Arizona weekly citizen., 1883-11-24
The Railroad Question.


 The following letter from A. A. Cohen to tbe Railroad Commissioners upon the subi-ct uf their rights and dutles VIII De read by the pubic with interest, m We" of tue l0ng and bitter contest between Nr. Cohen Hnd the Central PacInc Tall road: 1000
 NEW YORK, March If, lSS3.
 To the Honorable tue Board Oi Rhl- rad CouJmi-slouers of the State Uf Caitfornia. - Gentlemen: l Lave the honor to acknowledge a latter from your presideut. sent Co ny office m oan ran eisen. asking me Co designate time when I can appear before you and give n,v view. upon tue subject of regulating fine charges of railroad and other trans portaiion compaUle=, and upon such other matters as are uy the Constitution and laws oi the state of California with in your jurisdiction.
 Inc letter Is accompanied by nun Der of questions when l am requested to prepare myself tO answer. l regrsl that 1t did not req b me m time to reply in person: 1 received It but few hours before my departure from San Francis co, and therefore can respond only m thIs manner.
 But before proceeding tO do so, take leave to say that although l recognlze your right Co require the attendance Of any person you may desire tO examine, l regret that you have called upon me to testify ID a matter as tO winch, from my past weil-knOwn relations, l may not be considered an impartial witness. While the power conferred upOc you by the Constitution aud statutes of the State of California IS general, m that It relates To all railroad and transportation companies, yet IL is well understood, and l IS tht, fact. that the principal obJecJs of your jurisdiction are tue Central and Southern Pacific Railroad companies and such other cJmpanIes or railroads as are within their control. It IS equal ly we'll known that for some years my relations vi the gentlemen having the mana cement of those roads have not been friendly. In fact, 1 5ave been, and am Yet, engaged ID important htlga tiOus adverse to JueIr interests. In that view, IL would certainly have been pre- ferable for yCu Co nave sought your Iu- formation from some other sOurce,-one that could nos be held ameDaOle tO the charge of prejudice. Ii being, however. my duty to mJly with your request, shall d, so Co the hest of my judgment aud ability, leaving It to you to deter mine now far my Views are affected by tine hostile relations that l Lave for sO many years held towards the principal cOfpuratlOus whose business HOW comes wlthIr your control
 THE CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE
 Of California provides that your body shall have tbe power, and it shall be your du.y to establish rates of charges for the Transportation of passengers and freight by railroad Or other trans p1rtatIUn com paules, and publish the same from time to tlu.e, Ith such charge, a. yOu mHl make. This ls certainly au extraordinary ana very extensive ? lv5r Go be lutru-ted by O constitutional enactment tI any body OI men, and should be exercised with great caution, ana on after due and putIrut IuquIry into all those fac and cIrcum- stanCt .a uur understanding Ut which VII. euaul- you Co aIm mister your office lb such mann T bs Go result Co the pubic -O O and perpeirate oluJustlce on the corporations whose property and business I, thus taken out Ot their hands and con Ld-d to yOur ,ltcla! rt CuIatiOu. Iu tn: cUunectiou, I venture Co remind yOuI honorable b dy that nothing will more certainly frustrate tue ol j-cI which the framtr= of our Cons tItutIOn had m VI VI thau nasty Cr lll-corsIdertd action upon yuur par- IT the tarii which you are called upon IU frame sLal he unjust and tyranuical iu its provisions toward the raIir' ad cOTpO- ratIous, while the injury Co the cOrpOra- tions w4ll De for he tune irreparable, II will be uuly temporary; on the other hand, it will inevitably result in check ing, If uot preventing, for long period of tune Co follow, any further legislative interference SIth or reguatiOn of raII road management. h other words, an abuse of any powers tO ibe injury of the railroads WIil inevitably result tO the disadvantage of the people. UndOubt- edly, the conveutiOu that framed tue Constitution from which You derive your powers contained many extremists, whose ayowed purpose was to act harsb- ly and even uriustly tO railroad and O Der transportation companies; yet the people wh1 adopted the instrument had DO such object 10 view. The purpose of every honest citizen who voted [ T the Constitution, and made it the organic law Oi the Sta;e, Was e. provide body of men who wOuld do full aud complete iustlce, so far as their ability extended between shippers and carriers. II 1t had been proclaimed m advance Uf the vote on this instrument, that it's Inten.iO was t1 confer power upou tbree Com m~sIoutrs ot the State uf California tp coufiscate the property oi any railroad corporation, iJ k needless for me to re mind you that sUch power never would have been conferred, the COnstitu ton would not have been adopted. All that the people of Califurnia ask of yon k that you will approach the cousidera- ton of the questions which are eontided to you ID H calm and judicisl spirit that you will not determine the questions, or any of them, intrusted to you by the Constitution, UGtil you have that sufli cieut evidence with every we'll regulated and impartial jI ge insists upon having before be will pass upon the rights or interest of his fellow citizens. It iS hardly necessary for me Co suggest Co gentle men of your ,XuerIeuCe and learn ing in the law, that jurisdiction means hearing and dstermInatIon,-nt't determination without bearing; and I venture To say, that any action on the part of your board, which shall proceed upon any other theory than that of
 RIGHT AND JUSTICE
 Founded upon a sniff 'iency ot legal evil dence, will not receive the appreciation of those whom It k proposed to serve by srch action. In sober second thought of the people of CUr state may always be relied uror in taciutrr. sts Of justice and good order; and any officer, no matter whether entrusted with eE-cutIvr legis- tive or judicial functions, vLo shall he moved by superzeryiceabie zeal m the suppOsrd interests Df tbe people, or from my motiv7 to perpetrate an injustice against the property or rChts of any one DO matter wLethert corporation or an inliviinal will find his cnst th1t be has mistaken the t mper oi those wht m he has affected to serve.
 There IS "burniug miner in Dakota that gives off so sulpLurnus an 0dor that it would seem at first thought that the heat is due Co the decomposition of sul- phiies. But the glow k red: little sul-