Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1858-08-31

The psss-neer avows that when he reaches Gurdons
will. h- shall take the Orange aud Alexandria rail
road for Washington; or, II ps.seDgpr presents him
seIf ri GOrdOnsve, and drnands transportation csI
thrs respondent deny him b-caus. hs svous ths h.
has just CONS from Washington Would it b.
violation of the rik hts Of the plaintiff, il ihs Rich
/ InOnd and Ps.errburg railroad transported a mai
TO Petersburg, and the Petersburg and Weldon
rond transported him to Weldon, and the SEA
bOsrd and Roannks Rail Road transported hin
from Weldon to Portsmouth, becaus. he avuwed
when be- sfHrted and repeated the avowa every i'm.
hi chungrd his thai hi. design 90 by the
bay and Baltimore 10 Washington7 Tns ans sw-r mu.
be ~; and it 81. then the s4ns answ-r would b.
given if he sta,i,d from Richmond with through
ticket And ii the Richmond and Petersburg Raj
Road Company may rgaliy l-sus q "through ticket
from Richmond To Washington ny ihe S-aboard auC
Roanoke Rail Road, why may not the Central kai
R"ad i-sue one by thu Orang- nnd Aexsndra. or viz
Stnnnou and the Manassas Gap Rail Road! Tn.
r-h truth H. tbs ur- never Intended 10 lay tn,
citizens of the State and Others down III bondage bs
fore the care Of thu plaintiff. tie them then bu
slInpiy Intended 10 gay, whs, does say that il vii
not authorize another ruad betw,-n Richmond spC
WashingtOn; that ia, direcily from Richmond +,
Washington any part Of that route, the probabl.
effect OF which would BIZ to diminish the number OF
pass.ngers travelling upon the road OF the plaintiff
Nor did the Legislature intend 10 fetter the enter
prise and energy OF the State, and make it tributary
tor thirty Years TO a slothul and Incompetent mo
nopoy, by declaring, that when a rail road con
structed, leading from Richmond to point 10 the
interior, il should not derive all the advantages Of
perlor SKILL enterprise and accommodation. Ii in
tended to say and only does ssy, that imposed upon
ItseIf restraint TO wit that it would not authorize
road directly between the two named points the pro-
liable effect OF which would be TO njure the plaintiff:
but il intended 10 declare that when rail road
not having this apparent tendency probable effect
should be established il should not derive the bsneht
ol its superior capacity TO accommodate the public
b-cause the plaintiff might be injured thereby. al.
though his line WAS geographically the beat for COM
petition 1t never intended t0 cay that a passenger
.nould not 20 twenty or thirty or forty miles out oi
his way to avoid the line Of the plaintiff and get upon
.good one. as every passenger does who goes by the
Central line II only intended TO say, and does sAy,
that will not build or authorize my people TO build a
liue near you that without going out Of their
way passengers will bs tempted to leave you; and
observing that limit, it intended properly TO leave
-kii, enterprise and composition TO effect their sgiti
mate ends, and enjoy their just rewards.
Ii q long and crcui,ous line OF rail road can com
mend itselt TO the public in preference to shorter
and mofe direct one the Legislature never intended
tUrbii il, aud had the right to forbid it-and
the probable effect of The road not 10 be determined
by RESULT for which it ia perhaps a. much indebted
tn the nc0mpetsncy unwillingness Of the plaintiff
Ia perform liz duty, and more 3D. than to any other
cause.
II WAS not at all probabla, when the Central line
established, that The Effect of It would bs to di
plantf-for with the ssms charges for transpora-
tion and the shortest line, the line of the plaintiff
could always bs preferred it it was we'll fitted
aud found the Central line, and afforded squsl
facility To the public II, therefore, the Central line
WAS likely 10 take passsugers from the line Of the
plaintiff, it would be only because of the known in.
i-riority and netceucy Of the line Of the paiotif,
aud such has been the result in fact for, with
qu.s;ionably superior line in point Of distance, the
pianif has carried nearly all the peseopgers, when
Dpie nj n ALI and when the (,nu.
trsl liue has carried passengers whom the plaintiff
could not and therefore would not carry II cannot be
said, ia carrying those passengers, 1t diminished the
number OF psssepgers who would otherwise have
travelled upon ths road Of the plaotif
Such atlirlnsiion would be an absurd coutradic-
lion of ITSELF ludesd would be most monstrous TO
s.y the citizens Of this Commonwealth, not merely
,lst they shall travel exclusively upoo the line Of thu
plaintiff. when the plaintiff carry them, but that
hey shall not travel upon another line when the plain
,iff cannot carry them. No government possess-s.
rghrfulIy, nuy such power, far this respondent,
IL sdyssf no detpotIsm even ever attempted to ox-
ercse H. Certainty no such power exists in this Gov.
ernmeut; aud it this court could interfere ln the
Ter, the utmost il could do would be 10 declare thai
The public should not travel upon the Central line
when the line OF the plaintiff open aud capable oi
carrying passengers.
III. Because if the Legislature did bestuw upon
The plaintiff such guarantee and monopoly ss il
conivbds for the gran; utterly void for the follow
ing among other reasons, viz:
First because II transcends the power and rigbtfui
nuhsrty .. tho Legislature. Ihe Legislature may
reserve TO individuals companies the profits oil their
own invention, skill and enterprise, and il may
toy contract with them induce them TO embark in
public works but these powers are all subject to H..
nitatons the first Of which il, that they must be- 81
-rcsed Tor hs public good, aud not as q means ol
bestowiDg public rights aud exclusive privileges upon
private persons companies; and the second 10 the
corollary that the public must receive a ust eqaiya
hal ia fnffb
upon privat. psrsOna; and, thirdly the grant must
be a reasonable Ons These principles are proclaim
I'd tor the protection Of the ctizen by our bill oi
rights in Virginia, and guaranteed by the constltu
lions of the Stats and Federal governments. II, there
fore, the Legislature did undertake not merely 10 RI
quire Of all citizens travelling between Richmond and
Wsshingon by rail road to travel exclusively upon
thA road OF the plaintiff, without requiring the plain
lilf 10 bs provided with the means OF transporting
euch psrsons to Washington, it violated the prncl.
pies beiore mentiUned aud neither the people or any
subsequent legislature We're bound by tho act. Yet
according to the claim Of The plaintiff that il precisely
what the Legislature has done in The pretended guar
antee contnued in the 18th section OF the charter oi
the plaintiff
The plaintiff applied for legal authority to construct
rail road from Richmond to Fredericksburg, which
was granted and IL not only had right, authority
means 10 transport passengers beyond Frederlcks
burg but, it has dDnY 20, it has violated its charter
and the price for constructing the rail road TO Ere
tl-rlckSDuTR, lt u W
pian the right Of the people and all future legsla
lures to construct rail road between Richmond and
Washington. for thirty years. SO monstrous claim
set before Ii 10 true, that by the AID oi
the Maryland steam boat co npany, passengers are
transported from Acqua creek 10 Washington, and
from Washington 10 Acqula creek. but The Maryland
steam boat company Id no party to the Virginia grant,
aud may discontinue its ue OF boats at ts pleasure,
thus leaving the passengers who might ~sn ~ pase 10
the north or the south, without the means OF ranspor
taion 10 from the rail road of the plaintiff and the
pretended guarantee contract with the pianiiu IS
to be eIpounded by its own terms and the state OF
things then existing and not by rsere nee to any la
Gity which the plaintiff may have since acquired
With equal pr"priey might the legislature have stpu
lated that rn road should for thirty years be con
sructed ostwsen Richmond and Norfolk, Petersburg
Danve, Lynchburg or Stsuntou, because road had
been constructed between Richmond and Fredericks
burg. How could the rights OF the people OF Alex
andrs Fairfax and Stafford on the one side or tnose
of Richmond and the south side counties on the other
to pass by rail road between Richmond and Washing
ton, be transferred to the fredericksburg company
the consideration for constructing road from
Richmond TO Fredericksburg. If the people OF
Richmond and Fredericksburg had any privity with
such contract, what privity had those OF the other
localities before mentioned, and upon what principle
could they bs stripped of their right 10 reach ash
ington ur Richmond by rail road II legally one
portion Of the people not In contact with the actua
rail road could be legally stripped of their rights of
its benefit ~ might any other people similarly situa
tad; and it. therefore, the legislature could legally say
to the people of Alexandria and Petersburg, that nj
rail road should bs established between Richmond
and Washington, without the consent OF the plainnh
40 nigh, it, with equal legality. cay that, for the same
confederation no rail rosd should be established b.
tween Richmond aud any other point. What relle
was it to the people OF Richmond or aoy others wish
Ing 10 60 to Washington to cay to them. that leave
has been granted TO tho plaintiff 10 construct RAJ
road to Fredericksburg, and it has constructed u =
Whist relief to the people of Ale1andris and its VI
cinity. when they wished to 20 to Richmond oy ra'
ro.d to tell them there is raj, road from Fredercks
burg 10 Richmond. without providing any means IL
taks them to it, withOur which they could never BY
IL reach Richmond Is the building of such raj
roat. which cannot carry them 10 Richmond. a CONS
dsrn,iou for deprvug people OF the right to nsv'
:. rail road which will Garry ,hsm to Richmond i
And when the people OF Richmond ask for ra'i ROAD
to Washington, what reief Is il to them 10 oe to:o
you have rail road TO Fredericksburg, which IS hh,
or seventy miles from Washington. aud Is nor even
facility towards ths desired end. but 60 far from IT, r.
according to the plaintiffs claim, an absolute quo III
superable barrier il for thirty years oecause Il,
means of transportation from freoerlcAsou,s g. !.
hu taV