43 F. 37 | U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Southern Ohio | 1890
Lead Opinion
This is an application or proceeding under the provision of the interstate commerce act, by the interstate commerce commission, for the issuance by this court of a writ of injunction, or other-proper process, mandatory or otherwise, to restrain the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company from further continuing in its violation of certain orders of said commission, and for a decree requiring said railroad company to pay such sum of money, not exceeding the sum of $500, for every day alter a day to he named in the decree that said defendant shall fail to obey said injunction or other proper process. The orders of the commission, which this court is asked to enforce by its injunction or mandatory process, were made upon a complaint filed before the interstate commerce commission by the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railway Company, against the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company, which set forth and alleged that the petitioner was duly incorporated under the laws of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio, and was engaged as a common carrier in operating a system of railroads, extending from Pittsburgh, Pa., to various towns and cities in said state; that the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company was duly incorporated under the laws of the state of Maryland, and was also a common carrier operating a system of railroads, a part of which extended from said city of Pittsburgh to many of the important towns and cities in the above-named states, which were reached by petitioner’s lines of road, and thus made it a competitor of petitioner in respect to business between said points; that upon its lines of road on which business competitive with
The defendant admitted that it had issued the so-called “Party Rates,” which, it claimed, were in no way a violation of the act to regulate commerce, but, on the contrary, were an accommodation to the public, necessary to the business of theatrical and amusement companies and others traveling together in a large body. The defendant also denied that the petitioner had any right to institute said proceedings before the commission; that it was not such a complainant as the act to regulate commerce authorized to make complaint, its alleged injury from defendant’s acts arising or resulting tot it only as a competing carrier; and defendant moved to dismiss said petition on said ground, and.because petitioner did not allege facts sufficient to bring it within any of the classes
After referring to the general practice on the part of railroads, before the passage of the act to regulate commerce, of issuing special rate passenger tickets of various kinds and forms, such as mileage, excursion, party, monthly, or quarterly, a specified number of trips for one person, or one trip by the specified number of persons, and ten, twenty, or thirty trip tickets, lower than the regular single fare charges, based upon the principle that when the amount of travel thereby encouraged or developed would more than make up to the carrier for the reduction of the per capita rate, then such special rate was reasonable and just in the interests of both the carrier and the public, the respondent proceeds to state “that since the passage of said act to regulate commerce this respondent has continued as theretofore the practice above stated of making a lower charge on passenger travel in consideration of the amount and frequency of travel, and with that purposé, and to accommodate the various classes of passengers, it has continued in use all the forms of ticket described in the next preceding section; that the charge fixed by it for the transportation of parties of ten or more on a single ticket has been two cents per mile per capita, which is the same rate charged on thousand-mil'e
The real controversy in this case' is confined to the validity of the commission’s order requiring the defendant to desist from the issuance of “party-rate” tickets for ten or more persons traveling together on one tieket at a lower rate per mile and per capita than is contemporaneously charged for a single passenger between the same stations. This issue represents two leading and important questions, which involve the proper construction of sections 1, 2, 3, and 22 of the act to regulate commerce, under the facts established by the pleadings and evidence: First, Are
the “party-rate” tickets in use by defendant embraced or included in the general designation of “commutation passenger tickets,” which section22, as amended by the act of March 2, 1889, does not “prevent” the railroad company from issuing? And, secondly, if such “party fates” are not “commutation passenger tickets” within the true meaning of said section, do they constitute either an unjust discrimination, as deSned and prohibited by section 2, or an undue or unreasonable preference or adT vantage, as forbidden by section 3, of said act?
The last clause of section 1 of the act to regulate commerce, adopted and established for the United States, in respect to interstate traffic, the general rule of the common law that all charges ' made by common carriers, subject to the provisions of said act, for any service rendered in the transportation of passengers or property, should be “reasonable and just,” and that every “unjust and unreasonable” charge for such service should be prohibited and declared unlawful. No claim is made that defendants charges for parties of ten or more or for single passengers have violated the provisions of said section. The report and opinion of the commission does not find that the rates in use by defendant for either “party-rate” or single passenger tickets are in any way unjust or unreasonable charges for the services rendered in transporting either class; and the proof before this court establishes that said “party-rates” of two cents per mile are reasonable and just, that they are promotive of the interests of the railway companies issuing them, and a convenience to the public. The right of the defendant to make and collect reasonable charges for its transportation service isa property right under its franchises, of which it cannot be deprived without due process of law. This is settled by the recent decision of the supreme court in the case of Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Ry. Co. v. State of Minnesota, 10 Sup. Ct. Rep. 462.
In considering the foregoing questions, on which the proper determination of the present case rests, the fact established by the proof, and not controverted by or on behalf of complainant, that defendant’s charges for both the single passenger and the party of ten or more are reasonable and just in themselves, should be kept in view. Do “party-rate” tickets come fairly within the letter and spirit of the general terms “commutation passenger.tickets,” as used in section 22 of the statute?.. Railroad •experts, many of whom were examined in this case, differ considerably
The commission seems to have treated and construed section 22 as designating certain cases and instances of discrimination which are to be considered as exceptions, and which, but for being so excepted, would fall within the operation of sections 2 and 3 of the act; and that, because “party-rate ” tickets are not specially and particularly named, they should be excluded from the list of exceptions. We cannot, in view of the whole scope and manifest purpose of the act, assent to this construction of said section. It should bo given a broader and more liberal interpretation for the reasons already slated, and, as thus interpreted, we think that the section fairly recognizes, in respect to passenger traffic, the general principle of commutation, and that “party-rate” tickets for ten or more persons traveling together in one body on one ticket at reduced rates per mile, which are reasonable and just, as issued by defendant, are within the letter and spirit of “commutation passenger tickets” as those terms are employed in the statute. This construction of the section neither disregards the duties and obligations of the carrier to the public, nor ignores its just rights in the reasonable management of its business. The evidence before us shows that, if “party-rate” tickets, as described and used by defendant, cannot be lawfully issued, or should be discontinued, the revenues of common carriers derived from passenger traffic will be seriously impaired, while the convenience and benefit
Secondly. But suppose it be assumed that the defendant’s “party-rate” ' tickets are not commutation tickets, as ruled by the commission, then the question remains whether they constitute an unjust discrimination, as defined by section 2, or an undue or unreasonable preference or advantage to, or any undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage against,, any particular person, company, firm, corporation, or locality, or any particular description of traffic in any respect whatsoever. The evidence discloses that originally “ party-rate ” tickets were issued only to theatrical or amusement companies, just as mileage tickets were to commercial travelers only; that since the passage of the interstate commerce act said “party-rate’’.tickets are no longer confined to one class of passenger traffic, but, like mileage, time-trip, and excursion rates, are regularly scheduled and posted, and offered to the public at large, so that any and all parties of ten or more traveling together, who choose to apply for the same, have equal rights and privileges of securing such tickets at the same reduced rates. Does this concession to the public, traveling in parties of ten or more, and open indiscriminately to all persons of the requisite number who choose to avail themselves of the reduced rate by applying for a- single ticket for the party, violate, in letter or spirit, the provisions of either section 2 or 3 of the act? In other words, may the-defendant lawfully transport a party of ten or more persons on a single ticket at a less rate per mile and per capita than it charges for carrying a . single passenger between the same stations? Does the fact that defendant charges the single passenger for a single trip a somewhat higher rate-per mile than it charges for transporting ten or more passengers as one party on a single ticket over the same distance, constitute unjust discrimination, as defined in section 2, or undue or unreasonable preference- or advantage in favor of such party of ten or more, or any undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage against the single passenger as prohibited by section 3 of the act? The decision of this question involves the proper construction and interpretation of said sections, which must be read and considered in connection with the provisions found in sections 1 and 22 in order to arrive at their true scope and meaning. When thus considered, it is perfectly manifest that congress did not intend ■ to impose upon common carriers, subject to the provisions of the act, ■ any rule or duty of absolute equality of rates in their charges for transportation services. Subject to the requirement of section 1, that all charges made for any service rendered in the transportation of passengers or property shall be reasonable and just, the language of section 2 clearly recognizes and implies that there may be discriminations which are not unjust and not prohibited. - So, too, the language employed in
Now, it is neither claimed nor proved in the present case that defendant’s charges, either for single passenger or “party-rate” tickets, are in themselves unjust and unreasonable. On the contrary, both rates are shown to be just and reasonable. The public has, therefore, no ground of complaint on that score, nor has any legitimate complaint been made on its behalf, either by the original petitioner or by the commission. Who is unjustly discriminated against by defendant’s difference in charges for the party of ten or more and the single passenger? Who is given an undue preference or advantage, or subjected to an undue prejudice or disadvantage, by reason of said difference in rates? If any one, it is manifestly the single passenger. But no complaint of undue prejudice or disadvantage and of consequent personal injury comes from that quarter. When this court is called upon, either by the commission or others, to enforce the provisions of the act to regulate commerce, it is indispensably necessary to show either a case of individual grievance-or of public inconvenience resulting or arising from acts of the carrier done in violation-of the statute. The proceeding in this case is not based upon any individual injury, but rests upon the alleged inconvenience to and undue prejudice against that portion of the public represented by the single passenger traffic in being charged by defendant a somewhat higher rate per mile than it demands and receives of and from a party of ten or more purchasing a single ticket for the party. But how can this position be sustained, if, as we have already stated, both single passengers and “party-rate” charges in use by defendant are in themselves “reasonable and just” towards each class of such traffic? When a carrier’s charges are “reasonable and just” in compliance with the requirement of section 1, how can they be regarded or treated as constituting an unjust discrimination under section 2, or an undue preference or undue prejudice under section 3, of the act? The' provisions of sections 2 and 3 were certainly not intended to restrict or qualify the rights conceded,
In the case of Attorney General v. Birmingham, etc., Ry. Co., 2 Eng. Ry. Cas. 124, a railway company (whose act contained an equality clause) charged a smaller fare to passengers who traveled from D. toN., intending to proceed from N. to London by another railway, than they charged passengers from D. to N. who had no such intention. On motion for an injunction it was hold by Lord Chancellor Cottenham that the equality clause was meant only to prevent the exercise of a monopoly to Ihe prejudice of one passenger or carrier and in favor of another, and that, even if he had jurisdiction to interfere, ho would not do so unless it was clear that the public interest required it; and, it being admitted in the case that the higher charge was not more than the act authorized, it did not appear tliat the public were prejudiced by the arrangement.
■ In the present case, it being neither claimed nor shown that the higher charge of three cents per mile for the single passenger on a single-trip ticket is unjust and unreasonable, or more than the defendant is authorized to charge by section 1, it is difficult to see in what respect the public are prejudiced or unjustly discriminated against by the arrangement.
But, aside from this view of the subject, in what respect does the difference which defendant makes in the rate charged the single passenger and the party of ten or more traveling together on a single ticket conflict with the provisions of sections 2 and 3 of the act? Under the flexible and elastic rule prescribed by said sections, construed in the light of section 1, a difference in charges, while an element in the proper definition of unjust discrimination or undue preference, is by no means the sole or controlling factor. To come within the inhibition of said sections the differences must be made under like conditions; that is, there must be contemporaneous service in the transportation of like kinds of traffic, under substantially the same circumstances and conditions. In respect to passenger traffic, the position of the respective persons or classes beween whom differences in charges are made must be compared with each other, and there must bo found to exist substantial identity of situation and of service, accompanied by irregularity and partiality, resulting in undue advantage to one or undue disadvantage to the other, in order to constitute unjust discrimination. The sections substantially adopt the principle laid down in Hays v. Pennsylvania Co., 12 Fed. Rep. 309, where the court, after stating that a common carrier had no right to make unreasonable and unjust discriminations, said:
“But what are such discriminations? So rule can be formulated with sufficient flexibility to apply to any case that may arise. It may, however, be said that it is only where the discrimination inures to the undue advantage of one man in consequence of some injustice inflicted on another that the law interferes for the protection of the latter.”
It cannot be properly said in the case under consideration that the lower rate given to a party of ten or more confers upon such party an undue advantage in consequence of injustice inflicted upon the single passenger. There is nothing competitive in the traffic of the single pas
“I take the free power of making contracts to be essential for making commercial profit. Hailway companies have that power as freely as any merchant, subject only (as to this* court) to the duty of acting impartially without respect of persons; and this duty is performed when the offer of the contract is made to all who wish to adopt it. Large contracts may be beyond the means of small capitalists', contracts for long distances may be beyond tlie needs of those whose traffic is confined to a home district; but the power of the railway company to contract is not restricted by these considerations.”
It will he seen from an examination of the English railway traffic acts of 1845 and 1854. that section 90 of the former and section 2 of the latter were substantially adopted and embodied in sections 2 and 3 of our act to regulate commerce. Section 90 of the English act of 1845 required that “ tolls were at all times (to be) charged equally to all persons and after the same rate, whether per ton, per mile, or otherwise, in respect of all passengers and of all goods and carriages of the same description * * * passing only over the same portion of the line of railway under the same circumstances; and no reduction or allowance in any such tolls should be made, either directly or indirectly, in favor of or against any particular company or person traveling upon or using the railway.” Section 2 of the act of 1854, after requiring every railway company subject to the law to afford all reasonable facilities, according to their respective- powers, for receiving, forwarding, and delivering of traffic, provided that “no such company shall make or give any undue or unreasonable preference or advantage to or in favor of any particular person or company, or any particular description of traffic* in any respect whatsoever; nor shall any such company subject any particular person or company, or any particular description of traffic, to any undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage in any respect whatsoever.” The English cases upon the question of “undue preference ” which have arisen under said sections will be found to confirm tlie construction we have placed upon sections 2 and 3 of the act, and also show the elements which may properly be considered in determining whether “undue preference” has been given or “ undue disadvantage” has been imposed. The history and hearing of the equality clause of the act of 1845 is elaborately discussed by Blackburn, J., in the ease of Railway Co. v. Sutton, L. R. 4 H. L. 288, 38 L. J. Exch. 177. With respect to the “undue preference” forbidden by section 2 of the act of 1854, which was a mere enlargement of section 90 of the act of 1845, the English cases, stated generally, hold that a preference to be-
“Are these words to be construed with reference to the interests of the parties using the railway only? or may the interests of the railway owners betaken in any manner into consideration? Ex. gr., if 1,000 tons can be carried for a lower sum per ton per mile than 100 tons, yielding an equal profit per ton to the railway company, may they so regulate the charges as to derived such equal profit ? Would the lower rate charged for the larger quantity give an undue preference? * * * If that may be done without giving what the statute calls an undue or unreasonable preference, may not the company, in fixing rates, consider the whole profit, and not the mere profit per mile, and, in order to induce people to carry more on their lines, and longer distances, agree to make a reduction, in such case? It is true that the sender of the smaller quantities for a shorter distance will pay more per mile and more per ton in the respective cases, but will that be an undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage? * * * After a good deal of consideration, we think that the fair interests of the railway ought to be taken into the account, and then the question suggested assumes a very complicated and difficult character.”
In Oxlade v. Railway Co., 1 C. B. (N. S.) 454, 26 Law J. C. P. 129, it was held that a railway company was justified in carrying goods for one person at a less rate than that at which they carried the same description of goods for another, if there were circumstances which rendered the cost to the company of carrying for the former less than the cost of carrying for the latter. In Nicholson v. Railway Co., 5 C. B. (N. S.) 435, 28 Law J. C. P. 89, it was held to be competent for a railway company to enter into special agreement, whereby advantage may be secured to individuals in the carriage of goods, where it appeared that, in entering into such agreement, the company had only the interests of the proprietors and the legitimate increase of the profits of the railway in view,
“So, again, if an arrangement wore made by a railway company whereby persons bringing a larger amount of traffic to the railway should have their goods carried on more favorable terms than those bringing a less quantity, although the court might uphold such an arrangement as an ordinary incident of commercial economy, provided the same advantages were extended to all persons under the like circumstances, yet it would assuredly insist on the latter condition.”
And, while recognizing the duty on the part of the court to redress any injustice or inequality prohibited by the law, he makes the further pertinent observation:
“At the same time we must carefully avoid interfering, except where absolutely necessary for the above purpose, with the ordinary right (subject,to the above-named qualifications) which a railway company, in common with every other company or individual, possesses, of regulating and managing its own affairs, either with regard to charges or accommodation as to the agreements and bargains it may make in its particular businoss.”
As regards the “undue preference” branch of the English acts, “the effect of the decisions seems to he that a company is hound to give the same treatment to all persons equally under the same circumstances; but that there is nothing to prevent a company, if acting with a view to its own profit, from imposing such condition as may incidentally have the effect of favoring one class of traders, or one town or one portion of their traffic, provided the conditions aro the same to all persons, and are such as lead to the conclusion that they are really imposed for the benefit of the railway company.” Report of Amalgamation Committee of 1872, p. 13. Our act to regulate commerce having adopted substantially sections 2 and 90 of the English railway traffic acts of 1854 and 1845, the settled construction which the English courts had given to their terms and provisions must be received as incorporated into our statute. McDonald v. Hovey, 110 U. S. 619, 4 Sup. Ct. Rep. 142. The English cases referred to above, and others that might be cited, establish the rule that, in passing upon the question of undue or unreasonable preference or disadvantage, it is not only legitimate, hut proper, to take into consideration, besides the mere differences in charges, various elements, such as the convenience of the public, the fair interest of the carrier, the relative quantities or volume of the traffic involved, the relative cost of the services and profit to the company, and the situation and circum
“Ido not find in the act that, when there is a real difference of circumstances, and nothing to show any want of good faith, the burden of justifying the exact difference of charge, (or, what is the same thing, the deduction or allowance,) by showing a numerical or ‘ necessary relation ’ between it and the actual saving, is cast upon the company. ”
Section 27 of the act- of August 10, 1888, (51 & 52 Viet. c. 25,) for the better regulation of railway and canal traffic, changed this rule by providing that, where inequalities in rates exist, “the burden of proving that such lower charge or differences in treatment does not amount to an undue preference shall lie on the railway company.” As no such provision is found in our act, the burden of showing that the difference in defendant’s “party” and single passenger rates constitutes undue preference in favor of the former, or undue prejudice or disadvantage against the latter, devolves upon thfe' complainant, and must be established as the reasonable and legitimate result of the various elements on considerations above mentioned. There is no pretense or suggestion that there is any want of good faith in defendant’s action, or that the difference in rates complained of was made or is continued with a view to any actual disadvantage of the single passengers, or to subject the public to any injury or inconvenience.
Subjecting defendant’s rates for single passengers and for parties of ten or more traveling together on a single ticket to the test of the various considerations indicated above by the English decisions as elements in the question, does it clearly appear that such rates are so adjusted as to give an undue or unreasonable preference to one or impose an undue or unreasonable preference or disadvantage upon the other class? We think not. In view of the established facts that it is not claimed or shown that the single passenger rates are unjust and unreasonable, that the “party rates” are just and reasonable, that there is no competition or competitive relation between the two classes, that the “party rates,” open to all who choose to avail themselves of the same, are a convenience and benefit to a considerable portion of the traveling public, that the interests of the carrier are reasonably promoted by their use, that the cost of service is relatively or proportionately less for the party of ten or more than for the single passenger, and that the difference in charges does not appear to be improperly adjusted with reference to or unjustified by the actual saving or profit to the company, it cannot be properly said that the traffic is of like kind, and that the service is identical, or “under substantially the same circumstances and conditions.” The decisions of the state courts on the subject of unjust dis
We think there is no force in the suggestion that “party-rate” tickets, as used by defendant, are more liable to abuse than ordinary or regular single passenger tickets. In the present case it is clearly shown by the evidence of railroad superintendents and experts, familiar with the subject, that such “party-rate” tickets are less liable to abuse than ordinary single tickets. It is manifest from a moment’s reflection that the fewer the tickets on which the carrier’s transportation services are arranged and conducted the better it can protect itself and the public against speculators and ticket brokers. It is also manifest that the larger the number of passengers embraced in a single ticket the greater will be the difficulty of “scalpers” or ticket brokers dealing therein. .But, if the single tickets for parties of ten or more traveling together wore liable to the abuses suggested, that fact would hardly control the proper construction of the law, nor tend to establish that their issuance at reduced rates constituted undue preference or advantage on the one hand, or undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage on the other. Our conclusion upon the whole case is that “party-rate” tickets, as used by defendant, are not in contravention of sections 2 and 3 of the act to regulate commerce, and that the order of the commission requiring and enjoining the defendant to cease and discontinue the use of said tickets is not lawful, and should not bo enforced by this court. It follows that the complainant’s bill should he dismissed, with costs to be taxed. It is accordingly so ordered and adjudged.
Concurrence Opinion
(concurring.) The bill is filed to enforce the opinion and order of the interstate commerce commission against the respondent, upon the complaint of the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railway Company, that the respondent had put into effect and had .in operation so called “party rates,” whereby parties of ten or more persons traveling-together on one ticket were transported over its lines of road at two cents per mile per capita, the regular rate for a single person being about three cents per mile. The complaint was, further, that the respondent was in the habit of selling round-trip excursion tickets over its lines without publicly posting the rates therefor, which were loss than rates for ordinary tickets. The respondent admitted the facts as alleged, hut denied that they wore in conflict with the law.
The hill contains, in substance, the averments of the complaint, with the further averment that the respondent, in disregard of complainant’s order, and in violation of the act to regulate commerce, persists in doing each of the acts complained of, wherefore an injunction is prayed to
The respondent admits the averment of fact in the bill relating to the sale and use of party-rate tickets, and justifies as in its answer to the complaint aforesaid, but denies that since the order made thereon it has failed or refused to post its rates for excursion tickets. No testimony was taken in support of the averments of the bill denied by the answer, and at the hearing this part of the complainant’s cause was abandoned, leaving as the only questions to be decided those relating to the salé of party-rate tickets, as conducted by the respondent.
The facts are not in. dispute. A single ticket is issued to a party of ten or more at the fixed rate of two cents per mile per capita, which is a reduction of about thirty-three and one-third per centum from the regular fare for a single person. This rate is scheduled, and posted, and open to the public at large. A question was made whether these tickets were known and recognized in railroad circles befóte and at the date of the passage of the act as “commutation tickets.” The evidence of railroad men of experience and prominence was taken upon this point. It clearly establishes the negative of the proposition. Some of the witnesses went further, and undertook to settle, by their testimony, whether party-rate tickets are commutation tickets; but that is a question of construction, to be determined by the court, and not by witnesses. Whether they -were, at and before the passage of the act, generally known and recognized by those engaged in railroad business as “commutation tickets,” and how those -words were then understood and used by railroad men, is competent, for the reason that the presumption is that congress employed terms used in that business in the sense in which they were so used. Construing the testimony according to this rule, my conclusion is that party-rate tickets are not included in the letter of the provision in favor of commutation tickets in the twenty-second section of the act. Their use was confined chiefly to traveling theatrical troupes. They were not on sale to the public. Although kept at the larger stations, they could not usually be obtained without an order from the general office, or from some authorized sub-office of the passenger department. They were not regarded as, nor understood to be, commutation tickets, nor are they such within the meaning of the word “commutation which, as applied to railroad tickets, is defined by Webster to be “the purchase of a right to go upon a certain route during a specified period for a less amount than would be paid in the aggregate for separate trips.” The Century Dictionary gives the following definition: “A ticket issued at a reduced rate by a carrier of passengers, entitling the holder to be carried over a given route a limited number of times, or an unlimited number during a certain period.”
There is a general sense in which the party-rate ticket may be said to be a commutation ticket, although no more so than a mileage ticket oran excursi on ticket. But the twenty-second section recognizes mileage, excursion, and commutation tickets each as distinct from the others, using the designations in their technical sense. The difference between commutation and
It- is claimed that section 22 makes certain exceptions from the operation of the act, specifying mileage, excursion, and commutation passenger tickets, and that, as party-rate tickets are not mentioned, and cannot be classed as commutation tickets, the inference, under a well-known rulo of construction, is that congress intended to exclude them. Let us look into this matter. The first section of the act contains the general provision upon which the entire act is founded. It requires that all charges for the transportation of persons or property shall he reasonable and just, and prohibits every unjust and unreasonable charge. The provisions of the second, third, fourth, and fifth sections are specific, in the nature of definitions, and in aid of the provisions of the first section. In this case we have to deal particularly with the provisions of the second and third sections, which prohibit unjust discriminations, and undue and unreasonable preferences. The second section makes it unlawful, by any special rate or other device, to demand, collect, or receive from any person or persons a greater or less compensation for any service rendered in the transportation of persons or properly than is charged, demanded, collected, or received from any other person or persons fora like contemporaneous service, in the transportation of a like kind of traffic, under substantially similar circumstances and conditions. The third section forbids any undue or unreasonable preference, in any respect whatsoever, to any particular person, company, firm, corporation, or locality, or any particular description of traffic; and to the same extent it forbids any undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage. Now, it is to be observed at the outset that the act does not provide that there shall be no discrimination. The prohibition is against unjust discrimination, undue and unreasonable preference or advantage, and undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage. Apparently recognizing, as the law has recognized, that discrimination, within just limits, is essential to the successful conduct of the business of the common carrier, as it is to the successful conduct of every other business, but, beyond those limits, destructive, congress attempted nothing more than to fix and enforce the limit; and this consideration furnishes the key to the proper construction of the act.
Now, let us turn to section 22. It is referred to as specifying exceptions to the operation of the act. But are they exceptions?
The true construction of the section appears to be that it specifies certain discriminations, not regarded by congress as within the letter or the spirit of the act, and therefore it provides that the act
This case, then, depends upon the question whether party-rate tickets, as issued by the respondent, are, upon a proper construction, prohibited by the preceding sections. It is claimed that they are obnoxious to the first section, because they are not just and reasonable. While it is admitted that, if their issue bo confined to parties of ten or more, the injustice would not bo so apparent, it is urged that it would be left to the carrier to determine what number should make a “party,” and that under the 3a,w, so construed, a reduced rate could be accorded to a party of two, as it is said was done before the act. The testimony on this point is that almost without exception ten was the smallest number of jversons to whom they were issued. .At one time, upon the Union Pacific Railroad, from tlic Missouri river to Colorado, they were issued to parties of two. It is explained, however, by the witness who testifies to this fact, that the concession was made for the benefit of variety people who traveled in pairs, but that the rate was more than three cents per mile. The one other exception testified to was made by the Wabash Railroad Company, which gave a reduced rate to four theatrical persons traveling as a party; but this reduction was granted to theatrical persons only. It appears in evidence, also, that before the law there were voluntary traffic associations, to which the leading railroad companies were parties, organized to prevent cutting of rates and undue competition. Party-rate tickets were then in vogue, and if, under those circumstances, the only departures irom the rule of ten were those cited above, there would seem to be little ground for the apprehension expressed on behalf of the complainant that to permit the continued sale and use of these tickets would open the door to all the evils which formerly existed. But suppose, for the sake of the argument, that the apprehension be well founded, the answer is twofold: (I) It cannot be doubted that whenever •the sale of party-rate tickets is by any means made a mere pretext for
The next objection is that party-rate tickets are obnoxious to the second section of the act, because they furnish to one class of passengers transportation for dower compensation than is charged to others for like and contemporaneous service, under substantially the same circumstances and conditions; and to the third section, because they give to one class of passengers an undue and unreasonable preference and advantage.
If this objection be true in statement, — that is, if those traveling under party-rate tickets are charged less than individuals for like and contemporaneous service, under substantially the same circumstances and conditions, — it is conclusive, and the issuance of the tickets must be adjudged unlawful. But how do they compare with mileage tickets, which, by the twenty-second section, are declared to be in harmony with the act? The rate for each is two cents per mile. The coupons of mileage tickets are for two miles each, but they are sold in blocks of five hundred, or for one thousand miles. The holder can use them at pleasure, for long or short rides. He may ride for any distance within the limit of his ticket, in the same car, and occupy the same seat,, -with a passenger who is charged three cents per mile for his ticket. The holder of the mileage ticket is a wholesale purchaser; the other buys at retail. The difference is recognized in every kind of business, and no intelligent, fair-minded person thinks of complaining of it. The mileage ticket, so-the testimony declares, is especially liable to abuse, and to be used by brokers for speculative purposes. The party-rate ticket, if not, as some witnesses testify, altogether unavailable for either purpose, is less so-than any other ticket, and reduces the opportunity for either to the minimum. It, too, is a wholesale ticket. It is open to purchase to all, at' the one fixed price. It has one peculiarly distinguishing feature, — it is almost proof against fraud upon the company which issues it. The-purchaser having a party of less than the number named in his ticket may, unless restricted by the terms of his ticket,. fill up his party from the outside. That he would have a right to do, provided they-