cause, refuse to be sworn or to be examined, or answer a question, or to produce a book or paper when ordered to do so by the commission or a commissioner, or to subscribe or swear to his deposition after it has been correctly produced in writing, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and may be prosecuted therefor in any Court of competent criminal jurisdiction.

If a person in attendance before the commission or a commissioner refuse, without reasonable cause, to be examined, or to answer a legal and pertinent question, or to produce a book or paper when ordered to do so by the commission or commissioner, the commission or commissioner may apply to any judge of the Supreme Bench of Baltimore City or of the Circuit Court for any county, upon proof by affidavit of the fact, for a rule or order returnable in not less than two nor more than five days, directing such person to show cause before the judge who made the order, or any other judge aforesaid, why he should not be committed to jail; upon the return of such order, the judge before whom the matter shall come on for a hearing shall examine under oath such person, and such person shall be given an opportunity to be heard; and if the judge shall determine that such person has refused, without reasonable cause or legal excuse, to be examined or to answer a legal and pertinent question, or to produce a book or paper which he was ordered to bring or produce, he may forthwith commit the offender to jail, there to remain until he submits to do the act which he was so required to do, or is discharged according to law.

1910, ch. 180, sec. 10.

422. All hearings before the commission or commissioner shall be governed by rules to be adopted and prescribed by the commission. And in all investigations, inquiries or hearings the commission, or a commissioner, shall not be bound by the technical rules of evidence. No person shall be excused from testifying or from producing any books or papers in any investigation or inquiry by or upon any hearing before the commission, or any commissioner when ordered to do so by the commission, upon the ground that the testimony or evidence, books or documents required of him may tend to incriminate

him or subject him to penalty or forfeiture; but no person shall be prosecuted punished or subjected to any penalty or forfeiture for or on account of any act, transaction, matter or thing concerning which he shall, under oath, have, by order of the commission or a commissioner testified or produced documentary evidence; provided however, that no person so testifying shall be exempt from prosecution or punishment for any perjury committed by him in his testimony. Nothing herein contained is intended to give, or shall be construed as in any manner giving unto any corporation immunity of any kind from the law.

1910, ch. 180, sec. 11.

423. After an order has been made by the commission, any party interested therein may apply for a rehearing in respect to any matter determined therein, and the commission may grant and hold such a rehearing if, in its judgment, sufficient reason therefor be made to appear; if a rehearing shall be granted, the same shall be determined by the commission within thirty days after the same shall be finally submitted. Any application for such a rehearing shall not excuse any common carrier, railroad corporation, or street railroad corporation, or any other corporation or company or person, subject to any of the provisions of this sub-title, from complying with or obeying any order, or any requirements of any order of the commission, to operate in any manner to stay or postpone the enforcement thereof, except as the commission may by order direct. If, after such rehearing and consideration of the facts, including those arising since the making of the order, the commission shall be of opinion that the original order, or any part thereof, is in any respect unjust or unwarranted, the commission may abrogate, change or modify the same. An order made for any such rehearing, abrogating, changing or modifying the original order shall have the same force and effect as an original order.*

Every order of the commission shall be served upon every person or corporation to be affected thereby, either by personal

* Gregg vs. Public Service Commission, 121 Md. 1, 32. City & Suburban Ry. Co. vs. Washington Elec. Ry. Co. (Daily Record of May 14, 1914, January Term of Md. Court of Appeals).

delivery of a certified copy thereof, or by mailing a certified copy thereof, in a sealed package, with postage prepaid, to the person to be affected thereby; or, in the case of a corporation, to any officer or agent thereof upon whom summons may be served under the laws of this State. It shall be the duty of every person and corporation to notify the commission forth with in writing of the receipt of the certified copy of every order so served, and in the case of a corporation such notification must be signed and acknowledged by a person or officer duly au thorized by the corporation to admit such service. Within a time specified in the order of the commission every person and corporation upon whom it is served must, if so required in the order, notify the commission in like manner whether the terms of the order are accepted and will be obeyed.

Every order of the commission shall take effect at a time therein specified and shall continue in force for a period therein designated unless earlier modified or abrogated by the commis sion, or unless such order be unauthorized by this sub-title, or be in violation of a provision of the constitution of the State or of the United States.

Any company, corporation, association, person or partnership subject to any of the provisions of this sub-title, or other person or party in interest, shall have the right to proceed in the Courts to vacate, set aside or have modified any order of said commission on the grounds that such order is unreasonable or unlawful, as hereinafter more particularly set forth.

1910, ch. 180, sec. 12.

424. This sub-title shall apply to the transportation of passengers, freight or property from one point to another within the State of Maryland, and to any common carrier performing such service; and this sub-title shall be so applicable and be so construed as to be free from conflict with those provisions of the Constitution of the United States and the laws in pursuance thereof relating to Interstate Commerce.

1910, ch. 180, sec. 13.

425. Every corporation, person or common carrier performing the services designated in the preceding sections shall furnish, with respect thereto, such service and facilities as shall

be safe and adequate and in all respects just and reasonable. All charges made or demanded by any such common carrier for the transportation of passengers, freight or property, or for any service rendered or to be rendered in connection therewith, as defined in Section 414, shall be just and reasonable and not more than allowed by law or by order of the commission, conformably with the law. Every unjust or unreasonable charge made or demanded for any such service or transportation of passengers, freight or property, or in connection therewith, or in excess of that allowed by law or by order of the commission, conformably with the law, is unlawful and prohibited.

The public service commission herein created and established shall have the general supervision of all common carriers, railroads, street railroads, railroad corporations and street railroad corporations, transporting passengers, freight or property from one point to another within the State of Maryland, and shall have power to and shall examine the same or cause the same to be examined and keep informed as to their general condition, their capitalization, their franchises and the manner in which their lines, owned, leased, controlled or operated and managed are conducted or operated within this State both with respect to the adequacy, security and accommodation afforded by their service, and also with respect to their compliance with all provisions of law and orders of the commission.

The commissioner shall have power and authority to administer oaths in all parts of the State to witnesses summoned to testify in any inquiry, investigation, hearing or proceeding and also to administer oaths in all parts of the State, whenever the exercise of such power is incidentally necessary or proper to enable the commission or commissioner to perform a duty or to exercise a power committed to it by this sub-title. The commission and each commissioner shall have power to examine all books, contracts, records, documents and papers of any corporation, company, association, person or partnership subject to its supervision, in so far as they relate to the matters over which said commission has jurisdiction and control, and by subpoena duces tecum to compel production thereof. In lieu of requiring production of originals by sub

pœna duces tecum, the commission, or any commissioner, may require sworn copies of any such books, records, contracts, documents and papers, or parts thereof, to be filed with it.*

1910, ch. 180, sec. 14.

426. A railroad corporation, upon the application of any shipper tendering traffic for transportation, shall construct, maintain and operate upon reasonable terms a switch connection or connections with a lateral line of railroad or private side-track owned, operated or controlled by such shipper, and shall, upon the application of any shipper, provide upon its own property a side-track and switch connection with its line of railroad, whenever such side-track and switch connection is reasonably practicable, can be put in with safety and the business therefor is sufficient to justify the same.

If any railroad corporation shall fail to install or operate any such switch connection with a lateral line or railroad, or any such side-track and switch connection as aforesaid, after written application therefor has been made to it, any corpora tion or person interested may present the facts to the commission by written petition, and the commission shall investigate the matter stated in such petition, and give such hearings therein as it may deem necessary or proper. If the commission be of the opinion that it is safe and practicable to have a connec tion, substantially as prayed for, established or maintained, and that the business to be done thereon justifies the construction and maintenance thereof, it shall make an order directing the construction and establishment thereof, specifying the reasonable compensation to be paid for the construction, es

In Public Service Commission vs. U. R. & E. Co., 126 Md. 478, the Com mission had sought to compel the railway to extend its line in a certain direction. The Court held that the construction, equipment and extension of the railroad lines beyond the points where their charters compel them to construct and maintain lines, are matters to be determined by the directors of the company. "As to such matters, the Leggislature did not intend that the judgment and discre tion of the directors of the company, when honestly exercised, should be controlled or ignored either by the Public Service Commission or the Courts. The Company submitted to the Court abundant evidence to show how they regard this "jerkwater" line as an unprofitable and unbusiness-like undertaking. In overruling their judgment and requiring this extension to be made upon the terms specified in the order, the Public Service Commission substituted its judgment for that of the directors of the appellee company. This, under the principles announced by this Court in Laird vs. B. & O., etc., it had no power to do.