Cumberland Telephone & Telegraph Co. v. State ex rel. Attorney-General
Cumberland Telephone & Telegraph Co. v. State ex rel. Attorney-General
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
The state of Mississippi, appellee, on the relation of the attorney-general, filed its bill in the chancery court of Prentiss county against the appellant, the Cumberland Telephone & Telegraph Company, charging it with being a trust, in violation of the anti-trust laws of the state,- and seeking to enjoin it from the further prosecution of its alleged unlawful business, and to recover the penalties denounced by the anti-trust statutes for carrying on such business. The appellant demurred to the bill, which demurrer was by the court below overruled, and the appellant granted this appeal to settle the principles of the cause.
The substantial allegations of the bill are: That about fifty per cent, of the telephone business of the state is done by the appellant and the balance by the independent companies. That Booneville and Baldwyn are towns of two thousand and twelve hundred inhabitants, respectively, in each of which appellant has less than six hundred “subscribers.” That the established tariff rates for telephone service fixed by the railroad commission for towns in that class are two dollars and seventy-five
The prayer of the bill is that appellant be enjoined from further violations of law, ‘‘ and be ousted from the state of Mississippi,” and a decree in favor of the state for a penalty of one thousand dollars per day for each day the law has been violated, aggregating one million and five hundred thousand dollars. The grounds of demurrer raise the question whether there is any equity on the face of the bill.
The gravamen of the bill is that the appellant company, for the purpose of driving out its competitors at Rienzi, Booneville, and Baldwyn, and thereby destroying competition in the telephone business in that territory, is guilty of unlawfully discriminating in rates; such discrimination consisting of the practice of charging less at those points than the regular and lawful tariff of rates, and at Booneville and Baldwyn of charging some of its patrons less than others.
It is contended on behalf of the state that such discrimination constitutes a violation of subsections “k” and “o,” § 1, c. 119, pp. 125, 126, Laws of 1908. This act, down to and including subsection “o,” is a rescript of section 5002, ch. 145, Code 1906 (“Trusts and Combines”), except by amendment subsections “n” and “o” are added, and the last paragraph of section 5002 extended so as to include individuals, partnerships, and associations of persons. Subsections “k” and “o” and the last paragraph of section 1, prescribing the penalty for their violation, are as follows:
“Any corporation, domestic or foreign, or individual, partnership or association of persons whatever, . . .*8 (k) who shall monopolize or attempt to monopolize the production, control or sale of any commodity, or the prosecution, management or control of any kind, class or description of business; . . . (o) or who shall destroy or attempt to destroy competition by rendering any service or manipulating, or handling or storing any commodity for a less price in one locality than in another, the differences in the necessary expenses of carrying on the business considered,
‘1 Shall be deemed and held a trust and combine within the meaning and purpose of this act, and chapter 145 of the Code of 1906, and shall be liable to the pains, penalties, fines, forfeitures, judgments and recoveries denounced against trusts and combines in said chapter 145 of the Code of 1906, and shall be proceeded against in manner and form therein provided, as in case of other trusts and combines. And .it shall be sufficient to make out a prima facie case of a violation of subdivision £n’ hereof to show a sale or offer of sale of commodity at a lower price at one place in this state than another, or a violation of subdivision ‘o’ to show a lower charge for the service therein mentioned, in one locality than another. ’ ’
On the other hand, it is contended that such discrimination is no violation of the anti-trust laws; that our statutes providing for the supervision of common carriers confer jurisdiction on the railroad commission of the whole matter of the regulation of rates of telephone, companies, and provide ample remedies, to both the state and the individual, for injuries done by such companies in making unlawful discriminations in their rates, which are exclusive. In our judgment an understanding of the terms of the respective statutes involved, the mischief sought to be remedied by each, and the remedy provided therefor leads unerringly to the correct solution of the question in this case.
By section 195 of the Constitution of 1890, express, telegraph, telephone, and sleeping car companies are declared common carriers and subject to liability as such. By section 4843, Code 1906 (section 4291, Code of 1892) telephone companies are brought under the operation, so far as applicable, of all the statutes on the supervision of carriers, and are required “to comply with the orders and regulations of the commission made in supervising their companies, in like manner, and under like penalties against their companies, their officers and employes, as is provided in case of railroads,” and are made liable civilly and criminally in the same manner as railroads. By section 4842, Code 190'6 (section 4290, Code 1892),
The first anti-trust legislation is found in chapter 36-, p. 55, Laws 1890, which was revised, amended, and brought forward into chapter 1401, Code 1892. In neither the Act of 1890, nor the chapter of the Code of 1892 referred to, is there any provision which, by any construetion whatever, could be made to include the case in hand. Those statutes are devoted exclusively to combinations, conspiracies, and agreements in restraint of trade, and affect the production, manufacture, sale, and transportation of “commodities,” etc. The first extension of the anti-trust legislation beyond this scope was the act of 1900 (Laws 1900, p. 126, c. 88), section 2 of which contained the identical language of subsection “k,” § 1, ch. 119, p. 124, Laws 1908-, which also appears in the same
The subject of rates of common carriers is of such vital importance to the public generally, and so intricate, and fraught with so many difficulties, so many varying circumstances and conditions must be considered in determining whether a given rate is just and reasonable, and when and to what extent discriminations in rates ought to be allowed, that the legislature has wisely refrained from dealing with the matter directly, instead providing a complete system of supervision through a commission, giving it jurisdiction of the whole subject, with the power to take testimony and examine into each particular rate and determine its reasonableness. If the rate so established is lowered by the carrier, whether for the purpose of destroying competition, as is alleged against the appellant here, or for any other purpose, the supervision statutes give remedies deemed by the legislature to be ample, which are exclusive of the remedies provided in the anti-trust laws. The supervision laws are specific, they deal with the very subject of rates, and discriminations in rates; while the anti-trust laws are general, and wholly inadequate to remedy the well-known evils flowing from discriminatory and unjust rates.
Section 4885, Code 1906, provides that the remedies given by this chapter (the chapter on supervision of common carriers) against railroads and other common carriers are cumulative to those now existing by law. It is
Section 5067, Code 1906, provides that, in a suit under that section by any person injured by a trust and combine, proof by such person that he has been compelled “to pay more for any service rendered by any corporation exercising a public franchise, by reason of such unlawful agreement, . . . than he would have been compelled to give . . . but for such act or agreement, shall be conclusive evidence of damage,” as well as the unlawful purpose to raise the price of such service. It is argued that this section evidences a purpose on the part of the legislature to apply the anti-trust laws to discriminations in rates, like the case in hand. In the first place, by its express terms it only applies where the person injured is made to pay more (not-less) for the service rendered by virtue of-the unlawful act or agreement ; and in the next place, as we have shown, it cannot, without destroying the effectiveness of the supervision laws, have any application to the subject of discrimination in rates by common carriers,- and its terms must, therefore, be limited to that extent.
Reversed and remanded.
Suggestion of error filed and overruled.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Cumberland Telephone & Telegraph Co. v. State on relation of Attorney-General
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. Telegraphs and Telephones. Regulations. Charges. Statutory law. Common carrier. Code 1906, sections 4826, 4899, 4842, 4843, 4844, 4839, 4841, 4845, 4883. Laws 1008, chapter 119, p. 124. By Code 1906, §§ 4826, 4899, a railroad commission is created for the supervision of common carriers, defining its purpose, and providing remedies for its violation, of which section 4843 includes telegraph and telephone companies as common carriers, as declared by Constitution 1890, § 195. Section 4842 gives the commission power to fix and supervise rates, section 4839 prohibits discrimination in rates, unless authorized by the commission, section 4844 forbids rebates or reductions from fixed charges, and sections 4839, 4841, 4845 and 4883, provide remedies for violations of the act. Annotated Code 1892, sections 4437, 4442, relating to combinations in restraint of trade and agreements fixing the transportation of commodities, was extended in 1900 (Laws 1900, ch. 88), section 2 of which became Code 1906, § 5002, and was re-enacted by Laws of 1908, chapter 119. Section 1, sub-section K, as amended by subsection N and 0 defines trusts and combines, and provides procedure and remedies for violations of the act. The defendant company was charged, in a bill filed on relation of the attorney-general, with being a trust, with discriminations in its rates, and with attempting to monopolize the business of independent companies; the prayer of the bill being for an injunction and ouster, and for penalties. Held that the specific statutes relating to railroad commission conferred jurisdiction upon it as to the whole matter of regulating telephone rates and provided ample remedies for violation of law to the exclusion of the general anti trust laws. 2. Statutes. Implied, repeal. Laws are presumed to be passed with deliberation and with full knowledge of all existing laws on the same subject, and it is but reasonable to conclude that in passing a statute, it was not intended to interfere with or abrogate any former law relating to the same matter, unless this latter act is either repugnant to the earlier one, or fully embraces the subject-matter thereof, or unless the reason of the earlier law is beyond peradventure removed. 3. Telegraphs and Telephones. Statutes. Construction. Remedies. Code 1906, § 4885, in the chapter on supervision of common carriers, originally enacted in 1884, before the enactment of the anti-trust laws, provides that the remedies given by this chapter shall be cumulative to those existing by law. Held,, that in view of Code 1906, §§ 4841, 4883, relating to procedure against common carriers, and. the penalties for violation of the anti-trust law provided by Code 1906, § 5004, the section permits no election of remedies for injuries due to a discrimination in telephone rates, but the remedy is limited to that provided by the act for the supervision of common carriers. 4. Telegraphs and Telephones. Charges. Statutory provisions. Remedy for discriminating charges. Code 1906, § 5007, being part of chapter 145, relating to trusts and combines, and providing that, in a suit by any person injured by a trust or combine, proof that such person has been compelled to pay more for services rendered by a public service corporation by reason of such combine than he would have been compelled to pay but for such agreement or combine, shall be conclusive evidence of damage and of unlawful purpose, does not indicate an intention of the legislature that the anti-trust laws should apply to discriminations in rates made by a telephone company, defined to be á “common carrier” by the laws for the supervision of common carriers.