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sailing, (c) the route and itinerary such vessels will follow and the ports of call for which cargo will be carried.

"(2) Upon application of any shipper a carrier by railroad shall make request for, and the carrier by water shall upon receipt of such request name, a specific rate applying for such sailing, and upon such commodity as shall be embraced in the inquiry, and shall name in connection with such rate, port charges, if any, which accrue in addition to the vessel's rates and are not otherwise published by the railway as in addition to or absorbed in the railway rate.

rates, if conditioned upon quantity of shipment, must be so stated and separate rates may be provided for carload and less than carload shipments. The carrier by water, upon advices from a carrier by railroad, stating that the quoted rate is firmly accepted as applying upon a specifically named quantity of any commodity, shall, subject to such conditions as the Commission by regulation may prescribe, make firm reservation from unsold space in such steam vessel as shall be required for its transportation and shall so advise the carrier by railroad, in which advices shall be included the latest available information as to prospective sailing date of such vessel.

"(3) As the matters so required to be stated in such schedule or schedules are changed or modified from time to time, the carrier shall file with the Commission such changes or modifications as early as practicable after such modification is ascertained. The Commission is authorized to make and publish regulations not inconsistent herewith governing the manner and form in which such carriers are to comply with the foregoing provisions. The Commission shall cause to be published in compact form, for the information of shippers of commodities throughout the country, the substance of such schedules, and furnish such publications to all railway carriers subject to this Act, in such quantities that railway carriers may supply to each of their agents who receive commodities for shipment in such cities and towns as may be specified by the Commission, a copy of said publication; the intent being that each shipping community sufficiently important, from the standpoint of the export trade, to be so specified by the Commission shall have opportunity to know the sailings and routes, and to ascertain the transportation charges of such vessels engaged in foreign commerce. Each railway carrier to which such publication is furnished by the Commission is hereby required to distribute the same as aforesaid and to maintain such publication as it is issued from time to time, in the hands of its agents. The Commission is authorized to make such rules and regulations not inconsistent herewith respecting the distribution and maintenance of such publications in the several communities so specified as will further the intent of this section.

"(4) When any consignor delivers a shipment of property to any of the places so specified by the Commission, to be delivered by a railway carrier to one of the vessels upon which space has been reserved at a specified rate previously ascertained, as provided herein, for the transportation by water from and for a port named in the aforesaid schedule, the railway carrier shall issue a through bill of lading to the point of destination. Such bill of lading shall name separately the charge to be paid for the railway transportation, water transportation, and port charges, if any, not included in the rail or

liable to the consignor, consignee, or other person interested in the shipment after its delivery to the vessel. The Commission shall, in such manner as will preserve for the carrier by water the protection of limited liability provided by law, make such rules and regulations not inconsistent herewith as will prescribe the form of such through bill of lading. In all such cases it shall be the duty of the carrier by railroad to deliver such shipment to the vessel as a part of its undertaking as a common carrier.

"(5) The issuance of a through bill of lading covering shipments provided for herein shall not be held to constitute an arrangement for continuous carriage or shipment' within the meaning of this Act. "SEC. 26. That the Commission may, after investigation, order any carrier by railroad subject to this Act, within a time specified in the order, to install automatic train-stop or train-control devices or other safety devices, which comply with specifications and requirements prescribed by the Commission, upon the whole or any part of its railroad, such order to be issued and published at least two years before the date specified for its fulfillment: Provided, That a carrier shall not be held to be negligent because of its failure to install such devices upon a portion of its railroad not included in the order; and any action arising because of an accident happening upon such portion of its railroad shall be determined without consideration of the use of such devices upon another portion of its railroad. Any common carrier which refuses or neglects to comply with any order of the Commission made under the authority conferred by this section shall be liable to a penalty of $100 for each day that such refusal or neglect continues, which shall accrue to the United States, and may be recovered in a civil action brought by the United States.

"SEC. 27. That this Act may be cited as the 'Interstate Commerce Act.'"

TITLE V.-MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.

SEC. 500. It is hereby declared to be the policy of Congress to promote, encourage, and develop water transportation, service, and facilities in connection with the commerce of the United States, and to foster and preserve in full vigor both rail and water transportation.

It shall be the duty of the Secretary of War, with the object of promoting, encouraging, and developing inland waterway transportation facilities in connection with the commerce of the United States, to investigate the appropriate types of boats suitable for different classes of such waterways; to investigate the subject of water terminals, both for inland waterway traffic and for through traffic by water and rail, including the necessary docks, warehouses, apparatus, equipment, and appliances in connection therewith, and also railroad spurs and switches connecting with such terminals, with a view to devising the types most appropriate for different locations, and for the more expeditious and economical transfer or interchange of passengers or property between carriers by water and carriers by rail; to advise with communities, cities, and towns regarding the appropriate location of such terminals, and to cooperate with them in the preparation of plans for suitable terminal facilities; to investigate the existing status of water transportation upon the different

inland waterways of the country, with a view to determining whether such waterways are being utilized to the extent of their capacity, and to what extent they are meeting the demands of traffic, and whether the water carriers utilizing such waterways are interchanging traffic with the railroads; and to investigate any other matter that may tend to promote and encourage inland water transportation. It shall also be the province and duty of the Secretary of War to compile, publish, and distribute, from time to time, such useful statistics, data, and information concerning transportation on inland waterways as he may deem to be of value to the commercial interests of the country.

The words "inland waterway" as used in this section shall be construed to include the Great Lakes.

"

SEO. 501. The effective date on and after which the provisions of section 10 of the Act entitled "An Act to supplement existing laws against unlawful restraints and monopolies, and for other purposes,' approved October 15, 1914, shall become and be effective is hereby deferred and extended to January 1, 1921: Provided, That such extension shall not apply in the case of any corporation organized after January 12, 1918.

SEO. 502. That if any clause, sentence, paragraph, or part of this Act shall for any reason be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid such judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder of the Act, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment has been rendered.

Approved, February 28, 1920.

[S. 633.]

An Act Extending the provisions for the regulation of steam vessels to vessels owned or operated by the United States Shipping Board, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That all steam vessels owned or operated by the United States Shipping Board, or any corporation organized or controlled by it, shall be subject to all the provisions of title 52 of the Revised Statutes of the United States for the regulation of steam vessels and acts amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto.

Received by the President, October 14, 1919.

[NOTE BY THE Department of STATE.-The foregoing act having been presented to the President of the United States for his approval, and not having been returned by him to the House of Congress in which it originated within the time prescribed by the Constitution of the United States, has become a law without his approval.]

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[S. 3076.]

An Act Authorizing suits against the United States in admiralty, suits for salvage services, and providing for the release of merchant vessels belonging to the United States from arrest and attachment in foreign jurisdictions, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That no vessel owned by the United States or by any corporation in which the United States or its representatives shall own the entire outstanding capital stock or in the possession of the United States or of such corporation or operated by or for the United States or such corporation, and no cargo owned or possessed by the United States or by such corporation, shall hereafter, in view of the provision herein made for a libel in personam, be subject to arrest or seizure by judicial process in the United States or its possessions: Provided, That this Act shall not apply to the Panama Railroad Company.

SEC. 2. That in cases where if such vessel were privately owned or operated, or if such cargo were privately owned and possessed, a proceeding in admiralty could be maintained at the time of the commencement of the action herein provided for, a libel in personam may be brought against the United States or against such corporation, as the case may be, provided that such vessel is employed as a merchant vessel or is a tug boat operated by such corporation. Such suits shall be brought in the district court of the United States for the district in which the parties so suing, or any of them, reside or have their principal place of business in the United States, or in which the vessel or cargo charged with liability is found. The libelant shall forthwith serve a copy of his libel on the United States attorney for such district and mail a copy thereof by registered mail to the Attorney General of the United States, and shall file a sworn return of such service and mailing. Such service and mailing shall constitute valid service on the United States and such corporation. In case the United States or such corporation shall file a libel in rem or in personam in any district, a cross-libel in personam may be filed or a set-off claimed against the United States or such corporation with the same force and effect as if the libel had been filed by a private party. Upon application of either party the cause may, in the discretion of the court, be transferred to any other district court of the United States.

SEC. 3. That such suits shall proceed and shall be heard and determined according to the principles of law and to the rules of practice obtaining in like cases between private parties. A decree against the United States or such corporation may include costs of suit, and when the decree is for a money judgment, interest at the rate of 4 per centum per annum until satisfied, or at any higher rate which shall be stipulated in any contract upon which such decree shall be based. Interest shall run as ordered by the court. Decrees shall be subject to appeal and revision as now provided in other cases of admiralty and (51)

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