As the railroads became larger and more powerful, the need to give away land to million dollar companies became ludicrous to many citizens, especially in light of the declining economy. These changing feelings among the people (voters) moved congress to decide that 'no subsidy in money, bonds, public lands, indorsement, or by pledges of public credit' should be given to the railroad or any other private company, when it could be spent on the common good of the public, or kept as capital in the Public Treasury. The idea that no land need be given to the companies anymore was also supported by the growing feeling of being cheated by the railway through rebates, and other discriminations between large and small business.
The decision to regulate interstate commerce grew mostly out of the rebate, and long-haul, short-haul discriminations of the railroads. The growing feeling that the business were running their businesses only to end in a monopoly is led the Congress to