Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-09-24
Senator Carpenter and the Railroad
Law

Vi Tue legislative control OF railways.
We have not the space to publish his
address in full, but copy the principal
points of his discourse:
l. That railroad companies are the
mere creatures of law, drawing their
breath of life from the law alono,
capable of doing only what the law
permits them 10 do, and holding their
lives and their powers at the mere
will and pleasure of the Legislature.
2. That the business these COM
panies are engaged in is one which
even natural persons could not car
ry on without permission OF the Leg
islature.
3. That the companies are obliged
to carry passengers and freight for
reasonable compensation, and subject
themselves to suit for damages, and
to a forfeiture of their charters, if
they refuse to do SO.
4. That railroads are public high
ways, the title Uested in the corpora
ton, but vested IN trust for the State:
that the companies are merely agents
of the State for the highways; that
the money invested by the companies
as compensation for lands condemned,
or right of way purchased, and build,
equip and operate the road, is re-
guarded as consideration paid to the
State for the franchise conferred by
the State upon the companies. And,
5. That the charters granted under
our State constitution are not pros
tected by the constitution of the
United States, as CONSTRUCTED in the
Dartmouth College case; but may be
altered or repealed by the Legisla-
ture at any time.
Senator Carpenter has in the above
summary given a terrible view OF
the utter helplessness Of all cor
poratIons in this State. Their very
breath and life comes from the legis-
lature. Railroad companies are but
the agents of the state. Of course
the state can dismiss its agents or the
employees of those agents, and appoint
other agents in their place. 1t can
dismiss the president and directors of
all the railroad companies and put
others in their stead The legislature
can repcal and alter, N axe aud un-
make. Certainly now the most san
culinary Granger should have no ami
mostly toward these "bubbles" blown
up and broken by the legislative
breath. Let him pardon the struggles
of these companies endeavoring to
shield themselves from the guillotine
which our state constitution allows
the legislature to build for the subju-
CATION, or, if necessary, the destruc-
ton of all corporations. Had the
Legislature attempted to limit the price
Of newspapers published by corpora
tons the law-abiding editors would
have secuted state sovereignty just
as the railroads have done. The com
panies may richly deserve their over
throw, although they may justly claim
that if they hare stolen from the peo-
pie they have more than trebled the
value of the lands and doubled the
value of the farm products, notwith
standing their extortion. The Mosaic
law requires the thief to restore four
fold. The railroad companies have
perhaps come up to the law of Moses
in this respect. The contest may
then be regarded as at an end.
No man can be so mad asjto sup
pose that railroads can hereafter be
built in Wisconsin by the aid of for
eign capital, nor do the Potter law
men propose to extend the railway
system. Not one of them has any
such project in his mind. Thousands
of families who were furnished en-
ployment by the capital these compa-
MES were able to control will now be
turned out of employment, and it
would seem to be fair that the Potter
law men, who possess such unlimited
faith in the generosity of the people,
should furnish these laborers with the
employment they are accustomed to,
and should carry forward to compile.
ton the railroad system from which
foreign capital through fear or per-
yerseness will hereafter stand aloof.
This war unfortunate for us at
least, as also for the greater portion
of Grant county, found Lancaster
without a railroad The GaleDa com
pany has expended so much that it's
narrow gauge must reach into Wis
consin, else the company will sacrifice
in cash at least 100000. We shall
advocate connection with this road
which is promised to be completed to
Platteville by the lst Of November.
If we are to have a meeting in this
assembly district, let it rot be for the
purpose of winning easy laurels by
fighting aggregate capital" For at
this juncture capital is too shy for the
embrace of friend, let alone the
thrust of an enemy. Bat let il be to
aggregate" enough of money in some
way to grade the track from Platte
vile or any other rail port to Lancas-
ter and thence through the county.
AS Granger in good standing, we
propose this means of cheapening
transportation.
~The State Journal has it in this
way: swell for Senator-Weil, the