The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-05-11
The Railroad Contest In Wfsconsin-
Battle or tho MonoPolists.

Last winter the Wisconsin LegiSiaturo
passed an act known as the Potter bill. limit
ing the rates and charges of the railroad cor
porations in that State. The act was very OBJ
noxious to the railway corporations, and the
Chicago and Northwestern Railroad under
took the work of resisting its execution. The
principal ground Of resistance il based upon
the allegation that if the law is obeyed the
business of the roads will become unpro6t-
able. Consequently We see the remarkable
spectacle of the railroads boldly defying the
laws of State and ignoring the proclamation
of the Governor, charged with the execution
of the law. As matter of course the next
step will be to test the validity of the act in
the courts ; but instead Of waiting to make
their arguments before the only tribunal
which can legally determine the question the
roads are seeking to forestall the decision by
exerting an influence upon public opinion.
To this end the opinions of two eminent
lawyers-Benjamin r Curtis, of Massachu-
sets, and William n. Evarts, Of this city
have been obtained, both Of these legists up
holding the rights Of the roads to set aside
the law.
In all the railroad contests which have taken
place in this country there is none 80 remark
able in every phase as this one. The first
point which will strike the reader is the fact
that opinions SO hastily obtained and SO hastily
prepared were not intended merely for the
guidance of the company, but for publication.
Though both opinions are aimed ct the Potter
bill, asserting that the law does not come
within the powers reserved to the State, and
has the effect of confscating and destroying
the value Of property-in word, that the act
is unconstitutional and void-neither the paper
of Judge Curtis nor of Mr.. Evarts has the
dispassionate tone of legal opinion, but each
is rather powerful argument addressed to
the people. The sophistry Of MIR. Curtis
reasoning may easily be understood from his
denial of the only position which can be
maintained for the safety Of the community
namely, that railroads are public highways
and that railroad companies are public, not
private, corporations When Mr.. Curtis
and Mr.. Evarts argue the contrary
they are urging tyranny upon the
people worse than any that can ever be
exercised by The powers at Washington or
at the State capitals. Is it possible that the
State Legislatures have been alternating the
public domain for the benefit of railroad cor
porations without any power TO regulate the
charges of such corporations? The afirma-
tive of this proposition is the assumption of
these lawyers, and they bring both argument
and legal decisions to uphold . position SO
extraordinary. If this position is . tenable
one the sway Of monopoly in this country
has only begun.
The contest in Wisconsin will settle the
question whether the railroads are the su-
preme power in State in the matters of
travel and transportation The right to alter
or repeal all general or special acts Of the
Legislature is guaranteed to the Legislature
by the constitution of the State. Even Mr..
Curtis does not altogether deny this but he
seeks to show that this power is limited
power; in other words, that it does not ex-
tend to imposing restrictions and duties upon
great corporations. This is simply placing
the corporation above the law and above the
constitution, and that, too, upon the singular
| ground that it is unconstitutional not to allow
the corporations to do as they please. This
argument is worthy of Jack Bunsby, and it must
have been under the inspiration of that noted
individual that Messrs Curtis and Evarts sat
down to write. They argue sophistries that
would, if accepted, destroy the liberties of the
people. If railroads are only in q limited
sense public highways, and if railroad corpo-
rations are in any sense at all only private
corporations, the States and the Legislatures
have been forging chains for the people the
severity of which is unequalled by the powers
of an autocrat But the Chicago and North
western Railroad is evidently not well assured
of the tenability of this position. Knowing
the powers they claim they may well doubt
chains Of the people by confirming their
claims. 1t is for this reason that SO much ado
is made about this matter. Some of the Wis
consin papers declare that the assertion that
the tariff under the Potter bill will not pay is
pretence. However this may be, it is GER
tain, notwithstanding the apparent determ-
nation to carry the question into the courts,
that the railroads are not anxious to try the
issue there. The effort to make public opinion
indicates q purpose to fight out the battle in
the Legislature. The railroads seek to defy
the obnoxious law upon the pretence of test
ing it only that they may secure its repeal
For them this would be as much triumph as
success in the courts.
The difference in the attitude of the rail-
roads toward the people now and few years
ago is very marked 1t is not long since the
most of them we're begging land grants from
the States and from Congress for the purpose
of building the roads. The public domain
thus alienated it was pretended was as much
for the benefit of the people as of the rail-
roads. Indeed, the benefit Of the people was
apparently held by the managers of the roads