The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1884-05-08
"UNCONsTITUTIoNAL AND
VOID"
Tho Railroad Supervision Act 80
Declared by Judge Hill.

atcd by the Legislatures of the States ot
Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and
Kentucky, as Il continuous and inter
State line of railroad communication he
tween New Orleans and Cairo, and con-
Meeting there with the Illinois Central
Railroad, thus afinrding National high
way from the Gulf on the South to the
Lakes on the North.
That the purpose of the United States.
of the States and of the people cOutribut-
ihg to the construction of this railroad
by donations of land and stock suhScrip-
tiOus. was to create national and inter
State channel of commercial cOmmuniCa-
ton.
That the charter of the Chicago. st.
Louis II New Orleans Railroad Company.
as enacted 10y the Legislature of the state
of Mississippi provides that the said Com
paIy shall have all the rights, privileges,
| franchises and powers granted to the
| Mississippi Central Railroad Company, or
! to the New Orleans, 81. Louis x Chicago
| Railroad Company. The 49th section OF
! the charter of the Mississippi Central
| Railroad Company, is as follows: That
the president and directors I've and they
are hereby authorized 10 adopt and cstab-
/ liSh such tariff of charges f'r the trans
portation of persons and property rs they
may think proper and the same to alter
and change at pleasure.
That the act of the Legislature of Mis-
SiS>ippi of March llth, 1884, creating Il
/ Railroad Commission, gives the Commits
Soners power to fix and regulate the tar
! ills of all the railroads in the State, pro-
| hihitS any observation-disclosures and atiiNcS pen
| altieS for a violation of the act or of the
| tariffs as fixed 10y the Commissioners.
That these Facts are admitted as true
in this proceeding.
The Court held:
That the policy of the act of the
Mississippi Legislature creating the Rail
road COmlriSSin Is not Il question for the
consideration of the Court, and does not
in any way enter into the discussion. The
only question is, is the act in violation OF
the Constitution of the United States, o:
of the state of Mississippi
THAT the Courts will not declare a
statue in conflict with the Constitution
on slight implication and vague couiect-
IRE, but the judicial mind must be clearly
satisfied of the repugnaucy ;iwhen So salts
fred it is its duty to pronounce il void.
THAT the act of the Legislature of the
State of Mississippi, incorporating thu
Chicago. st. Louis aud New Orleans Rail
road Company. and empowering the
President and Directors ot the Company
to fix and regulate its taritlS,and the sam,
time tn alter and change at pleasure, is 4
| contract between tn" SGatr of Mississippi
and the Railroad Company, and is pro.
tectcd by the Constitution of the United
States. which declares that 30 State %hal
pass amy law imrairing the obligation ot
contracts; that this constitutional provis
ions is the safeguard of people, property
and corporations: that charter granted
by State is a contract within the pur
| view of the Constitution of the lnitet
States, and protected by it except in mat.
trrS of police such as public morals, hraltl
and safety. is sustained by an uubrokcI
line of decisions. State and Federal, from
the Dartmouth College ease to the present
time. and the principle was recognized II
the Granger cases in 81 /. s. and in Rag
.lcs vs. Illinois TO- /. :. and repeatedly
/ hv tn" supreme Court of Mississippi.
That the act creating the defendants q
Railroad Commission. aud giving then
the power to fix and regulate the tariff,
on all the railroads in the state. violates
. the contract between the State and the
Railroad as expressed in its charter, and
in this particular ami in others, is uucon-
stitrtional and void.
That the Chicago, st. Louis and New
( Orleans Railroad is an Interstate railroa,
, ANA constructed for the uses and purno
Sos of commerce among the States; thai
! the transportation of persons and freight
is commerce. and tie regulation of it he,
longs exclusively to Congress. That thi,
| power of Congress is exclusive as to til
transportation of persons and property. as
to wharvcS, pilotaGr, AMI such like do
nestle matters, the States in the absence
of legislation Ivy Congress may contu
and regulate; that the Supreme court OF
the L. s. in Hall vs.. DcSui, % L. ), de
clarcd an act of the Legislature of L.onsi
ana, which attempted to rcculat" the
status of passengers transported wholly
within the State, a. being Il regulation of
commerce, and as to transportation on the
! Mississippi river, uncOnStitut'o nal and
! void In Expatcr Boyer, 100 L. $. the
| supreme Court decided that canal,
! wholly in one State. but forming Il line of
/ communication passing through lnole
StarcS than one, is within the admiralty
jurisdiction and exclusively under the
power of Congress, Judge McCrary, in the
case of KarSon vs.. Illinois Central Rail
road Central Law JournaD held that a
statute of Iowa, fixing the maximum rate
to he charged by railroad companies for
carving freight within the State. is inva-
lid in so far as by its terms it applies to
through shipments within the State to
points without, because it is a regulation
of commerce beyond the State. and if up
held would cradle the State to dscrim-
nate against other States: in the recent
case in Tennessee, against the Railroad
Commissioners, the Tennessee act WAS de
clared void as attempting to regulate com
merce among the States, and that the
State had no such power, the power being
exclusive in Congress, and the act was de-
clarrd unconstitutional and void.
That the act of the Mississippi Legis-
lature, and the act supplemented thereto
attempts to regulate transportation he
tween States, and is therefore unconstitu-
tiOnal and void.
"The Court orders an injunction to is
sue to restrain the defendants from. in
any way, interfering with the manage
ment of the Chicago, st. Louis and New
Orleans Railroad.
Bro. n. p. BoNNEY now has the
newSI apcr field AT Summit cntire'v
to himself, having recently bought
ont his partner, Mr.. S. ID. Pur>ell.
He is a growing newspaper nan.
The next thing we hear of him he
will he buying ont the Times-Dcm-
ncrat or New York Herald.