The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1868-12-04
TIE COURTS.
U.,.ed states District Court.

/
| Railroad was continued
ARGUMENT OF Z. C. BILLINGS, FOR PLAINTIFF.
May it please the court. the able and protracte,
discussion, both on the part OF my associates AM
on the part of nv opponents In this case. Ia
aided me in the duty which must now perform
in that il has helped fix, by clear lines of demar
cation, the questions that are here involved. Be
fore entering upon the discussion of the lega
questions presented. desire TO call the attention
of your honor to what seems to have been
fundamental and continual error on the part o.
| those who represent this RAILROADS. well those
who represent it directly as those who represent
it by virtue of the interest which others take 10 il
as stockholders or bondhoders.
| IL seems to have been insisted upon to the
court and there has been q sort of melo- dramatic
effort made to continually press that consideration
| upon The court, that here was a something before
the court which your honor was asked 10 put into
bankruptcy. and that being was so situated that a
| great deal OF sympathy should be extended to il.
How idle is such pretense II the prayer OF
these petitioners be granted, and If this railroad
corporation be adjudicated a bankrupt, there is
no funeral, there is no Grape, there are no tears.
The administration of great public trust-for
that is the whole of it, when we take an enlarged
view OF the matter-passes by the operation OF
| law from certain individuals to others. and that,
| as think will be made evident to your honor
under such circumstances as will certainly advance
the purpose of that trust.
In the order in which l shall consider the
| various propositions / shall follow that, of nv
esteemed friend Mr.. Cohen, whose order of dis.
cusslon seemed to me admirable for its clearness
| and logical method.
The first proposition which / shall endeavor to
establish 10 the satisfaction of your honor is that
| this road IS amenable to the bankrupt act-that
the provisions of the bankrupt Law do include the
New orleans, Opelousas and Great Western Rail.
| road. There have been two objections urged
against this proposition. The first is that siace in
| the year 1889. when the Constitution of the United
States was adopted, the term [" bankruptcy y was
from fhA xlsak A.
| they had until that time included only certain
classes OF debtors; that, therefore, no bankrupt
act which Congress could pass could add to the
| number OF debtors, or classes of debtors, who
could be included. But the grant of power on the
part Of the States to Congress is sill inclusive /;
| Congress is authorized to pass uniform Law of
bankruptcy throughout the United States. That
bankruptcy was TO enlarge or diminish, as the
progress Of commerce should render il requisite.
As well mis- ht the gentleman say that the succeed
ing grant, that Congress shall have the power to
coin money" should be restricted to the kinds of
coin then struck, as that q bankrupt law could
only include such classes of debtors as had before
been included! But when the Constitution says
that Congress may pass uniform laws on the sub
ject OF bankruptcy, and that il may coin money
tputs the whole subjects of bankruptcy and of
coming money into the power of Congress. AT
the very instant, in the very year when this pro-
vision Of the Constitution was adopted. the term
bankruptcy was itself being subjected to
changes. Ii was passing from Including two or
tree that was growing, and with its growth the
whole subject matter was placed within the power
Of Congress.
Then we come to the second objection urged
that the terms of the bankrupt law do not include
this corporation. The terms of this law have been
read to your honor more than once; l will read
only that part Of the section which is deinitiye
That the provisions of this act shall apply to all
monied. business, or commercial corporations and
joint stock companies" Then all monied bust
ness and commercial corporations, all monied,
business and commercial joint stock companies are
included within the provisions of This act The
Opelousas Railroad is both business corporation
and it IS commercial corporation. What is a
business corporation! Every dictionary tells US:
business corporation is one created for the pur.
pose Of transacting business that is, for the pur-
pose OF transacting one or more branches of the
ordinary affairs Of mankind. That is a business
corporation, nothing more, nothing less and when
we see that this railroad is chartered for the pur.
pose OF conveying freight and passengers, when
we come to define the substantive instead of the
adjective, we see that is a common carrier. Will
gentlemen say that that about which a common
carrier is employed is not business II there is
anything that is " business corporation il is
that which Is engaged, not only in business, but in
business which Is so extensive. But it is not only
business corporation, it is a commercial corpo.
ration. / should like TO have heard from the gen.
tlemen on the other side what their definition of
commercial corporation is. II is and must be,
acorporation engaged in and about the purposes
OF commerce, whose grand distinctive purpose is
that OF conducting commerce. And what is the
business OF this company but entirely that of com.
merce? As consistently might it be urged before
your honor-if instead of this being Corporation
70 transport freight and passengers on land, it had
been one for the transportation of freight and
passengers from New York to Liverpool-that il
was not commercial corporation. Therefore |
say that not only is it included in the operation of
tins act, but it is included t,cice, and unanswera
bly,.
But, says one of the gentlemen who presented
the case on the part of the Misunderstanding the
definition which the court certainly must give to
these words, and indeed any definition - it
cannot be true that railroad Is included within
this act for the that a railroad is created
Tor public convenience. True it is that If the
Legislature granted this railroad charter for the
nigh purposes for which Legislature Is presumed
TO grant charters, they did so for the purpose of
promoting the public convenience; bat II can only
be public convenience by virtue of its transact
ing business, and therefore 1t is not only busi.
ness corporation, by reason of the clear deini.
Mons oil the term, but by reason Of it, being IN
able 10 attain the purposes of its creation except
by transsctipg business, and that day and night.
Inc Code OF Louisiaaa-not with a view of dis |
tnguishiDg, as Congress has, but for the PURPOSE
OF dennng generally what corporations are-has |
gwen classification of them. Articles 400 and |
AZ OF the Civil Code, while they classify on e |
different principle. give us the same result. |
corporations are of two kinds; political and pri-
vate political corporations are those which have
r.
portion OF the State, and make part of the |
powers the government has delegated 10 that /
effect; all others are private corporations. Pri.
vate corporations are divided into civil and regi.
Gus and this distinction results as well from the
quality OF the persons who generally compose
these Kinds OF corporations as from the difference
Oh the object Of their establishment. Civil cor.
porations are those which relate to the advance.
ment OF commerce, agriculture etc.
Tins If we follow the line of classification
which the Code gives rs, we see that this is a
private. civil corporation. Now, taking the terms
winch Congress used" monied, business and
commercial corporations" it is clear that thew
iesigned to include all corporations except NUM-
,ipsl, eeemosyDary, and those corporations re-
ating to literary and scientific purposes. All
NJ 6saiAaEs asiEs # man
he purview of this act.
But let MS see what the Legislature which
treated this corporation said upon the subject
7 was organized under the general act which au-
horizes that by fling q certain certificate there
hould spring into being these corporations. In
he general act Of March IL, 1852, section 6. we
ind that any corporation established under this
vet shall forfeit its charter for insolvency evidenced
~ return Of no property found on execution
Igainst such corporation; and in such case il
hall be the duty of the district court of the dis
rict wherein such corporation exists, at the in.
tance OF any creditor to decree such forfeiture. |
N n for H. = |