Missouri Pacific Railway Co. v. Larabee Flour Mills Co., 211 U.S. 612 (1909)

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Missouri Pacific Railway Company v.

Larabee Flour Mills Company
No. 16

Argued November 11, 12, 1908
Decided January 11, 1909
211 U.S. 612

ERROR TO THE SUPREME COURT

OF THE STATE OF KANSAS

No one can be compelled to engage in the business of a common carrier, but if he does so, he becomes subject to the duties imposed on common carriers.

Even in the absence of legislative enactment or special contract a common carrier is bound to treat all shippers alike and can be compelled to perform this common law duty by mandamus or other proper writ.

Notwithstanding the creation of the Interstate Commerce Commission, and the delegation to it by Congress of the control of certain matters, a state may, in the absence of express action by Congress or by such commission, regulate for the benefit of its citizens local matters indirectly affecting interstate commerce.

Where there has been no action by Congress or the Interstate Commerce Commission, a state court may by mandamus compel a railroad company doing interstate business to afford equal local switching service to its shippers, notwithstanding the cars in regard to which the service is claimed are eventually to be engaged in interstate commerce. McNeill v. Southern Railway Co., 202 U.S. 543, distinguished.

On September 15, 1906, the Larabee Flour Mills Company (hereinafter called the mill company) filed its application in the Supreme Court of Kansas for an alternative writ of mandamus compelling the Missouri Pacific Railway Company (hereinafter called the Missouri Pacific) to restore, resume, and make transfer of cars between the lines of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Company (hereinafter called the Santa Fe) and the mill and elevators of the plaintiff, situated in the Town of Stafford. The following diagram shows the location of the mill and railroad tracks:

Line "A" represents the main line of the Santa Fe Railway Company; line "B," the main line of the Missouri Pacific Railway Company; line "C," the transfer track owned by the Santa Fe Company; "D," the mill of the Larabee Company; "E," the spur track running from the main line of the Missouri Pacific Railway Company. The distance from "F" to "G" on the main line of the Missouri Pacific Railway Company is about one mile.

Upon the filing of this application and the answer and return of the Missouri Pacific, the matter was referred to a commissioner who reported his findings of fact, which, so far as are material to the questions presented, are as follows: Stafford is a flourishing town of 1,600 people, situated in the midst of a wheat-growing district of the state. The mill company has, for more than four years, been operating a flouring mill of 1,000 barrels daily capacity. About three fifths of its product is shipped out of the State of Kansas into other states, and the remaining two fifths to points within the state. It receives a large portion of its grain in carload lots over the two roads.

The Missouri Valley Car Service & Storage Association (hereinafter called the car service association) is an unincorporated voluntary association of a number of railroad companies, having a manager and other employees. The object and the duty of this association is to represent and protect the interests and enforce the rights of the members thereof in the interchange of freight cars, the prompt loading, unloading, and return of cars interchanged or delivered to shippers for traffic purposes. It had been in operation for many years, commencing prior to any of the transactions mentioned in this litigation. Its objects, operations, and methods were generally understood by commercial shippers, and acquiesced in as appropriate for securing to the shipping public the greatest amount of service over the roads composing it.

No express contract existed between the two railroad companies requiring either to use or to permit the other to use the transfer track, or requiring either to place empty or loaded cars thereon, to be taken away or returned by the other. Whenever the Santa Fe placed its empty cars for the mill company on the transfer track, the Missouri Pacific, upon notice thereof, hauled and delivered them at the mill on the siding connecting it with the Missouri Pacific. The Santa Fe and the Missouri Pacific both held themselves out as ready to do such and like transferring, and continued to do so after the controversy arose in this case for all industries located on the Missouri Pacific at Stafford, making carload shipments in or our over the Santa Fe, except the mill company. A controversy arose between the Missouri Pacific and the mill company as to two charges for demurrage; one for demurrage between December 12, 1905, and April 26, 1906, and the other between July 24 and August 14, 1906. Payment of both was demanded by the car service association. One of them, the mill company offered to pay; the other it refused, on the ground that the delay and detention were not caused by its fault, but by the defective, insufficient, and inadequate service of the Missouri Pacific in placing the cars for unloading and reloading. For a failure to pay both these charges the Missouri Pacific, by the direction of the car service association, ceased and refused to make further delivery to the mill company of empty cars placed on the transfer track for the use of the mill company by the Santa Fe, in consequence of which the mill company, when desiring to ship any of its products from Stafford by the Santa Fe, was compelled to haul the same in wagons from its mill to the station of the Santa Fe and there load into cars. This entailed upon the mill company great inconvenience and additional expense in the management of its business. The refusal of the Missouri Pacific was based solely upon the ground above stated, and not upon a claim that the compensation paid for the service was unsatisfactory, or that the service constituted a part of interstate commerce, or that the Missouri Pacific did not undertake to perform services of such character.

The commissioner also found that the detention of the cars on account of which the demurrage charge was refused payment by the mill company was caused as much by the defective motive power and insufficient train service of the Missouri Pacific as from any fault or omission on the part of the mill company.

The case coming on for hearing before the supreme court of the state, a peremptory writ of mandamus was ordered, commanding the Missouri Pacific to immediately resume the transfer and return of cars loaded and unloaded from the line of the Santa Fe to and from the mill and elevator at the station and city of Stafford, upon the request and demand of the mill company, and upon payment of the theretofore customary charges.