St. Paul daily globe., 1888-08-29
Judge Fairall Continues the
Injunction Against Iowa's
Railway Commission.
The Commission Appeals the
Case to the Supreme
Court.
Greenway Submits His Rail-
way Scheme to the Mani
toba Legislature.
Passenger Agents Indorse the
Agreement Made by West
ern Lines.

iowa CITY, 10, Aug. 2S.-Judge
Fairall to-day, sitting as chancellor,
filed his opinion in the case Of the Iowa
railways against the Iowa railway COM
missioners, and in the test case of the
Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific railway
commissioners, to restrain them from
putting into effect the schedule of
rates prepared by the commissioners
in pursuance to the recent law
of the Iowa legislature. The
Judge gives an opinion of great
length and sustains the injun ction. He
goes into the history of railway legisla-
tion and quotes from many authorities
to sustain his position. Firs9' he con-
siders the question of the jurisdiction
of the defendants. and then whether
the state is such accessory party as
precedents assuming jurisdiction of
the case. The point is decided
that the court has jurisdiction
under the rule which authorizes
actions against officers in their Of
ficial capacity whether to arrest or di-
rect their official actions by injunction
Or mandamus where such suits are au-
thorlZed by law and the act be done or
omitted is purely ministerial. in the
performance or omission of which the
plaintiff has legal interest, and these
may be maintained even though the
state may be directly affected thereby.
As to the jurisdiction of the court
OF the subject matter of the action,
this is sustained ON the ground
that while the. commissioners are
authorized to exercise a discretion in
fixing the rates, yet when they fix such
rates too low that the earnings are too
low to enable plaintiff to pay fixed
charges and Operrting expenses, then
their acts
CONTRAVENE THE SPIRIT
OF the statute, which requires rates to
be reasonable and just and is in viola
ton OF the constitutional pro-
visions which entitle the common car
rlerS to a reward for their services.
The court further holds that the
title OF authority of tire legislature is
between rates which are compensatory
and those which are not compensatory a
court OF equity has the authority to in
quire into the matter. This is based on
the rights of such court to control act
ion OF public officers, aud to prevent
them from acting in violation
of law. The chancellor holds that
in view of the numerous pros
ecution which must result for
a violation of the schedule rates, the
heavy judgments for damages and pen
altles and the liability to criminate
prosecutions and the liability of the Of
hcers OF the companies to fine and i'm
prlSonment, that under the doctrine of
the preventing of multiplicity of such
the court has jurisdiction. That the OBJ
lections tnat a court Of equity has no
jurisdiction to
RESTRAIN A CRIMINAL. PROSECUTION
is not well taken under facts stated and
the prayer of the petition. The court
says III conclusion: ''There is line
between rates which are compensatory
to the carrier and those which are not,
and on principal as well as authority
when complaint is made Of an injury to
private rights by the acts of public
officials as alleged in this case, it is as
In all other alleged infringements of
such rights the duty of judicial tribu-
nails to investigate and determine the
very right of the matter, whether it in
wolves the validity of a statute or the le-
gallty OF the acts of Office Hereunder.
While the dissolution of an INDUCTION is
left to the discretion of court
or chancellor. 1t is well-settled
rule that in cases where the
right to the injunction is in great
doubt, and the effect of vacating it
would be to leave plaintiff remediless in
case of final success, the rule is to con-
tinue the injunction. Governed by the
rule. the motion in this case to vacate
the existing injunction is overruled, to
which ruling defendants except" The
Iowa commissioners appealed to-day to
the supreme court.