Sees. 1-3 Government for the Government of the United States, it shall be paid Payment for for currently or monthly by the Secretary of the Treastransportation. ury out of any funds not otherwise appropriated. Any carrier complying with any such order or direction for preference or priority herein authorized shall be exempt plying exempt from any and all provisions in existing law imposing civil and liabilities. or criminal pains, penalties, obligations, or liabilities upon carriers by reason of giving preference or priority in compliance with such order or direction. Carrier com from penalties 24 Stat. L., 379. 41 Stat. L., 479. crimination ited. de SEC. 2.1 [As amended February 28, 1920.] That if any Unjust dis- common carrier subject to the provisions of this Act shall, fined and prohib- directly or indirectly, by any special rate, rebate, drawback, or other device, charge, demand, collect, or receive from any person or persons a greater or less compensation for any service rendered, or to be rendered, in the transportation of passengers or property or the transmission of intelligence, subject to the provisions of this Act, than it charges, demands, collects, or receives from any other person or persons for doing for him or them a like and contemporaneous service in the transportation or transmission of a like kind of traffic or message under substantially similar circumstances and conditions, such common carrier shall be deemed guilty of unjust discrimination, which is hereby prohibited and declared to be unlawful. 24 Stat. L., 379. 41 Stat. L., 479. reasonable pref tage forbidden. SEC. 3. [As amended February 28, 1920.] (1) That it Undue or un shall be unlawful for any common carrier subject to the erence or advan- provisions of this Act to make or give any undue or unreasonable preference or advantage to any particular person, company, firm, corporation, or locality, or any particular description of traffic, in any respect whatsoever, or to subject any particular person, company, firm, corporation, or locality, or any particular description of traffic, to any undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage in any respect whatsoever. deliver freight paid. Carrier not to (2) From and after July 1, 1920, no carrier by railuntil charges road subject to the provisions of this Act shall deliver or relinquish possession at destination of any freight transported by it until all tariff rates and charges thereon Exception, have been paid, except under such rules and regulations prescribed by as the Commission may from time to time prescribe to assure prompt payment of all such rates and charges rules as to credit Commission. 1 See Elkins Act, post, page 87. Sec.3 and to prevent unjust discrimination: Provided, That the provisions of this paragraph shall not be construed to prohibit any carrier from extending credit in connection with rates and charges on freight transported for the United States, for any department, bureau, or agency Freight for thereof or for any State or Territory or political sub- Federal, State, division thereof, or for the District of Columbia. 1 or local government. for interchange of (3) All carriers, engaged in the transportation of Facilities passengers or property, subject to the provisions of this traffic. Act, shall, according to their respective powers, afford all reasonable, proper, and equal facilities for the interchange of traffic between their respective lines, and for the receiving, forwarding, and delivering of passengers or property to and from their several lines and those connecting therewith, and shall not discriminate in their Discrimination rates, fares, and charges between such connecting lines, ing lines forbidor unduly prejudice any such connecting line in the dis- den. tribution of traffic that is not specifically routed by the shipper. between connect may require com minals. terms and com (4) If the Commission finds it to be in the public Commission interest and to be practicable, without substantially mon use of terimpairing the ability of a carrier owning or entitled to the enjoyment of terminal facilities to handle its own business, it shall have power to require the use of any such terminal facilities, including main-line track or tracks for a reasonable distance outside of such terminal, of any carrier, by another carrier or other carriers, on such terms and for such compensation as the carriers affected Fixation of may agree upon, or, in the event of a failure to agree, as pensation. the Commission may fix as just and reasonable for the use so required, to be ascertained on the principle controlling compensation in condemnation proceedings. Such compensation shall be paid or adequately secured before the enjoyment of the use may be commenced. If under this paragraph the use of such terminal facilities of any carrier is required to be given to another carrier or other carriers, and the carrier whose terminal facilities are required to be so used is not satisfied with the terms fixed for such use, or if the amount of compensation so fixed is not duly and promptly paid, the carrier whose terminal facilities have thus been required to be given to another carrier or other carriers shall be entitled to recover, by suit or action against such other carrier 1 See Government-Aided Railroad and Telegraph Act, post, page 163. Recovery of damages by car or rier whose facili ties are used. Secs. 3 and 4 24 Stat. L., 379. 36 Stat. L., 539. Long and short carriers, proper damages for any injuries sustained by it as the result of compliance with such requirement, or just compensation for such use, or both, as the case may be. SEC. 4. [As amended June 18, 1910, and February 28, 41 Stat. L., 480. 1920.] (1) That it shall be unlawful for any common haul provision. carrier subject to the provisions of this Act to charge or receive any greater compensation in the aggregate for the transportation of passengers, or of like kind of property, for a shorter than for a longer distance over the same line or route in the same direction, the shorter being included within the longer distance, or to charge any greater compensation as a through rate than the aggregate of the intermediate rates subject to the provisions of this Act, but this shall not be construed as authorizing any common carrier within the terms of this Act to charge or receive as great compensation for a Relief, by shorter as for a longer distance: Provided, That upon from operation of application to the Commission such common carrier Commission, section. to be reasonably may in special cases, after investigation, be authorized by the Commission to charge less for longer than for shorter distances for the transportation of passengers or property; and the Commission may from time to time prescribe the extent to which such designated common carrier may be relieved from the operation of this section; but in exercising the authority conferred upon it Charge for. longer distance in this proviso the Commission shall not permit the compensatory. establishment of any charge to or from the more distant point that is not reasonably compensatory for the service performed; and if a circuitous rail line or route is, because of such circuity, granted authority to meet the charges of a more direct line or route to or from competiIntermediate tive points and to maintain higher charges to or from tous lines. intermediate points on its line, the authority shall not include intermediate points as to which the haul of the petitioning line or route is not longer than that of the direct line or route between the competitive points; and Merely poten- no such authorization shall be granted on account of tition not ground merely potential water competition not actually in existfor relief. ence: And provided further, That rates, fares, or charges existing at the time of the passage of this amendatory existing rates Act by virtue of orders of the Commission or as to which Commission. application has theretofore been filed with the Commission and not yet acted upon, shall not be required to be rates, on circui tial water compe Maintenance of pending order by changed by reason of the provisions of this section until the further order of or a determination by the Commission. Secs. 4 and 5 Rates reduced competition not finding by Com 24 Stat. L., 379. Pooling of freight and divi 41 Stat. L., 480. sion of earnings forbidden. (2) Wherever a carrier by railroad shall in competito meet water tion with a water route or routes reduce the rates on the raised without carriage of any species of freight to or from competitive mission. points it shall not be permitted to increase such rates unless after hearing by the Commission it shall be found that such proposed increase rests upon changed conditions other than the elimination of water competition. SEC. 5. [As amended August 24, 1912, and February 28, 1920.] (1) That, except upon specific approval by order of the Commission as in this section provided, and except as provided in paragraph (16) of section 1 of this Act, it shall be unlawful for any common carrier subject to this Act to enter into any contract, agreement, or combination with any other common carrier or carriers for the pooling of freights of different and competing railroads, or to divide between them the aggregate or net proceeds of the earnings of such railroads, or any portion thereof; and in any case of an agreement for the pooling of freights as aforesaid each day of its continuance shall be deemed a separate offense: Provided, That Commission whenever the Commission is of opinion, after hearing assent of carriers. upon application of any carrier or carriers engaged in the transportation of passengers or property subject to this Act, or upon its own initiative, that the division of their traffic or earnings, to the extent indicated by the Commission, will be in the interest of better service to the public, or economy in operation, and will not unduly restrain competition, the Commission shall have authority by order to approve and authorize, if assented to by all the carriers involved, such division of traffic or earnings, under such rules and regulations, and for such consideration as between such carriers and upon such terms and conditions, as shall be found by the Commission to be just and reasonable in the premises. may permit, with Acquisition of purchase of wise. (2) Whenever the Commission is of opinion, after hearing, upon application of any carrier or carriers control by lease, engaged in the transportation of passengers or property stock, or othersubject to this Act, that the acquisition, to the extent indicated by the Commission, by one of such carriers of the control of any other such carrier or carriers either under a lease or by the purchase of stock or in any other Sec. 5 by Commission, terms. manner not involving the consolidation of such carriers into a single system for ownership and operation, will be Authorization in the public interest, the Commission shall have authority by order to approve and authorize such acquisition, under such rules and regulations and for such consideration and on such terms and conditions as shall be found by the Commission to be just and reasonable in the premises. Supplemental orders. Consolidation of railways -Commission to and trade chan (3) The Commission may from time to time, for good cause shown, make such orders, supplemental to any order made under paragraph (1) or (2), as it may deem necessary or appropriate. (4) The Commission shall as soon as practicable prepare and adopt a plan for the consolidation of the railadopt comprehen way properties of the continental United States into a sive plan. limited number of systems. In the division of such railways into such systems under such plan, competition -competition shall be preserved as fully as possible and wherever pracnels preserved. ticable the existing routes and channels of trade and commerce shall be maintained. Subject to the foregoing requirements, the several systems shall be so arranged that the cost of transportation as between competitive systems and as related to the values of the properties through which the service is rendered shall be the same, so far as practicable, so that these systems can employ uniform rates in the movement of competitive traffic and under efficient management earn substantially the same rate of return upon the value of their respective railway properties. Hearings upon tentative plan of (5) When the Commission has agreed upon a tentative consolidation. plan, it shall give the same due publicity and upon reasonable notice, including notice to the Governor of each State, shall hear all persons who may file or present objections thereto. The Commission is authorized to prescribe a procedure for such hearings and to fix a time for bringing them to a close. After the hearings are at an end, the Adoption of Commission shall adopt a plan for such consolidation plan; publicamodifica- and publish the same; but it may at any time thereafter, upon its own motion or upon application, reopen the subject for such changes or modifications as in its judgment will promote the public interest. The consolidations herein provided for shall be in harmony with such plan.! tion; tions. |