The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-07-09

over INV own lands, and It concerns myself alone
1t lie an individual right But when 1 come to
make a railroad through the lands OF other people
and to issue stock to irresponsible parties IL be-
comes franchise. 1t is royal prerogatve in the
hands of the subject. How is IL possible for any
private person or persons to raise any questions
about my right to do thisi
Suppose the Attorney General out OF tne case
altogether, and that had never heard of him In
II. How is 1t possible that six sensible, intelligent
men, looking at each other here, can doubt for
single moment about any question ike that But
when the Attorney General does come into
Court, and when he does bring MS quo Wdrrdnto
and does not touch single question about this
road between Fran kiln and Milton, but confines
himself TO other matters are private parties TO De
allowed to take mp these questions and have deci-
sion of them whenever they please IL mas oeeh
said that the Atlantic and Great Western Company
had the right TO appoint constable somewhere IN
the region of Erie But the Pennsylvania kaii-
road Company has never been appointed High
Constable The Pennsylvania Railroad company
was never authorized by law to raise tnese ques- q
tons before the Court any more tnan any prlNaIe
man within the State. -,
Ab! But this is TO be a rival road. The COM
nave put IL i'm their argument. They have averred
It with tenfold eaTnestness upon this noor. TWO
thirds of the opposing argument was taken mp
with this q question of rivalry. Is rivalry ground
forthe jurisdiction of court OF equityl Fraud Is;
account Isl trust is; and tne exercise ot unlawful
formed such a ground. When the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company finds that any body is rivalling
commonwealth, and come in here armed with So
veregn powerl If every time anybody is about
TO do anything WnlCn Sn6 THINKS may lnluT6 neT,
she is to file bill in equity and bring these ques
tions here, where is the thing to endl
Your Honors sometimes read the newspapers.
The complainants counsel certainly do Perhaps
you may have seen there some account Of the Ia
bors of that man in Jersey Oity who is construct
ing a flying machine His operations are care
fully concealed, and he works in an enclosure
closely boarded up, so that nobody can oversee
him. But it is large machine, constructed so as
70 operate somewhat on the principle of the rotary
tan. 1t is to have rudder and to go by steam. 1t
is not to GO very high, Just over the tops Of the
houses; but 1t is TO accomplish something like $50
miles an hour. believe from what have heard
OF this adventurer, that he has Just as much conf
dence in his machine as the complainants counsel
nave in the success OF their argument. Suppose
the machine to succeed, and your Honors to desire
TO go to Pittsburg to open court there You can go
in two hours .. - r
Is not that rivalry7 Should not the Pennsylva-
mia Railroad Company file bill to restrain the
completion of this flying machine by which their
fares and tolls are to be taken awayl After few
trial trips are made with IL, certainly shall not
trouble myself to go home in cars Of the Lehgh
Valley Railroad, or the Northern Central, or the
Pennsylvania Road, but shall hurry home by a
shorter passage through the air. The gentlemen
on the other side may be waiting for the compile
uon OF the machine, but they may then be too late
Ought they not at once to file bill in equity TO
restrain the in ventor from rvalling their roadl Is
not this fair case ofrIvalry2
Suppose two should undertake to run a
horse race, and thus violate the law. Your Honors
might go after them and not catch them, and the
race might develop the fact that the horse is the
best locomotive man can adopt. They might run
faster for while than the Philadelphia trains, and
COusIlIuue u new IlValTy 10 Lne feuuSylVduld
Railroad Company. Would not the gentlemen be
justified in enjoining horses from runningl When
are we to stop, may IL please your Honors if we
are 10 get into this imaginary line of argumentl
Gan 1t be possible that when judges such you
are come to consult over this case that questions
like these will give you any troublel If they are
to say as they do here-for this is the ground Of
their case-if they say that the commonwealth, the
king, the owner OF the soil, the great overeign
power TO which we all ought to be obedient, shall
not raise these questions, but that private party
may raise them, what is to be the end of III Take
this away and where is the Pennsylvania Rail-
rOad9 She has no case at all.
will not abuse these parties as they did us, but
l wish TO follow up some OF the observations made
before the Court One of the counsel spoke OF the
serpent and the toad. He compared the Atlantic
and Great Western Railway Company to- the SER
pent. am afraid that the Gettysburg Railroad
was running in MS mind, for that looked more like
serpent than anything else in the railroad way.
Or is the Pennsylvania Railroad to be called
pent and the Philadelphia and Erie the toadl
believe IL is of the chief uses of the toad TO fur
nish food for the serpent, as the Philadelphia and
Erie supplies food TO the Pennsylvania Company,
and the Pennsylvania Railroad seems to have
swallowed the poor Philadelphia and Erie, as the
serpent swallows the toad.
But, may it please the Court, the State and not
the Pennsylvania Railroad Company is the proper
party TO complain of the acts alleged here as VIOLA
tions OF law. The interference of the Pennsylva-
mia Railroad reminds one of the story that General
Jackson used to tell of an old man in Tennessee,
who, in the of his life amassed large for
tune When he was near the end of his life, and
the secret could be of further service to him, he
diyulged it, and the secret was minding his own
business That is what the Court should say to
these complanants. 1t is not the business of the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company to complain OF
the violation of the franchises Of the Common
wealth. The State alone is the judge OF what is
necessary to preserve and vindicate the law.
do not know that to establish so plain princi-
pie of law authorities are needed but take the
of the Schuylkill County Bank, at the suit OF
Murphy, where the inquiry was refused on the
same ground that l have stated as a reason here.
Take the case of the Beaver Meadow Railroad
Company against the Lehigh Coal and Navigation
Company. Everybody is familiar with the history
OF that case. Day after day and week after week
IL was contested before the present Ohlef Justice
The Lehigh Navigation Company were required
under their charter, to do one OF two things at o
certain point. They were required to make an cleo
ton whether at that place they would build theil
navigation works or build their railroad. We were
building railroad just on the spot, so that we
wanted 10 know what they would elect We saic
to them, "Gentlemen, please make your election
Let us know whether you will build dam here
or whether you will build railroad because, by
the terms of your act of incorporation, you are re
Chief Justice said, that is matter for the common
wealth to decide and not for you If the common
wealth were to say TO this company, you mus
make your election and either build your dam o
your railroad, then the Court would have to TAX
notice of the authority OF the commonwealth, bu
YOU cannot raise the question
That was the doctrine laid down, clearly an
unmistakably there. That is the doctrine that ha
been main ntained in every imaginable case, in ever
imaginable form. That is the doctrine for whic
contend in this case. How is The Pennsylvanl
Company to raise the question about the right c
the Atlantic and Great Western Company to com
pete their line from one point 20 another, TO bull
a road between Franklin and Mlltoni Suppos
they have no right, and the commonwealth chose
not to contest It. Even II the act oe nos IaWiu
(which we do not for moment admit Tor II Is
plain statute,) but even II 1t be not lawful, th
commonwealth may decline TO contest the exercis
Of the right. Can a rival company then do it!
The Pennsylvania Railroad Company is NJ
within Sixty miles of the Catawissa Railroad Con
pany. 1t cannot set foot on II. 1t cannot go ther
Iteannot put a sill or ran lhere Shs mas ~