St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-10-13
The CROSSING WARFARE.
What the Writ of Error Sets
Forth.
JUDGE SPRINGER'S BIG BLUFF
De Will Move the Road to st. Paul..
Attorney Smith Will File
an Answer.

The writ of error from the United
States supreme court in the crossing
case" was filed yesterday with the clerk
of the district court. The writ Is
signed by Samuel Miller, senior asso-
ciate justice of the supreme court, and'
reciteS that according to the complain
of the Minneapolis q st. Louis
Railway company, the highest court of
equity in the state of Minnesota
has i'm its decision in the case of the
CITY of Minneapolis VS.. the Minneapolis
& st. Louis railway, made a manifest
error, which will result in great damage
to the defendant; the supreme court OF
Minnesota is therefore commanded to
forward to Washington all the records
and proceedings in the case before the
third Monday Ill October, 1888. A
bond of SuperSedeaS in the sum of
$1,000 is given by the railway CON-
pany, in which it agrees to
prosecute this action in the United
States supreme court and to pay all
costs in case the decision of the state
court is affirmed. The complaint of the
railway company states that the decision
of the supreme court of Minnesota is in
conflict with section Y of article |. and
section | of article XIV of the cOnStitu-
ton of the United States. These sec
lions are as follows:
Sec. 10, Art |: No state shall enter into
any treaty, alliance or confederation: grant
letters of marque and repriSal; com money;
emit bills of credit: make anything but gold
and silver coin tender in payment OF debts;
pass any bill of atlainer, eX post tacto law,
or law impairing the obligations of contracts,
or grant any title of nobility.
Sec l. Art. XIV. All persons born or nat
= IL 4 sodNf 20
the Jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the
Uni,ed STATES and of the state i'll which they
reside. No state shall make or enforce any
law which shah abridge the privileges or i'm
munities of citizens of the United Etates:
nor shall any state deprive any person of
life liberty or property without due process
OF law; nor deny to any person within its jul
risdiction the equal protection of the laws.
1t is alleged in the complaint that if
the single track of the Milwaukee IL st.
Paul Railway company which crosses
Washington avenue at right angle to
the avenue WAS lowered ten feet, as re-
Quired by the decision of the Minnesota
supreme court and segment of a
bridge constructed, the effect would be
the destruction of the railway because
by lowering the track, which was con-
structed seventeen years ago. it would
be necessary to acquire possession of
fifteen feet of land adjoining the fifteen
feet now owned by it. This land is owned
by the Manitoba Railway company, and
consequently cannot be acquired by con-
domination proceedings, and the Mani
toba road has and continues to refuse to
sell the Minneapolis Il st. Louis COM
pany a single foot of this land. 1t fur
Their states that were it possible to ac-
quire this land that the lowering of this
track more than six feet would render
it useless for railway purposes as the
grade would be such that it could not be
operated, but that it could be lowered
six feet without any additional land be-
ing required.
1t is alleged further that it is not le-
gally bound by contract or otherwise to
restore this avenue, so far as 1t has
been impaired, except to its former use
fulnesS. and that this avenue has not
been impaired by the single track of the
Minneapolis IL st. Louis railway which
crosses it, but the impairment is caused
by the great number of switching tracks.
which constitute the Manitoba railway
cOmpany's switching yard, crossing the.
avenue at different angles.
1t is alleged further that the purpose
for requiring the lowering OF this Sill
gle track ten feet is exclusively for the
benefit of the Manitoba Railway COM
pany, in order to afford it convenient
and easy access to its freight houses adj
joining Washington avenue and the
track of the Minneapolis IL St. Louis
Railway company,
1t is further alleged that if its tracks
are lowered between Fourth and Fifth
streets, as reduired by the decision of
the Minnesota court, it will require the
lowering of the Minneapolis Il st. Louis
freight houses, yards and facilities, or
otherwise its railway will be utterly
destroyed and rent i'll twain" This re-
quirement amounts to a taking of the
roads property without compensation
and contrary to the provisions of the
statute.
The further claim is also made that
the Judgment of the state court is in
violation of contract with the city by
which it was granted the right to con-
Struct and operate tracks at the present
grade, and at the end reference is made
to the question of the validity Of certain
statutes passed upon by the state
supreme court. The effect of this
writ will be to stay all proceedings
until something further is heard
from the supreme court. The next
move will be for the city to move to
quash the writ, which motion the Su-
preme court may near any time. Ii the
motion is granted the mandamus issued
yesterday goes int force; if the motion
is denied the case must be retired be-
fore the United States supreme court,
which is at present nearly four years
behind on its cases.
Judge Springer, counsel for the Min
neapOlis d st. Louis Railway company,
returned from Washington yesterday.
and on being Intercepted about the
possible success of his appeal, said: LAS
long as water runs and grass grows the
Manitoba railroad or the city of Mime
apoliS. either separately or together,
shall not cOnfscate the property of the !
Minneapolis 4 st. Louis railroad. They |
will not be robbed either openly or
the guise of opening the streets. |
City Attorney Smith and the district |
court of Hennepin county and the news
papers notwithstanding, He further |
declared the shops and headquarters of !
the company would be moved to St. !
Paul. City Attorney Smith says the
AS filed in the United States
court is full of gross misrepresentation,
and that the city would Immediately go
to work on its answer.
Furnished houses you can get