Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. Wagner

Citations

• 102 Kan. 817
• 172 P. 519
• 1918 Kan. LEXIS 149

Syllabus

<p>SYLLABUS BY THE COURT.</p> <p>1. Interstate Commerce — Bill of Lading — Acceptance by Consignee— Implied Contract to Pay Established Freight Rates. Where an interstate bill of lading contains any provision authorizing the consignee to pay the freight, an implied contract by the consignee to pay the freight charges arises from his acceptance of the delivery of the goods under the bill, into which contract there will be read the provisions of the Elkins act requiring payment of the full charges in compliance with the duly established rate; and where the consignee pays the charges demanded, which are less than the established rate, the carrier may maintain an action against him for the unpaid balance of the legal charges.</p> <p>2. Same — Presumption that Schedule of Rates Was Duly Published. In a suit by a carrier to recover from a consignee the unpaid balance due for freight charges, where it is admitted that a schedule of rates has been duly filed with and approved by the interstate commerce commission, the presumption, in the absence of any showing to the contrary, • is that the rates were duly published, and not that the carrier has violated the ■ provisions of the Elkins act subjecting it to severe fines and penalties for failure to publish the same.</p>