Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-08-07


| lursments of pleasure, or seduced by evil
example and education. Bolus wa:
none of these; he belonged to higher
| department of the fine arts, and to q
higher class of professors of this sort OF
| belle letters. Bolus was natural liar
| just as some horses are natural paoers
and some dogs natural settlers. For
| tunately, these classes of barnacles
which hang to the profession are very
scarce, and while the ignorant and unin-
| formed cannot appreciate the fact, yet it
is nevertheless true, that lawyers, as a
class, are justly esteemed by their fellow
| citizens the most truthful and honorable
the most unselish and magnanimous
| the most faithful and patriotic citizens
of the country, and into their hands are
confided more trusts that are sacred than
to all of the other professions combined
In history, we find that in all ages q
large per cent. of
THE GREATEST MEN OF THE WORLD
were lawyers. Moses was lawyer, and
the tablets entrusted by divine hands
INTO his keeping are yet alive upon the
statute books of every civilized country
in the world. Daniel was a lawyer, and
his practice of putting the witnesses
under the rule in the case OF Susanna is
still followed in our courts. Paul was a
lawyer, having studied law in the Office
of Gamaliel, and was evidently good
practitioner, for when he took an appeal
to Caesar from the decision of Festus the
practice in that supreme court does
not appear to have been clearly
settled, and there is no record of the
transcript having ever reached Rome
and so along down the line through all
ages, and at all times, the true lawyer
has been found in the front rank, resist
ing the aggressions of power, leading the
advance in all struggles for freedom and
bearing the standard of liberty, law and
justice, wherever civilization has planted
foot upon the earth.
1t weld be pleasing to me to dwell
upon this subject, but duty requires that
l shall present briefly some views upon
the noteworthy changes proposed in
the constitutional amendments.
Among those now being submitted to
the people under a joint resolution of the
last Legislature is what is commonly
known as the "railway commission
amendment, upon which vote is TO be
taken at the general election in Novem-
Der. 1t would be out of place to make
any allusIon to the political phases of the
great question now agitating the public
mind, but as this measure does make
noteworthy change in our organic law
if indeed it makes any change at all,
and as true lawyer never shrinks from
the discussion of any question of law as
such-it is my duty to refer briefly to it.
In the absence of any state constitu-
tional provision, no lawyer would ques-
ton the right of the legislature to pass
Il, tn. Hiok
with the cons titution and laws of the
United States.
By the ancient common law it was I'M
lawful, and forbidden by both church
auG state, to take any interest for the
use of money, but now the interest for
the use of money is regulated by statute
and in this statue a maximum fixed at
- per cent, beyond which the lender
forfeits his entire interest, and for
several hundred years, statutes in Eng
land and in this country since its first set
Element, have been sustained regulating
the charges of common carriers, millers.
ferrymen, inn-keepers, bakers, cabmen,
hack-drivers, ETC..
From the opinion in Mum VS.. Illinois,
"a, U. s. 100, we take the preamble of
statute passed in England as long ago as
regulating the charges of wagoners and
other carriers: "And whereas, divers
wagoners and other carriers by com bina-
tion among themselves, have raised the
price of carrying goods, in many places
to excessive rates, to the great injury of
the trade: Be it, therefore, enacted.
etc. William and Mary oh. u, SEQ.
"a, stat. at large &c. B. 48l.
of RI Of no ctofa
stitution now reads as follows: "Sec.
,. Railroads heretofore constructed, or
that may hereafter be constructed in tn is
state. are hereby declared public high
ways, and railroad companies common
carriers. The legislature shall pass laws
TO correct abuses and prevent unjust dis
elimination and extortion in the rates of
freight and passenger tariffs on the diff
ferent railroads in this state; and from
time TO time pass laws establishing rea-
sonable maximum rates of charges for
the transportation of passengers and
freight on said railroads, ana enforce all
such laws by adequate penalties.
The amendment proposed is as follows:
fSec. 2. Railroads heretofore con-
structed or which NAV hereafter be con-
structed in this state are hereby declared
public highways, and railroads common
carriers. The legislature shall pass laws
to regulate freight and passenger tariffs,
to correct abuses, and prevent unjust
ana extortion In the rates
of freight and passenger tariffs on the
different railroads in this state, and en-
force the same by adequate penalties:
and to the further accomplishments of
these objects and purposes may provide
agencies invested with such powers as
may be deemed adequate and ad-
The legislature deemed 1t wise to
cut off all question upon
grounds by submitting this
the main feature of (which
especially grants to the legislature the
power to regulate freight and passenger |
tariffs, and to provide and establish all |
requisite means and agencies invested |
with such powers as may be deemed
ADEQUATE AND ADVISABLE.
What is the legal effect of this amend |
ment, if adopted? If the legislature |
already has the power proposed to be |
granted, of course the amendment will |
not increase or diminish such power, but |
If the power does not exist under the |
present constitution, it is claimed that a |
9 granted power' to the legislature to |
provide and establish all requisite |
means and agencies will authorize the |
of a railway commission.