Show FORAKER TURNS lOOSE HIS GUNS S ri tor Arraigns Proposed Bill to toI I I Regulate Railroad Rates Throughout Country ELKINS LN LAW IS SUFFICIENT MEASURE ACCORDING TO SENA SENATOR SENATOR TOR WILL NOT REMEDY EVILS Washington Feb three hours bours i eking a few minutes today 1 Mr r held the attention of the senate en te while he read a carefully prepared pre prepared pared speech on en the railroad rate question ques questIon tIon His speech was n a protest against tny general legIslation on the theory that the existing Elkins law could be beso beso so extended as to make It answer all tIe the requirements He did not fail to out what he considered the de defects fe ts ot of the bill bilI billand and he made thee the declaration more than once that It would fall fail to remedy the 1 evils complained of The speech was vas listened to by a large attendance both on the floor of the senate and in the galleries and at its close the senator was warmly congratulated congratulated by a number of hIs colleagues Mr Foraker conceded that some evidenced evils exist in connection I with the railroads but urged that all of them could be more effectively met bY amending the Elkins laws than by bypassing bypassing passing the pending bill He an announced ant t his regret at differIng from l the president but said that he could not see his way clear to pursue any other course He gave a general re revIew reF rei i vIew of the history of the railroad de development F o the country and passed to the evils of the system which he said are necessarily Incident to the up building of so vast an interest His attitude toward the pending railroad rate bill was correctly outlined in his first paragraph in which he said of the bill It is so contrary to the spirit of our institutions and of such drastic and revolutionary character that If IfIl Il not t In Us its immediate effect at least as asa asa a precedent the chances are likely to tobe tobe be most unusual and He discussed the railroad evils as of three rates rebates and discriminations He found little to complain Of under the first heading but said there are some Instances of charges that are too high and he hel l thought a prompt and effective remedy should he be provided Rebates Leading Evil EvilA A more serious evil he found in re rebates rebates bates and he traced the present exten extensive extensive sive railroad consolidationS to the fact that the supreme court decisions against had left the roads i without protection from the rebate system except to resort to some gen geni general i eral understanding Referring to the Elkins law he said saidi i There has been no serious attempt I I r to enforce this law to prevent dis discriminations discriminations criminations as to Joc localities utI s but a glance at its provisions will suffice to show that it js is as broad direct ex explicit explicit and efficIent to remedy that kind of an evil vIl wherever it may exist as it has been found to be as to personal discriminations That the law has not been tested In this respect is not due to any fault of the law but because no one one has seen fit to invoke it The fault he added Is not with the existing law Jaw but with the officials who have not enforced it AnnouncIng his own position he said saidI I believe in the court plan as con contradistinguishing contradistinguishing from the rate making plan not alone because it is much simpler sim simpler but more expeditious much more efficient and without expense to the shipper but because in addition to all Il that it avoids all legal and constitutional questions while the rate making plan as set forth in thIs bill encountered encountered a number of such questions that are of the most serious character and some of them in my jud judgment ment fatal Congress Has the Right Regarding the right of congress to tomake tomake make rates he declared the supreme court has never yet passed on that question and that there are many eminent lawyers who are of the opinion opinion ion that the court will hold when it does decide that question that congress does not have that power Their reasoning rea reasoning he said seems to me sound and the effect ot of it absolutely fatal to this entire scheme of legislation He was confirmed in this view he said by the pinion opinion of the court ourt in the Northern SecurIties company case He believed that a remark made in reach reaching reaching ing the conclusion In that case leaves the question open He conceded that the different states have the power of rate fixing But he said the cases are wholly different Manifestly it is utterly impossible for congress by stat statute statute ute to fix all the rates for interstate commerce It must resort to some plan under which it can avail itself of oft the help of some kind of board commis commission commission sion trIbunal or agency But when It undertakes to do this it must take heed lest it undertake to do it such a away away way as to delegate legislative author authority authority ity and thus make its effort unconstitutional unconstitutional and unavailing for it will be conceded that It Is unconstitutional for congress to delegate legislative power He pointed out the departure in em empowering empowering powering th the Interstate commerce com commission commission mission to decide what shall shaIl be a rea reasonable reasonable rate saying uIt It is in contravention of our constitution con constitution to confer judicial powers upon the legislative department or to con confer confer fer legislative powers upon the judi judicial judicial cial department or to confer conter either of these powers upon the executive de department department Discretion May Se Be Allowed He laid down the rule of the courts to be whether or not the party on whom the authority is conferred js Is in trusted with any discretion to make the law if so the statute is unconstitutional unconstitutional Discretion may be allowed as asto to its execution but none as to what the law shall be It Is true that the supreme court has upheld statutes en enacted enacted acted by the states conferring this power on state commissIons or commis commissioners commissioners and that the supreme court did not indulge in the maximum rate case and perhaps in other cases in the character of expressions referred to but It is also true that the precise queS queStion question tion now presented was not presented to the court in any of these cases And it is also true that court of the United States has bas never yet up upheld upheld held a state statute conferring power to make rates on a r railroad commis commission sion elan or commissioner as to that ulal point which did not make the pow power ex er so conferred purely administrative in character or which was not enacted by virtue of a constitutional provision that authorIzed such suc legislation The senator quoted a number of decisions de decIsions in support of his contention and said that many of the states had found it necessary to amend their constitutions constitutions In order to give to commissions the power to fix rates He conceded that if congress has the power to fix rates a commission can be created and It can be utilized in the fixing of rates But he said It can be utilized only under some such statute as those en enacted enacted acted by the legIslatures of Iowa and Wisconsin when in 1873 and 1874 they passed their respective statutes classi classifying classifying the railroads according to earn earnings earnings ings and providing that the officials chosen to execute them should by computation com computation taking the classification as a basis determine what statutory rates should apply That was administrative tive The congress could utilize the commissIon in the fixing of rates if it should see fit to resort to the policy polley of ofa ofa a mileage basis Conflict With Constitution Mr Foraker also contended that the enactment of the proposed law would contravene section 9 of article 1 of the constitution prohIbiting n a preference in favor of the differentials allowed in favor of PhIladelphia and I Baltimore and of New Orleans and Galveston and admitted that th these se differentials are essential to the the ex export export port traffic but added that the differ differentials differentials conflict with one of the great purposes of those seeking the kind of legislation that has been proposed to secure to each locality its own particular particular ular rightful advantage of location and thus avoid avold the preferring in the mak making making ing of rates of one locality to the pre prejudice prejudice judice of another It If we invest the interstate com commerce commerce merce commission with the power to tomake tomake make rates it must exercise that power subject to this prohibition of the con constitution constitution that th re shall shaIl be no prefer preference preference ence for the pO p ts is of one state over those of another The whole system of differentials must in consequence be abandoned Not only would the port of Boston be closed up but all the other ports would be at least most seriously affected The general busIness that could be ta taken taken ken as well to one port as another un under der present conditions would then con concentrate concentrate at the most favored port Enormous Penalties Discussing the penalties provIded by bythe bythe the bill he said they would amount to per month and declared that the penalties prescribed are of such cu cumulative cumulative and burdensome character as asto asto to deter a carrier from reporting to the courts except only where either the case is entirely clear as to its final out outcome outcome come or the consequences of an obey ance of the order are of such bank bankrupting bankrupting character as to make it with due regard for the rights of Us its creditors and stockholders for It i to submit Mr Foraker said that if the bill is to I become a law it should contain a court review provision On that point he said in part Fortunately some of the most im important important I questions to which attention I has been called cannot be withheld i from the c court rt but the power tore to re review view the question as to whether a rate condemned condemn d ora rate m made de by the com commission mission in a given case se is reasonable is unfortunately not one of th these se seBut s But between extortion on the one hand and confiscation on the other bother there Is in most cases a considerable latitude within which the of the I commission without special statutory I provIsion for reo view review of it by the courts would be final and conclusive I He then declared that little or no legislation Is needed and that the Ei kins law slightly amended is sufficient I if enforced He pointed out that the I Hepburn bill does not deal with re rebates bates or prevent carriers from engaging i ing In other kinds of bu business Sin ess a and nd that it does not enforce uniform classification tion nor deal with discrimination as asto asto to localities The senator stated that i ithe the bm bill had p passed the house without amendment because as the newspapers newspapers pers announced d the order had gone forth that whIle there might bed be d bate no matter heft necessary It might be allowed ed The ne bIll came to the he s senate nate and so far as the committee is con concerned concerned there has been a repetition of that experience ce he said Fears Discredit To ev n suggest he added that the bill is filled with unconstitutional provisions or that it will prove impracticable in operation is heralded as a species of treason and disloyalty to whom or what nobody knows The whole proceeding is without pr precedent ed nt in my experience l ice and probably in the history of the nation It If we aret are to ab abdicate abdicate our functions and permit such an imperfect and ered bill to become a law discredit will attach and disappointment will toll follow ow not only to those who desire such tIon as the house committee suggested but to all the people Mr Foraker concluded It iss not either easy or agreeable to differ with the president He Is the head for the time beIng not only of the nation but also of the political party of which I am proud to be a member I believe that the welfare of the nation is most beneficially affected and promoted by the supremacy of the republican policies and on this account think every man who believes in the policies of that party should do all in his power to secure harmony of pur pose and unity of action among its members with respect to national af affairs affairs fairs In this behalf we should be willing to make concessions In minor matters but when questions arise of such commandIng Importance as those now under consideratIon it is the duty of every man who has an official re responsibility responsibility to discharge with respect to them to make careful Investigation and to act in accordance with the con convictions convictions he may reach as a result To the best of m my ability I have done that I dislike exceedingly as every other public man does to be arraigned be before before fore the country by unfriendly critics as prompted by unworthy motives in inthe inthe the attitude assumed and to suffer In Inconsequence inconsequence consequence In the esteem of the pub public lie lic It is far pleasanter to go with the tide of public sentiment and enjoy the benefits of harmonious relations with coworkers In the public service and have the acclaim instead of the dis disapprobation approbation of constituents but nO nOman noman man who allows himself to be con controlled trolled against his judgment by con considerations of this character can do his duty or maintain his or be to retain the respect and con confidence confidence of his colleagues and constituents If we enact this measure and it proves disappointing as I believe it will the will not hear bear us say sayin say sayin in our defense that we ve legislated in response to their dema ds They IbeY cx e pert theIr representatives especially in this body with respect to questions of thIs character to act Intelligently patriotically and in accordance with theIr judgment and their oath or of office whIch bInds them to disregard public clamor and legislate for the public welfare as they see e and understand It We owe it to ourselves as well as our constituents to make this just expectation expectation tation Mr speech was followed by a further discussion n of the railroad land grant in Indian n Territory with the result that Mr resolution extendIng the trIbal government of the Indians was adopted after atter it was so modified as to carry that government over oyer until March 4 1907 A number of private pension bills bill most of them granting pension in increases creases creases were passed |