, 1875-03-15

lAt HWuItl UI Lua jury III INo 1AIo 10utH
Park condemnation easo is q fair sample Of
tie treatment Of public corporntiona in suits
ut law. Tho rule Is that the larger the
municipal corporation tho less consideration
1t receives at the hands of tho jury. A
close corporation Of two or three persons,
carrying On some private business, ,nny
possibly meet an individual antagonist at
law with some fair proapect f,r Justice. but
when 1t comes to railroad, or other largo
aud qunsi- public corporation, tho conaiilora-
ton Of tho jury is very much less With n
municipal or political corporation of any
nature, the individual contestant may almost
count with certainty upon a verdict in his be-
half without regard to this merits Of his case.
DANIEL. WxBsrEn Ia reported to have said that
the Almighty himself cannot foretell what
the verdict Of a petit jury will DO but ho
evidently did not refer to that class Of law
suits involving property interests, In which
there is mn individual On ono sit!o and pub
Lie corpontion on tho other. Iu such cases,
verdict against the public corporation Is q
fosogono conclusion. The rule Of tie aver
ago jury seems TO be TINT q community Of
taxpayers has no rights which the individual
is bound to respect,
In the South PARK condemnation case, tho
Commissioners, representing the community
Of taxpayers, aEe required to pay at tho as
tonishing rate Of $5, 75o per acre for tract
Of land lying south Of si1ty-thlrd street,
AWAY OF TO the cast, on the low, swa1npy
like shore, considerable part of which is
scarcely abovo the water-levol, aud which
could not for very many years 10 como bo
usod for any other purpose than that Of q
public park.
What adds to the mystery Of tho verdict ia,
that Mr. F1rcH offered to sell the Commits
aionera ridge land, Just south Of the park,
for 81, 900 per aero, and Mr. Eauou oTorea
land on the railroad track, north OF It, for
$500 per aero. Tho award for the entire
tract of II acres was s45c, 49a.5o; tho same
tract was bought by one Of ths bene1ciaries
Of the presont award for $40, 600 tho frat year
Of tho War, md the purchase ut that ratc was
regarded as foolish one. The price awarded
WIS iuat hvo times the lowest valuation put
upon It by some Of the Witnesses before tho
juzy,-which was $500 IN aero. It Is Sl,5b0
per aero more tlan tho mean Of the evidence,
aud probably 60 per cent more than it could
have been sold for in the most exciting time
Of real estate imitation before tho panic. Not
only WINS there no allowance nude for tho
great shrinlage of values resulting from the
panic, but tho award la On the basis Of the
most rapid and steady increase since the
panic. The Taxpayers are thus compelled by
tho Communicate sentiment or actunting un-
dorcurrent Of feeling Of petit jury to pay
nearly half million dollars for pieco Of
property most Of which tho Park
Commissioners can only usa ~ an
artificial lake alongsido Of q great
NATURAL lake. At the very best, the award Is
twice IS much as 1t ought to have been, &C.
corting to the opinion Of the best and fa!rest
Judges, aud Ave tinos what the property
would hayc brought at this time IL the Pork
bill had not included 1t within the limits oi
tho park property, but left 1t mile or 60 to
tie east Of 1t.
The care is by no means exceptional. The
taxpayers OF Lako View were made to suffer
not long Biuoe In similar case. There was 9
cambridge lying beyond the city limits on
tho north, which could best ba utilized by
aiding 1t to tho pleasure grounds Of North
Chicago. 1t waa condemned and appraised
by petit jury in the form prescribed by
law, and tho award wills, at tho very least
double the actual value Of the property
The beneheia1ies In this case, as in mos
similar csses, were entitled to no mora con
sidesatiou than the taxpayers, it go much
The land belonged to two rich estates, wor!l
millions each, md left behind by mon who
had amassed fortunes through the enterpris.
and industry Of the citizens OF Chicago
Whose labor rsudazed their lots Rna land