Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-11-12
cLA1ns AGAINsr RAILWAYS
What is Demanded and What Is Ac-
eppted.

In full all the claims iOr damages 10
property and person which are pre-
scented TO them each year few, II any,
Of them would pay dividends, and the
most Of them would become bankrupt
very speedily. I'll Is essential TO the
very solvency Of railway corporations
that they resist the payment Of claims
Of doubtful legality. The house which
feeds every person who applies for a
meal will constantly have more
and more tramps to feed and the
railway company which does not care
fully scruiinize the legality of every
demand made upon 1t for the settle
ment Of claims for injuries to persons
and damages TO property would soon
be financially swamped by the ever
increasing number and amount Of
sucn demands. an easy good nature
which. in tue case Of doubtful claims,
favOrs the claimant because he Is not
wealthy or because the amount in
volved is small is improper for two
good reasons. First, because such a
policy would cause claims TO null
tiply like flies In harvest and, second
ly, because the funds thus needlessly
lavished belong TO the owners of the
railway and not 10 the official who
filings them out royalty to the hungry
crowd. Perhaps IL Is because the own
ere of railways In this country have
not yet properly asserted their owner
ship, but 1t Is certainly true that the
public does not clearly realize the fact
that our railways belong to private
citizens and that TO obtain money
from railway corporation 10y
means of fraudulent or doubtful
claim is In no respect different, legally
or morally, from pluudering the treas
ury of business or manufacturing
firm or individual by similar means.
fla claim against a railway Is at all
doubtful II IL the duty as well as the
right of the law department of the
railway to let the courts decide whether
or not it shall be paid And in
deciding whether or not TO leave
IT tn the arbitrament Of the
law the wealth OF. poverty of the
claimant cannot be considered. He
may not be financially able TO endure
the expense OF litigation, but that fact
certainly does not affect the question
NJ TO whether his claint is just OF un-
just. III IL is not just claim the claim
agent or the law department of the
railway corporation have no right to
use the money of the owners of the
railway to pay 1t.
The chief encouragement for the
prosecution of fraudulent or doubtful
claims against railways of late years
has been that juries would almost in-
varlably bring in verdict against the
railway company, no matter how little
support the claim had in evidence or
law. The so called granger excite
ment winch followed the financial
crisis of 1878 made 1t almost impossible
for a railway company TO obtain a
verdict, no matter how evidently
Just it's defense might be. Jurors
violated their oaihs and ignored the
| instructions OF the court almost as a
matter of course. The consequence
was that the prosecutions OF claims
! against railways became almost Il rec
| ognized industry. descriptions men
| In hundreds of cases would present de
mands, thinking that the railway com
pany would settle them by paying /
email percentage of the claims rather
than undergo the annoyance of 1
trial, verdict for the full amount
/ appeals from one to another OF th'
higher courts and perhaps secont
trial after final reversal. tits needles
to say that such claims would he "takeI
on sharesn by alleged lawyers man!
of them men who would hardly dar
to try a Gaze In n court of record, bu
who belong to the lowest class OF petit
foggers In the courts Of justices of tn
peace. They really intend to comprC
mise the claims which they presen
and rely upon the dislike of real Law
! yers for such litigation for the
chances 90 settle and pocket whatevt
small percentage OF the demand the
may obtain,
In this connection some figures. flu
! nished from the general solicitors o
: lice OF a great railway running ont
: Chicago, will be OF interest The al
: gregate OF claims for damage TO freigl
1 and for personal injuries annually pr
! sented for settlement to that Office
G about 100000 OF these about p,
q cent are absolutely fraudulent al
u are entirely dlsregarded. OF the !
Q naming 9h per cent, about 30 p
& cent, are settled for aud paid, b.
In large nisjority of cas-
the amount claimed Is nc least fl
times That which the claimant eNpec
TO receive aud hpally accept. c
about 90 per cent. of the claims whit
ie are refused suit Is brought aud lie
s. than per cent, Of these suits are 81
"a cessfu In the supreme court. In sui
!. for personal injuries in which Il
damages laid amounted TO 500 600 Il
than $4,000 was actually recovered
Judgments,
That people are beginning To recov
N from that insanity of blatant ign
At rance and patent injustice az regar
= railway corporations which was one
= the marked features of the 'grang
80 movement our exchanges give grn
ie flying proof. IL is becoming not u
a. usual TO read that a Jury has decided
/. suit ia favor of q railroad. But It
- still necessary for the legal depa
- ments of our railways to exercise CO
slant and extreme vigilance, II
:, gentleman Go whom we are indebt
- for the figures above given, and WI
a. for many years has had the manal