The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-11-13


Excluded from Doing Business in
New Y ork.
A CURIOUS case has just arisen in New York, in
volving the right of railroads not incorporated |
under the laws of that State to sell tickets
and keep Offices within its limits. The Penn
sylvania Railroad recently applied for man
damus from the Supreme Court of New York |
to compel the Commissioners of Emigration |
TO admit their agents TO sell tickets to |
emigrants in Castle Garden, the great rendez-
vous Of emigrants arriving at the port of New
York. Judge Barnard decided against the
application on the ground that, as a corpora
ton formed under the laws of another State
it is prohibited by the laws of New York from
selling tickets in that State. 1t seems
that there is such law on
the statute books of New York,
but that it has hitherto been regarded as a
dead letter, and not enforced. The Herald
remarks that if it is now to be enforced, cit
prevents any railroads, not incorporated under
the laws OF New York, from opening any Offices
or selling any tickets in this State under
heavy penalty for each ofIense. 1t shuts up
the offices of the Allentown line, the New
Jersey roads, the Pennsylvania Central, the
Great Western, and, in fact, every railroad
chartered in any other State of the Union, and
! gives monopoly of ticket-selling to the New
York State lines The Allentown line, now
doing business in Castle Garden by a special
favor, must, of course, be elected therefrom
as every ticket sold there over that line is a
violation Of the law, whose enforcement the
Commissioners themselves have invoked and
subjects the seller to a penalty. The law is
especially hard upon the emigrant, who is
almost compelled to buy his ticket in Castle
Garden, and is thus confined to lines of travel
which may take him many miles out of his
way, as well as largely increase the expense
of his journey"
We have no idea that any such absurd and
narrow-minded statute will long be permitted
to remain in force as law in New York. 1t
must have been adopted years ago, when the
advantages of competition among railroads
were less apparent than now. One of the
great causes of the immense concentration OF
business at New York is the unexampled
facilities which she has enjoyed for the distri-
button of trade and travel to all points of the
interior. Were she now to enforce the above
absurd law to the letter, she would cut herself
OFF from all connection with the West except
by her own two lines, the Erie and the Central.
So far as the interests of Philadelphia are
concerned, we should have no occasion to object
to this exclusion of our corporations from New
York 1t might lead to the establishment of
their own interests on a frmer basis by foster
ing the foreign commerce of this city. There
is no good reason why nine'tenths of the
foreign immigration should be concentrated
at the port of New York If the railroad COM
panies of Pennsylvania would cease to look
so much to New York, and would unite their
interests with those of this city in the esta-
blishment of lines of steamers to foreign ports,
they would soon be independent of such ILL
beral laws as those which have just excluded
them from the sale of tickets in Castle Garden.