The St. Johns herald., 1889-03-21
That Extraordinary Decision.

OI1, Ilic AtldlltIC dilu dCiHC iSdl4- road Company, Apache County has received black eye.
 This is peculiarly unfortunate for our people just at this time, and we regard it as excessively signi6- cant, that the blow should come from the hands of Democratic Jus tices, who are just on the verge of retirement to private life. The suit for collection Of the taxes due the people from the Atlantic and Pa cific Railroad Company, for the year 1887, was tried at a special called term of the District Court in April, 1888. The statute gives the Judge the power, whenever public justice demands 1t, to call a special term of court for the trial of civil and criminal cases, and for the transaction of civil and criminal business generally, and this call was made, published and filed strictly according to law.
 Yet Judges Barnes and Porter re- verse the judgment for the single technical reason, that a judgment in such a case can only be rendered at term ot court specifically pro- vided for by name and date in the code-that is, in Apache County, "on the 1st Monday in July" In other words, you can try, convict and hang a man, and have sent numbers of them to the peniten- tiary at called terms, but when you go to collect $2 tax due on his burro, you must wait until the 1st Monday in July.
 We are no lawyer, but to common sense sort of folks, it seems utterly ridiculous-the sheerest hair-split- ting, resulting in fearful conse- quences to the poor counties.
 This complicated revenue law came from Illinois. In its early history it received a very unreason- able and strict construction. In 1872 1t was amended, and as amend ed was adopted by us. Since its amendment, from the Thatcher case in 70 Illinois, it has been liberally construed by the Supreme Court of that State, and it's early decisions have been abrogated to avoid just such technical assininity. Yet our wise Judges, go away back to 14 Illinois to find legal legs to stand on, and ignore what that Court has said from @ to 122 Illinois to date Verify going back to the dark ages of necromancy and technical jug gling to find wisdom and justice But as long as Apache county can raise a dollar, and find competent attorneys to work for her, she pro poses to fight for her rights and the dues of the people; and never, un- til the Supreme Court of the United States has said that the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad is not liable to taxes will we give up the battle When the day of reckoning does come, and the Atlantic and Pacific people do have to settle, as we are confident 1t will come, then Judges Barnes and Porter, we can laugh al your profound technical skill in finding pretexts for railroad protec- ton.
 The vicious feature of the de cision is, that it decides nothing it furnishes no light as to what they think we ought to do in the future but finds little teChnicalico of the law behind which the Atlantic and Pacific can hide.
 It was due to the people of these three northern counties to decide all of the case on it's merits, and not thus trife with the most essentia. exercise of government.
 We believe the people have re solved, that as long as the pool man, as the price of living here has to pay tax on his burro, the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad Com, pany, if it intends to run through this county, must bare it's share O-