Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1877-08-10
WHO FOOTS THE BILL.
The Liability Of Municipal Corporations
for Property Destroyed by MObs.
Cincinnati COmmerCiaI.

Cincinnati Commercial.
The vast destruction of railway prop
erty in Pittsburg by mob violence, and
the damage inflicted on other roads by
the forcible destruction of their tracks,
the detention of their freight trains, and
the suspension of all business on their
lines, amounting to millions of dollars,
having raised the interesting question
whether the losses, direct or indirect,
will fall exclusively upon the railway
companies, or whether they have not
some remedy at least by which they
will recover from States, counties or
municipalities covering the amount of
their losses.
So far as we have had leisure to con
suit the books and statutes, it does not
appear that there is any universal law
on the subject. The general principle
is stated in Judge Dillon's work on ''Mu-
nicipal Corporations" (vol. 2, p. 760)-a
work, we may add in passing, that is roc
ognized authority in the United States,
and has been quoted by the highest
courts of England. Judge Dillon says:
Public or municipal corporations are under
no common law liable to pay for the property
of individuals destroyed by mobs or riOtous as
sembleges; but in such case the Legislature
may constutionally give remedy,and regulate
the mode OF assessing the damages"
We are not sure that there may not
be dissent from the opinion that there
is no liability under the common law
In the opinion of Chief Justice DEMO,
of New York, in the case of Thoms Oar
lington VS.. the Mayor, etc, of the city
of New York-a case in which the
plaintiff s property was destroyed by
fire during the riots of July, 1S43-he
cited the laws Of the Saxons, Danes and
Normans, to show that from the earliest
period laws assessing damages on the
community for loss of life and property
| taken by violence have been in force in
| England
But whatever be the common law doc
trine we have not yet found a single
dissent to the opinion expressed by
Judge Dillon, that it is within the con
stitutional province Of the Legislature
of State to provide remedy and reg
ulate the mode of assessing damages
The law upon this subject, passed by
the Legislature of Pennsylvania in 1896,
was inadvertently repealed a year or two
after, but was reinstated in 1910, and is,
if we mistake not, the law of the State
now. A case arose under it during the
anti-slavery riot in Philadelphia, in
which Pennsylvania Hall was burned by
the mob. The owners of the hall sued
the city for damages, and the case was
finally carried up to the Supreme Court,
where it was reviewed and the opinion
given by Justice Rogers (see 5, Pa St.,
p. 203, 1874. In this opinion Justice
Rogers said:
AT common law counties were not liable at
all for mischief done by lawless Individuals
When remedy is given it is the creature of
statutes as in hue and cry, and in the act of
With the policy of the act we have nothing
| to do although we conceive that there would
| be no difficulty in showing that the taxpayers
| have right to be UNIDENTIFIED for losses occa-
stoned by lawless outrages, wherever the pub
| lie are unable or unwilling to protect property,
The innocent may, it is true, be compelled sto
| pay for the acts of the guilty But this effect
| is not peculiar to the case, but necessarily re-
suits from che structure of society and the ma
ture of all institutions"
And again speaking of the power of
the Legislature to enact such law,
Judge Rogers said:
THAT the Legislature had the right to pass
such an act cannot be denied, and it is equally
clear that they were bound to do SO on every
| principle OF equity ana Justice.
As this opinion is quoted by Judge
Dillon in his work on " Municipal Corpo-
ration" we presume it to be substantial
ly the law of Pennsylvania on the sub
ject to-day If it be, the city Of Pitts
burg and the country of Allegheny will
be legally liable for the losses Of the
Pennsylvania Railway Company within
their limits, and the men who in their
madness set fire to and destroyed its
property to the extent Of five or six mil
lions of dollars, will have to assist in
making good the losses by many hard
DAYS work and hard earned dollar
Without going further into details of
law and opinions, it is sufficiently clear
from what has been said:
1.-The laws providing for the indem-
MITIGATION Of those whose property has
been destroyed by mob violence are
valid and constitutional
2.-That the assessments for the los
ses must fall upon the communities
where they have been sustained, upon
the innocent and upon the guilty, the
just and the unjust.
For, as governments are instituted
among men for the protection of life
and property, they are liable where
they fail to protect for the property de-
stroyed If they are not responsible,
either as States, counties, or municipal
tiles, then the object of maintaining
governments has either not been at
tanned or they are kept up under false