The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1874-09-16
'logg infamy is dead beyond resurrection
troops or no troops. 49,
tSignedl !" q. W.B. EAGAN, e.
. .,.~. '...l JIG. MoNCURE
A. II. LEONARD,
Railroad Injunction Case.

/ 81. y. uOSSOHE-
A. II. LEONARD,
...... ........., Co1Rptittes.
| Railroad Injunction Case.
e, MILWAUKEE, Sept. l5.-Chief Justice
Ryan has just concluded the reading Of
the opinion in the railroad injunction case
The court affirns the eonstitutioRality OF
the Potter law and directs an injunction
to issue compelling all railroads in the
State to comply with its provisions. .
MILWAUKEE, September l5.-The in
junction issued by the Supreme Court
to-day applies to all railroads and parts
of railroads in the State, except that be-
tween Milwaukee and the Prairie du
Chen division of the Milwaukee Il st.
Paul Railroad. The reason for, this ex-
ception Is that this line is the sltocessor
of road holding an old territorial char
ter, and hence is not subject to the clause
in the State Constitution, which author
zes the legislature to alter or repeal
charters. The Prairie du Chen line is
less than two. hundred miles long, and
the StsPaul- Company has seven hun
dred miles Of road in the State. Tks re-
naming FIVE hundred Inilesare subject to
injunction.
Abstract OF the OpinioIof the isu.
preme Court.
MADISON, September l5.-The follow
ing is an abstract, prepared by Chief
Justice Ryan, of the opinion Of the Su-
preme Court of Wisconsin, in the case
brought by the Attorney General and
Railroad Commissioners for an injuuc-
ton to compel compliance BY the Chi
ago, Milwaukee and st. Paul Railroad
Company with the provisions ofthe Pot
ter law: -.yy''
This Court has TO original jurisdiction
of proceedings by injunction at the suit
ofprivate persons, or to enforce private
remedies, but has jurisdiction of the writ
in matters of public iuries upon informa-
ton ofthe Attorney General in the nature
fan Injunction or bill to restrain excess
or where a maHdan"s would go to RENE
! DIV or defeat the writ given ~ this court
! in group of prerrgative writs Is given
as quasi prcrogutivc writ for prcroga-
tive purposes. Attorney-Gcncral Bias
sog of Wisconsin, (3l7) considered and
approved of sections - and II. lchaptcr
l4th, X. s. Courts of equity in this
State have jurisdiction, upon information
of the Acknowledgement, e.r-OBfcio, TO re-
strain Il corporation from the excess or
abuse of corporate franchise or other vio-
lation of public law, under color Of fran
chise to the public injury. These Sec
tions confer jurisdiction i'll this court.
Whether they operate to limit the juriS-
diction of the Circuit Courts, is not here
! considered 1t is for the court To de-
termine in such an information whether
the acts charged work II public injury.
! This Injunction was MI established, cQult-
able jurisdiction ut the time of the adOp-
ton of the State constitution, ana Sec
ton 5. vet out of the constitution, in re-
lation to trial by jury, has no application
to it. Were this otherwise, the questions
raised by bv these intOrmations arequcs-
tions of law, and the jurisdistion fth"m
in equity dcprives the defendant of II"
right to trial by jury. Chapter 213 Of
1874 is not repealed by chapters 292 or
| 34l of the same session. All the chapters
can well stand together.
The Court Finds no Difficulty
in holding that the Chicago, Milwaukee *
! st. Paul Railroad company is the cOrpo-
ration designated as the Milwaukee *
st. Paul Railroad Company. In chapter
273 the corporation is sufficiently indi-
Gated bv the name in the statute, although
it has month before added the prefix
! Chicago to its name. The constitutional
amendment of 1871, prohibiting special
acts of the legislature for granting cor
poratc power or privileges, except TO cit
les. is only prospective, and has no rela-
! tisn to existing corporal" characters by
special acts before the amendment. These
NAV be amended or repealed by special
act before the rule established III Dar:-
mouth college, OF Woodward, 4 Wheaton,
ljlS,) considered and disappointed as
far as il is extended to guom
private corportions entrusted by the
charter with public interests So us tc con-
sttuto them quasi public corporations
The rule j. followed nevertheless by the
court. because it il the rule Of the Su-
preme Court of the United States Of the
construction of IA clause in the Federal
Constitution, but the reserved power Ia
the State Constitution to alter or to
repeal corporate charters, was designed
to take. and does take all CORPORATIONS
created under it ont of the rule in thr
Dartmouth College case, and tho iegisIa'
ture has the same power over such cor
porations ~ if the rule i'll that case had
never existed. ..."'@
The Reserved Power to Alter or "a
Repeal,
has no other limit in law than Is implied
in the words used The power 10 amend
charter. without entirely changing IL
purpose or the charter, the exercise The
power should be under the guidance o'
extreme moderatiOns, and should not b'
oppressive and unreasonable, but all thu
rest, in the legislative direction, sOIar a'
corporate franchise are concerned. The
legislature Is under a moral obligation
not to reduce the tolls of railroads below
fair and adequate amount, but theil
power over the franchise ls,4b-olutc, bIr
the power to alter or repcnl, ,dnnot etiec
the property Of eorpnradiohsy othef thar
the franchise of such right o
property is involved. II is no
At all material here whether the
defendants had an election 10 sccep
or reject the alteration Of their charter
bv chapter 2E@. They were bound u