Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-07-23
Where Are the Courtsp

alarming feature of their judicial pro-
nunciamento. Does the jealous guar.
dian of State Sovereignty feel no APP
prehension when those judges assume
the power of enjoining the action OF
State courts in toto, whenever they
may choose TO do Sc, to carry out
their own views of justice and law
Had those Judges held the Potter law
unconstitutional, they claimed the
power of suspending proceedings in
all State courts under that law; they
could even stop Justice Braley and all
his posse, and Attorney General Sloan
and all the State judges. The FEEDER
al Judges could not wait until our
State supreme court had decided the
question, and then obtained jurisdic-
ton by way of appeal from that de.
cision; but they took a position which
enables them to jump and ignore the
State courts entirely. 1t is only the
popularity of the judgment sustaining
the Potter law that wells from our
sight this enormous stretch of Federal
power Had the court declared that
law unconstitutional, and proceeded
to enjoin all proceedings in the State
tribunals, it would have plunged us
into as violent q struggle against Fed
eral usurpation as when national au-
thority attempted to enforce the fugi-
tive slave act, and convert Northern
treemen into catch-poles for Southern
masters The Federal judges have in
fiicted deadly wound upon the cor
porations, but they have murdered
State Sovereignty with the same
weapon. Our very compliant and
humble Governor has directed his At.
torney General to file bill of some
kind, requiring the railroad corpora
tons to obey the law only so far as the
Federal court has pronounced it valid
That is, our supreme court must not
decide the law for itself, but must act
as posse cOmitatus to carry out the
mandate of the Federal authorities
Suppose the State supreme Judges
should regard the law invalid, must
they still obey Messrs. Davis, Drum
mond & Co.?
In regard to the Potter law itself,
remember one of your editorials stated
that the arguments of Senator Carpen-
ter and Attorney General Sloan, zen.
dered it "fearfully probable that cor
pora:ions III this State had no rights
that the people or legislature were
bound to respect. Whether the State
will prosper more with such consti
tuition than with one in which corp or
atoms as we'll as individuals could
come into court and prove the value
of their services, will now be fairly
tested We cannot even be bount
by the Potter act, we can make M
contract with a corporation whatev
err that will bind US longer than The
next legislature The Potter law
might have provided for special jury
fairly selected from the various inter
ests in the State of twelve or twenty
four men, empannelled before the su
preme court, which upon the hearing
of sworn witnesses, might have deter
mined the maximum tariffs. Will
such an opportunity offered them, i
they refused to avail themselves of it
the companies would have had no rea
son to complain.
But we can make them no such ofeI
now. We could not be bound by it
We offer them as their only guarantee
our magnanimity and sense of justice
The financial world has usually re
| garded nations and states as souIles!
corporations, and in trusting them
has treated them as capable of max
ing contracts, and has bound them al
such. Perhaps now the Galena anG
Plattevile company will be able Il
borrow the money by a mortgage O.
its road bed on which 100000 have
already been expended, and with this
loan be able to purchase the necessary
iron and the rolling stock; then we
can extend the road to Lancaster. =
Let us expect an instant resume o.
the great and small railroad projects
which have been abandoned since
this "recent unpleasantness." Capt.
talists will be eager to invest in oul
''magnanimity and sense ofjustice. y
Why do they not do SO, and come for
ward noW, when the doctrine is square
ly asserted? We have found the tails
man that will open to us the Golfers Of
Wall, Washington and Lombard
streets. Our stupendous railroad en-
terprises will now be revived and
pushed forward, and the million
wheels Of industry now idle, will
whirl anew; the great arteries that
carried and distributed money to La
Dor, in the mine, the foundry, the rail-
road track, the cornfeld, the manu-
factory, will be flusher than of yore.-
Only let s town or village that wants
railroad, grade the track, and then
mortgage of it as in times past, will
supply the funds to purchase iron and