduced intro-duced a resolution in the transMississippi congress on Tuesday expressing the opinion that most of tho national laws that had been enacted for tho regulation of interstate commerce had been but a hindrance and should be repealed Could not the gentleman have used the word uall instead of most and better stated the case 1 There are In the books a good many enactments which reflect discredit upon the Intelligence of those who framed them but there are mighty few of those laws which come nearer to being worthless than the inter state commerce act which its framers assumed to be in the interest of the people If the railway companies had had the making of the law it is doubtful if they would have been so lenient with themselves as Congress has been and it is absolutely certain that they would have enforced the law against each other with greater strictness than the government has over thought of applying We occasionally hear lawyers in court tell of statutes through which they can drive a coach and four and this seems to be one of them Tho three principal objects of the law wore to prevent pooling on the part of railways to prevent ciscrhnination against localities and to prevent favoritism towards individuals indi-viduals It may boj questioned thnt one of these objects has been achieved except perhaps in isolated instances The pool may not be as open and impudent as formerly for-merly but who doubts that it exists in fact Every little while the traffic associations associ-ations get together and apportion business among the competing lines based upon the traffic of each for somo stated period Little attention has ever been paid to the long and short haul provision the commissioners com-missioners to enforce tho law having practically prac-tically ruled in favor of the disregard of the clause And as for discrimination it is the general complaint throughout the interior inte-rior west especially that part of the west between the eastern slope of the Rocky mountains and the Sierras Salt Lake has a standing protest on this score and fre quent efforts are put forth to unite our merchants and business men in a combination combina-tion to fight the discrimination which deprives de-prives the city of its legitimate market Mr MILLER was right in denouncing the interstate commerce laws and tho convention con-vention will do right in appealing to Congress Con-gress to repeal those laws and enact others which will do what these have failed to accomplishcompel railways to treat all patrons alike and be equally fair to all communities |
