Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-02-11
JUDGE WOODS, DECISION
In the Case of TIlIey VS.. the Railroad
Commissioners.

Western Railroad Company. and James NJ
| smith and Others of the Railroad Commission
/ paragraph twenty-five Of section seven, article
| three, reads as follows:
THE General Assembly shall have power &c
make all laws and ordinances consistent with
/ this constitution and not repugnant to the Con
stitution OF the United States, which they shall
deem necessary and proper 70 the welfare Of
| the State.
| Paragraph one, section two Of article foul
| declares that:
"The power and authority Of regulating rail
road freights and passenger tariffs, preventing
unjust determinations and requiring reason
able and just rates of freight and passenger
tariffs are hereby conferred upon the Genera
/ Assembly, whose duty it shall be to pass laws
/ from time TO time to regulate freight and pas
Senger tariffs, to prohibit unjust diSerimina
/ tons on the various railroads of the State and
/ to prohibit said roads from charging other thar
! just and reasonable rates, and enforce the samt
| BY adequate penalties"
| Paragraph two:
THE exercise of the right Of eminent domain
shall never be abridged nor so construed as tC
| prevent the General Assembly from taking the
property and franchises OF Incorporated com
| panies, and sHbjecting them to public use the
/ same as property of individuals, and the exer
else Of the police power of the State shall never
be abridged nor SO construed as 70 permit cor
porations to conduct their business in such
/ manner as to impinge the equal rights of indi
viduals or the general well being of the State ,
Paragraph one, section five, article two, de
clares:
THE people of this State have the inherent
/ sole and exclusive right of regulating their in
/ ternal government and the police thereof, anC
| of altering and abolishing their constitution
| whenever 1t may be necessary to their safety
and happiness"
Paragraph one, section three, article one
declares:
s. Private property shall not be taken OIL
damaged for public purposes without just and
| adequate compensation being first paid"
! Paragraph three, section one, article one
/ declares:
mo person shall be deprived of life liberty
| or property, except by due process of law"
| Paragraph two, article one. section one, de
| clares:
Protection to person and property is the
| paramount duty Of government, and shall be
! impartial and complete"
Paragraph one, section four, article one, de
clares:
| Laws of a general nature shall have uni
| form operation throughout the State, and nc
| special law shall be enacted in any case fol-
| which provision has been made by exis' Ing
4 general law. No general law affecting private
| rights shall be revised in any particular case
| by special legislation except with the free con
sent in writing of al persons to be affected
/ thereby"
Paragraph twenty-three, section one, article
'Thelegislatiye, judicial and executive power
| shall forever remain separate and distinct, AND
no person discharging the duties of one shall
| at the same time exercise the functions Of
| others except as herein provided
Paragraph three, section three, article one
declares:
mo grant of special privileges or immunitie.
shall be revoked except in such manner as to
work no injustice to corporators or creditors
| Of the incorporation"
These provisions OF the constitution being in
| force, the Legislature on October IA, 1879. pass
| ed an act to carry into effect paragraph one
section two Of article four above quoted.
The act provides (section three( as follows:
| THAT if any railroad corporation
organized or doing business in this State
| under any act of incorporation or general Law
| of this State now in force, or which may here
after be enacted. or any railroad corporation
| organized. or which may hereafter be organ
| lied, under the laws of any other State ano
doing business in this State, shall charge, col
| lect, demand or receive more than a fair and
| reasonable rate of toll or compensation fol
| the transportation of passengers or freight oil
any description, or for the use and transporta
| ton of any railroad car upon its track, or any
| of its branches thereof, or upon any railroad
within this State which it has the right. license
| or permission to use, operate or control, the
same shall be deemed guilty OF extortion, and
upon conviction thereof, shall be dealt with a!
| hereinafter provided"
The act further provides for the appoint
ment of three Railroad Commissioners, Whose
| duty il shall be to make reasonable and jus
rates OF freight and passenger tariffs, to b.
observed by all railroad companies doing bust
ness intthis State on the railroads thel eof.
Section six OF the act declares as follows:
That the said Railroad Commissioners ar,
each Of the railroad corporations doing bust
ness in this State, as soon as practicable,
schedule Of Just and reasonable rates o
| charges for the transportation of passenger
and freights and cars on each of said railroads
and said schedule shall. in suits brough
against any such railroad corporations wherein
is involved the charges Of any such rRilroa,
corporation Tor the transportation OF any pas
senger or freight or car, or unjust discrimina
ton in relation thereto, be deemed and takel
in all courts Of this State as sufficient evidenc
. NNaw MHa ofn- r11
reasonable rates OF charges for the transports
ton of passengers and freights and cars upo
the railroads; and said Commissioners shall
from time to time, and as often as circumstan
cos may require, change and revise said sched
ule."
Section nine provides:
That if any railroad company doing busi
ness in this State, by its egentS or EMPLOYEES
shall be guilty of q violation of the rules an
regulations provided end prescribed by sal
Commissioners, and IL, after due notice o
such violation gwen to the principal Office
thereof, ample and full recompense for th
wrong or injury done thereby to any person O
corporation, as may be directed by said Com
missiouers, shall not be made within thirt,
days from the time of such notice, such com
pany shall incur penalty for each offense o
not less than one thousand dollars, nor NOR
than five thousand dollars, to be fixed by tn,
presiding Judge. An action for the recover,
of such penalty shall lie in any county in tn
State where such violation has occurred, o
wrong has been perpetrated. and shall be il
the name OF the State of Georgia The Com
misSioners shall institute such action through
the Attorney General or Solicitor General
whose fees shall be the same as now provides
by law"
By authority of this act, James NJ. Smith
Campbell Wallace and Samuel Barnett wer
appointed Railroad Commissioners, and wer
qualified and entered upon the discharge o
their duties.
The commissioners, as required by law, pre-
pared and promulgated standard schedule o
tgct nd rao 10 toe Of oh. Co.
transportation OF passengers and freights an,
cars, and required il to be observed with sucl
notifications as might thereupon be set fortl
by such of the railroad corporations doing busi
ness in the State, and that copies of the SEIZED
ule should be posted by the railroad companie
at all their stations and that the same SHOULD
go into full effect and operation on May 1, 1880
Thereupon the complainant in this case
George II. Tlley, who ayerred himself to b.
an alien and stoGkholder ia the Savannah
Florida and Western Railroad Company,
railroad corporation of the State of Georgia
filed his BILL to which he made the said railroat
company. James IL. Smith, Campbell Wallace
and Samuel Barnett, Railroad Commissioners
and Robert N. Ely. Attorney General of Geor
The bill alleged that the complainant was thu
holder of one hun1Ped shares Of the capita
stock of the Savannah, Florida and Western
Railway Company, for which he had paid thu
sum of $4,000 in cash.
That the said Savannah, Florida and Western
Railroad Company had its origin as follows
| by q uScTce OF the OniCeQ EtaFeS Circuit COur
for the Southern district of Georgia, the pro
perty, franchises, rights privileges and immu
mites of the railroad corporation knOwn,a
the Atlantic and Gulf Railroad Company, WerI
sold on November 1882, to Henry b. Plant ana
his associates. That the purchasers of sale
railroad and property of the Atlantic and Gull
Railroad Company were the bona fide owner
OF one million four hundred and fifteen thous
and dollars OF the second mortgage bonds o.
said company to satisfy which such sale wa.
made, and that their cash bid at the sale wa.
$4,000, which sum was paid in hand Tha
] said sale was made, subject to the lien Of
, mortgage executed by said Atlantic and Gull
! Railroad Company to secure certain bonds is
sued and sold by it and known as its first mort
gage bonds, and that said lien amounted 1T thu
tame of said sale to abont $2,7O00ol
That said Plant and his associates, under thu
provisions OF an act of the Legislature of Geor
gia. approved February ~, 1876, had formed
the said defendant corporation. the Savannah
to it was conveyed under the orders Of sail
court the property and franchise rights anC
immunities of the said Atlantic and Gulf Rail
road Company. That the act by virtue o.
/ which the sid Savannah, Florida and Western
Railroad Company organized and said convey
] ance made declared that I4pon the sale of tn,
property, franchise. rights and immunities Of
any raiifo29 company in the State Of Georgia
thhe railroad company formed by the purchase
trust =, Sad possess all the powers, rights. i'm
- --ities. privileges and franchises in respect
to toG such p, "-oad which were promised or en
joyed by the corr nn s 4sng ose q ~ ng Il
such railroad previous 10 =. -sssae.lsi p9ent,
| virtue or its charter and any =. ga
| thereto and of other laws Of the State -
| OF 1870. page 1lS)
The bill further charged that at the time of
making and issuing the said first mortgage
ponds, subject to which the Atlantic and Gulf
Railroad was sold, the State of Georgia was a
| holder OF the stock of said companv To the