Pierce Butler

“ Property has adversaries in this world and different forms excite different degrees of antagonism, but we have not yet attained to that subserviency of regulation that one owner of property must surrender the advantage of his position to every other owner, giving up what is of value to him, and what was of cost to him. ”

“ Position of property is as much a constituent of its value as its composition. A market for its products is as necessary as its products. There must be demand for the products and means of their supply, and both, I repeat, are attributes of property. ”

“ I repeat that an owner of property is entitled in the exercise of his rights and satisfaction of his needs to demand service of the carriers to which he has relation according to his rights and needs, and in the order of their requisition, and the ability of the carrier. ”

“ It seems the prompt assurance of self-evidence that a mine owner with the facilities of two railroads may order such number of cars from both railroads as he may need, this being a right relative to his property, indisputably an element of its value, represented in its price and the cost to him. ”

“ Accordingly, the carrier ceased to apply rule 4 and applied the 150 per cent. rule in its place. When the case was reopened before the Commission, the contest was between the operators of local mines attacking the 150 per cent. rule and the operators of joint mines supporting that rule and objecting to rule 4. The Commission reversed its former findings and decided in favor of rule 4 and dismissed the complaints assailing that rule. The order expressly includes the findings and conclusions stated in the report. It is not merely negative. ”