companies ineli

during his suspension in case he should be reinstated by the next General Assembly: Provided, that no person is Attorneys of eligible as such Commissioner who shall have been an gible. attorney of any such company within twelve months next preceding his election to such office.

missioners.

Raleigh.

SEC. 2. That the salary of the Commissioners shall be Salary of Comtwo thousand dollars per annum, payable quarterly by the public Treasurer on the warrant of the Auditor, and they may employ a Clerk whose salary shall be twelve Clerk. hundred dollars, which shall be paid quarterly on the warrant of the Auditor out of any funds not otherwise appropriated. The office of said Commissioners shall be once to be in kept in Raleigh, and they shall be furnished with an office, necessary furniture and stationery, which shall be paid for by the public Treasurer on the warrant of the Auditor. Any one of said Commissioners shall have Commissioners power to administer an oath or affirmation in any and minister oaths. all matters relating to their official duties. The General General AssemAssembly shall designate the chairman of said Commis- chairman. sioners, and in the event of the vacancy or the absence of the chairman, the Board of Commissioners shall fill the vacancy pro tem. Any two Commissioners shall consti- Quorum. tute a quorum for the transaction of business.

authorized to ad

bly to designate

ny charging un

&c., guilty of ex

SEC. 3. That from and after the passage of this act if Railroad compaany railroad doing business in this State, or any such reasonable rates, company organized under the laws of any other State and tortion. doing business in this State, shall charge, collect, demand or receive more than a fair and reasonable rate of toll or compensation for the transportation of passengers or freight of any description, or for the use and transportation of any railroad car upon its track, or any of the branches thereof, or upon any railroad in this State which has the right, license or permission to use, operate or control the same, shall be deemed guilty of extortion, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not less than five hundred nor more than five thousand dollars, to be recov- Penalty. ered as provided for in section seven of this act.

Common carriers demanding, &c., greater or less compensation for transportation

from one person guilty of unjust

than another,

discrimination.

SEC. 4. That if any common carrier subject to the provisions of this act shall 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 subject to the provisions of this act than it charges, demands or collects or receives from any other person or persons for doing for him or them a like and contemporaneous service in the transportation of a like kind of traffic under substantially similar circumstances and conditions, such common carrier shall be deemed guilty of unjust discrimination, which is hereby prohibited and Unlawful to give declared to be unlawful. That it shall be unlawful for undue preference any common carrier subject to the 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, and any person, persons, company or corporation violating the provisions of this section shall be, upon conviction thereof, fined not less than one thousand nor more than five thousand dollars for each and every such offence.

&c.

Penalty.

Commissioners to make rates of

senger tariff, &c.

SEC. 5. That the said Commissioners appointed as freight and pas herein before provided, shall, as hereinafter provided, make reasonable and just rates of freight and passenger tariffs, or cause the same to be furnished by any railroad company, and the same, when approved by said Commissioners, shall be observed by such company or comWhat to consider panies doing business in this State; and in making said rates they shall, unless such railroad company or companies shall fail to furnish the needed information, consider, as far as practicable, the actual value of the employed capital of the corporation, the earnings of the

in making rates.

railroad and the cost of operating the same, the competition of rival lines of water or railroad transportation companies within the State, and any and all other mat

to charges for

criminations.

carrying freight

ters proper to be considered by them; shall make reason- To make rules as able and just rules and regulations to be observed by all handling freight. railroad companies doing business in this State as to charges at any and all stations for the necessary handling and delivering of freight; shall make such just and As to unjust disreasonable rules and regulations as may be necessary for preventing unjust discrimination in the transportation of freight and passengers on the railroads in the State; shall make reasonable and just rates of charges for use As to charges for of railroad cars carrying any and all kinds of freight and passengers. and passengers on said railroad, no matter by whom owned or carried; and shall make just and reasonable To prevent giving rules and regulations to be observed by said railroad companies on said railroads to prevent the giving, paying or receiving of any rebate or bonus directly or indirectly, and from misleading or deceiving the public in any manner as to the real rates charged for freight or passengers; and may make or cause to be furnished by the several roads joint through rates upon the railroads Joint through of the State.

rebate, &c.

rates.

charge more for

longer distance,

SEC. 6. That it shall be unlawful for any common Unlawful to carrier, subject to the provisions of this act, to charge shorter than or receive any greater compensation in the aggregate for &c. the transportation of passengers or of like kind of property under substantially similar circumstances and conditions, for a shorter than for a longer distance over the same line, in the same direction, the shorter being included within the longer distance; but this shall not Not to charge as be construed as authorizing any common carrier within long distances. the terms of this act to charge and receive as great compensation for a shorter as for a longer distance: Pro- Special cases. vided, however, that upon application to the commission appointed under the provisions of this act such common carrier may, in special cases, after investigation by the commission, be authorized to charge less for longer than

much for short as

Relief from ope- for shorter distances for the transportation of passengers

ration of this

section.

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 of this act: Provided, that nothing in this act contained shall be taken as in any manner abridging or controlling the rates of freight charged by any railroad in this State Inter-State trans- for conveying freight which comes from or goes beyond

portation of ireight.

To investigate complaints as to Inter State rates of freight, and

of Inter-State

Commerce Commission.

the boundaries of the State, and on which freight less than local rates on any railroad carrying the same are charged by such railroads, but said railroad companies shall possess the same power and right to charge such rates for carrying such freight as they possessed before the passage of this act: Provided further, however, that upon the complaint of any person or persons, corporation bring to attention or corporations, to said commissioners of any unjust discrimination in carrying freight which comes from or goes beyond the boundaries of the State by any railroad company, whether organized under the laws of this State or organized under the laws of another State, and doing business in this State, the said Commissioners shall investigate said complaint, and, if the same be sustained, it shall be the duty of said Commissioners to bring said complaint before the Inter-State Commission for redress in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress establishing said Inter-State Commerce Commission: Provided further, that the Railroad Commismanufacturing, sioners conjointly with such companies shall have authority to make special rates for the purpose of developing all manufacturing, mining, milling and internal Special excursion improvements in the State: Provided further, that nothing in this act shall prohibit railroad or steamboat companies from making special passenger rates with excursion or other parties, also rates on such freights as are necessary for the comfort of such parties, subject to the approval of the Commissioners.

Special rates for

development of

&c., improvements.

rates, &c.

to make rates of charges for trans

freight.

prima facie evi

and reasonable

schedules.

post schedules at

SEC. 7. That the said Commissioners are hereby author- Commissioners ized and required to make for each of the said compa-portation of pasnies doing business in this State, as soon as practicable, sengers and just and reasonable rates of charges for transportation of passengers and freights and cars on each of the railroads, or cause the same to be made by said companies, and the schedule containing said rates shall, in suits brought Schedule to be against any such company wherein is involved the dence of justice charges of any such company for the transportation of ness of rates. any passenger or freight or cars, or unjust discrimination in relation thereto, be taken in all Courts of this State as prima facie evidence that the rates therein fixed are just and reasonable rates of charges for the transportation of passengers and freights and cars upon the railroads; and Change of said Commissioners shall from time to time, and as often as circumstances may require, change and revise or cause to be changed and revised said schedules. When any Companies to schedule shall have been made or revised as aforesaid it stations. shall be the duty of all such companies to post at all their respective stations in a conspicuous place a copy of said schedule for the information of the people. All Schedules to be such schedules as aforesaid shall be received and held in dence, &c. all such suits as prima facie evidence the schedules of said Commissioners, without further proof than the production of the schedules desired to be used as evidence, with a certificate of the Commissioners that the same is a true copy of the schedule prepared or approved by them for the railroad company or corporation therein named: Provided, that any company may appeal to the Appeal by comJudge of the Superior Court in term-time and thence to the Supreme Court from any determination of the Board fixing or refusing to change the rate of freight or fare; but before such company shall be allowed to exercise this right of appeal, it shall, within ten days after notice of the rates fixed by the Commissioners, file with the Board exceptions to the particulars that it objects to, Exceptions to be and the grounds thereof, and within ten days after filing. such exception the Commissioners shall hear the same,

prima facie evi

pany.

filed.