Hugo Black

“ If, as petitioner insists, it is the duty of the railroads to provide terminal facilities which they do not now own, possess or control, a drastic change might have to be accomplished by them. Property might have to be acquired, expensive facilities might have to be secured, and correspondingly, rates might have to be adjusted. The need for such steps raises a transportation problem of the greatest magnitude, involving many intricate considerations such as must always play a part in evaluating a claim that new depots and facilities are necessary. ”

“ If use of the terminal facilities for egress to the street after unloading of livestock is a part of transportation, as petitioner alleges, and if this use is a service for which reasonable compensation is justified, it cannot be doubted that this charge, like the unloading charge, is a part of that reasonable transportation rate determination of which is committed to the jurisdiction of the Interstate Commerce Commission. And before such long-standing transportation customs can be held illegal, it is of course necessary that evidence be heard. ”

“ The factual situation, according to the complaint is as follows: For many years prior to 1933 the railroads held themselves out as ready to transport goods to 'Union Stock Yards, Illinois', and petitioner shipped to itself at that station much livestock from various points of origin in the United States. None of the railroads own or operate a depot or terminal facilities for the unloading and delivery of livestock, but all of them jointly have long had arrangements with the 'Union Stock Yard and Transit Company', a public stock yard, for the use of its terminal facilities. ”