Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

“ It is that when the owners of the elevators own the grain put into them, they have the opportunity to perform other services to the grain in the way of treatment, or cleaning, clipping, and mixing the grain, which, although not included under the term 'elevation,' or paid for by the railroad, it is an advantage to them to be able to perform at the same time. ”

“ In that the Commission took the last step, and ordered the Union Pacific to desist from paying any allowance to Peavey & Company, on grain in which they have any interest that is not reshipped from their elevators within ten days, or that has been mixed, treated, weighed, or inspected in any of their elevators at the above-named points. ”

“ Of course, the opportunities for fraud are adverted to, but the ground of the decision is that even an honest payment of the bare cost of elevating grain in transit gives an undue advantage if the elevator owner also owns the grain. ”

“ In the circuit court these cases were tried upon the same evidence and they raise the same question; but as the Peavey suit presents that question in its initial and simplest form, we will state the facts of that case first. ”

“ Later another elevator was brought into the arrangement, now with Peavey & Company, a corporation. Peavey & Company, is a large dealer in grain, and receives the same allowance ance for its own grain that it receives for that of others. It is important to remark that in no case is any additional charge made to the shipper for the elevator service. In 1904 the Interstate Commerce Commission investigated the matter and upheld the contract, including the allowance for Peavey & Company's own grain. ”

“ As the carrier is required to furnish this part of the transportation upon request, he could not be required to do it at his own expense, and there is nothing to prevent his hiring the instrumentality instead of owning it. In this case there is no complaint that the rate out of which the allowance is made is unreasonable, and it is admitted that 3/4 of a cent barely would pay the cost of the service rendered, without any reasonable profit to Peavey & Company, for the work. See Interstate Commerce Commission v. ”