The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-05-11
ALIVELY RAILROAD WAR
The Junction Company's
Effort to Condemn the
Pennsy1vania's New
Yard at Mt.
Pleasant.
TWO HEARINGS THIS MORNING.
Judge Knapp Decides to Appoint
Commissioners, and Then Listens
to an Application for Stay.

Proceedings were continued before
Judge Knapp this morning by counsel
for the National Dock and New Jersey
Junction Railroad Company to have com
missioners appointed to condemn lands of
the Pennsylvania Railroad Company.
The applicants were represented by Law
yers Emery, Thompson and Dickinson,
and Messrs. Vredenburgh and Irwin
represented the Pennsylvania Company.
This case is now in the Supreme Court
on a writ of certiorari and the proceed
ings today were unusual. The road to be
constructed will be built half O mile in
length, but the decision will
determine whether the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company has the right to take
land from citizens under the general rail
road law, while any other road cannot
take any of its lands. The junction Rail
road desires to pass beneath the Pennsyl-
vania Company's tracks, and for that rea-
son the Pennsylvania Company has
brought the matter into court.
A COMMISSION TO CONDEMN.
In his argument Counsellor Vreden-
burgh claimed that General Samuel Ster-
ling, president of the junction Road, and
General Sewell, counsel of the Pennsyl-
vania Company. had agreed to delay the
matter until they could hold conference.
This General Sterling, who was in court,
denied
1t was also said that the proposed road
would run through the proposed yard of
the Waverly and New York Railroad
Company, which ground Judge Knapp
had already appointed commissioners to
condemn.
1t was also claimed by Counsellor Vre-
denburgh that the contemplated railroad
will not be of sufficient length to be legal
and that the time allotted to construct
the road has expired.
The Court decided that Commissioners
should be appointed next Saturday.
A SECOND APPLICATION.
When these proceedings were ended
Judge Knapp went down to the Chancel-
lor's chambers and opened court there.
The first matter brought before him
treated the spectators present to the novel
sight of the Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany posing as the injured victim of a
soulless railroad corporations land grab.
Ex-Governor Bedle applied for stay of
all proceedings in the matter until the
certiorari proceedings had been disposed
of. He read affidavits from Chief Engi-
neer Brooks and Superintendent Craw-
ford setting forth that the Pennsylvania
people have at great expense prepared the
territory sought by the junction Railroad
for car yard in connection with their
plans for elevating their tracks through
Jersey City; that it is the only property
they can acquire for that purpose, and if
the junction Railroad is permitted to use
the property as they propose, the place
will be ruined as q yard
In supporting his motion Governor
Bedle contended that if the stay was not
granted the Commissioners would con-
denim the land; the junction people would
make q tender of the amount of the award
and enter into possession of the property,
tothe manifest injury of the Pennsylvania
company.
Judge Knapp took the papers and re-
served his decision.
Read David the Harper" story of
Welsh life. in tOnlOTT0lD'S SEMDA Y