Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1883-03-08
Aa,lraster f,teuige,lrsr.
1nUnspAY BvEanao. MARCH 9. 1883

28JIca8IEI fItIElll8EluxLs
.1UnspAY EVENING, MARCH 8. 1883.
For Charity's Sake.
We understand, from the debate on the
fee PASS bill, that Senator Stewart, and
khoee senators favoring the enforcement
e the constitution in this regard who
unite with him in opposing Senator
Cooper's amendment permitting the
IsDue Of free passes for charitable uses,
40 20 upon the ground that the constitu-
lion forbids such an exception and that
they will not vote for an unconstitutional
provision. Neither should they; but
they should be very sure indeed that the
constitution does forbid railroad cor
poration to exercise charity before they
incorporate the prohibition in the law
II seems clear to us that the constitution
does no such thing. 1t says that no
transportation company "shall grant
free passes or passes at a discount =
but that declaration must be in
tslligently construed by the Leg
islature. 1t is its duty, quite as
much as it is that of the judiciary, to
Give effect to the obvious meaning OF
the constitution, and not to stick at it's
letter when to do so would clearly do
violence to the spirit. Certainly the
sweeping worIs Of the constitution
would forbid the issue by railroad COM
panies of tickets at discount; for a
ticket is pass if it is not then the
constitution does not prohibit free tick
cts: and 80 it's mandate is nullified at
once.
No one in sound mind, we suppose, will
maintain that the constitution was in
tended to forbid railroad companies to
sell tickets to the general public at any
discount they see fit. 1t is their com
mon practice, and entirely unobjection-
able when there is no unfair discrimina.
tion in its exercise; when there is no
favored class and when every one under
like conditions can obtain tickets on
like terms. The companies sell their
tickets at discount Oh business princi.
ples. They make special terms to asso
Citations. or to enterprising men who
desire to get up excursions. They make
one discount for the FIRST hundred tick
cts, a larger one for the second hundred
and so on. Does the Legislature con
template prohibiting this method OF
doing business I? We imagine not. II
the members are fit for their places they
will frame law to carry out this prcvi'
sion of the constitution which will leave
it entirely clear that transportation com
panies have full liberty to sell theiI
tickets at such discounts as they please
from their regular rates, provided thai
they make no distinction among persons
in their issue, and show to no man ol
men any special favor.
And if the Legislature is not only al
lowed, but required by its duty to intelli
gently except from the apparent prohibi
tion of the constitution the issue o1
railroad tickets at discount for com
mercial purposes, why may it not bt
similarly commanded to declare it to b
lawful to issue tickets or passes-w:
care not by which name the paper j
called-at discount, or wholly without
price, for charitable purposes ? This w
should very much like to know, if there
is a senator wise enough to find it out.
We know of no law that ever prohib
tied the exercise of charity by those in
sound mind. There is a statute which
prohibits men near the gates of eternity
from leaving their wealth to charitable
institutions, but that law had a reason
able foundation, since it aimed to pre-
vent undue influence upon men at ;
time when their strength Of mind wa
most probably not at par.
Who would think that the constitu
tion prohibits charity by railroads
No one. Senator Stewart declares til
to be so plain that he thinks it unneces
sary to embody the declaration in thu
law. How then would that declaration
be unconstitutional if so embodied il
the law Is it not a gross contradiction
in Senator Stewart to maintain that il
would?
Does any one say that the constitution
does not prohibit charity by a railroad
in prohibiting free passes for charitable
objects, because the companies coul,
give the money to buy the tickets ? Blu
is not that giving free ticket +? Does
not the money go to the company-oui
of one pocket right into the other
And is it not well known prin
ciple of the law that what can
not be done directly may no
be done indirectly. The law does no
countenance evasions. Eithe, a trans
portation company may issue free passe:
in charity or it may not in any way de-
vote its carrying facilities to charitable
uses.
We abhor the declaration that tht
constitution of Pennsylvania forbidE
charity, and we hope that the Legisa
ture of Pennsylvania will see to it tha
no such charge may be brought against
the state. If the constitution is ambig
uous let the lawmakers make its mean
ing plain in the statute, so that thos,
who run may read. And let them takt
fheir intel1ioenca as their Onif1a in ,.on