The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-08-26
4 READING SETBACK.
The New Jersey Central No Longer
Under us Control.
THE TRANSFER DECLARED ILLEGAL

tercstS.
TRENTON, N. j., Aug. 26.-Chancel
lor McGill's decision in the case of tn,
state against the railroads forming tn
Reading coal combine was filed at
late hour yesterday afternoon.
The states contention that the leas,
of the Central to the Port Reading is il
legal, that the tri-partite agreement i:
in violation Of the law, and that tn.
combine is against the policy Of the
state, because it tends to the monopoly
Of a public necessity, are all upheld and
the preliminary injunction prayed for is
granted.
In the course of his decision the chan.
cellor says corporate bodies that engage
IN public occupations are created by the
state upon the hypothesis that they will
be a public benefit. They enjoy priv
ileges that individuals cannot have.
While the state confers special priv
ileges, it at the same time exacts from
them duties which also tend to the pub
lie welfare. Such corporations hold
their powers in trust for the public veal
When, therefore, it appears that such
corporation is unmindful,of its plain
duty and acts prejudically to the public
in order to make undue gains and profits
for its stockholders, it uses it's power in
manner not contemplated by the law
which confers them.
An Illegal Transfer.
The chancellor takes up the law of
OF 1885, which prohibits the leasing of
domestic to foreign corporations with
out legislative sanction, and declares it
to be constitutional. 1t follows, he says,
that the lease to the Port Reading was
made not only without legal sanction,
but in defiance of an expressly prohib-
itory statute, The chancellor says the
attorney general on behalf of the peo-
pie, may invoke the power of the court
TO restrain further operations under the
lease. 1t is well settled, he says, that
where a corporate excess of power tends
to public injury or to defeat public pol
icy, 1T may be restrained in equity at
his suit. He holds further that the at.
torney general has the election, in a
case of this kind, to proceed at law to
forfeit the charter, or in equity for a
restraint Of the excess.
There are peculiar features in the
transaction that evince public danger
much more serious than appears in the
mere transfer of corporate duties to per-
fofmance by foreign corporation. The
parties interested constitute two of the
six great anthracite coal carriers of the
country. Through the leasing of the
Ohio Valley three of these are controlled
by the combination. The proof shows
that there are localities in the state
which formerly had the advantage of
competition between these allied roads,
but now are subject to the monopoly
which this lease affords.
The Coal Monopoly.
The answers deny that either the
Philadelphia and Reading or the Cen
tral owns any coal lands or produces or
deals in coal. That is true, but at the
same time it is admitted that the Read
ing owns a majority OF the capital stock
of the Lehigh and Wilkesbarre Coal
company, What is this but disguise
and evasionT Whatever may be the
nominal ownership or legal title the
railroad company stands as the owners
Of the coal land in this court.
The chancellor says that while the
denials of this may be literally true,
such allegations, without explanation,
and in the face of the facts adverted to
SAVIOR of an evasion which disentitles
them to that force which is usually ac-
corded to the denials of responsive
answers. =..5=.
Upon preliminary hearings here, the
chancellor continues, we have great coal
dealers complaining that they are not
sufficiently paid for the product of their
mines, combining, SO that already they
contr | more than one-half of the coal
fields upon which this state depends for
fuel and looking to the cooperation of
the remaining anthracite coal producers
to effect a change in the price of their
output, SO that they may have more
satisfactory returns from their invest
ments. To say that these conditions do
not tend to disastrous monopoly in
coal would be an insult to intelligence.
1t is possible that such a monopoly may
be used as the defendants suggest to in
troduce economies and cheaper coal,
but 1t does violence to our knowledge of
human natuge to expect such a result.
dangerous to Public Interests.
In conclusion the chancellor says:
"The commodity in which these com.
panies deal ie a necessary of life in this
state. 1t is the principal fuel of its
homes and factories. The slightest in
crease in its price is felt by population
of hundreds of thousands of persons,
for their necessity compels them to pay
that increase. If once complete
monopoly is established by the Gsu true
tion of competition, whether that be
through lease or cooperation, the pro.
moters and sharers in it may realize
whatever price their cupidity sugges is.
The chancellor defines the bounds of
the injunction which he grants, saying.
II will continue the present injunction
to final hearing, adding TO it, however,
the further direction that the defend
ants, their officers and agents do desist
from further performing and carrying
into effect the lease and tri-partite
agreement, and that the Port Reading
and the Philadelphia companies,do de-
sist and refrain from continuing to con-
troll the property aud franchise of the
Central and from otherwise intermed-
ding Herewith, and that the CentraS
do refrain from permitting the Port
Reading and the Philadelphia and
Reading to use, control or operate its
roads and franchises, and that the Cen
trail do again resume control of its prop
ertY and franchises, and performance OF
oil its corporate franchises"
President McLeod's Statement.
PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 26.-President
Mcleod, IN a statement in reference to
the Trenton injunction, says: "This can
not have the effect of changing or disar.
ranging our traffic arrangements in any
way. These arrangements are so OBJ
viously advantageous to both parties
that neither could afford to interrupt or
change them. The only difference will
be that the business will be conducted
under the immediate direction of Mr.
Maxwell, as president of the Central,
instead of the Port Reading"
NEWARK, N j., Aug. 2G,-William
Baldwin, David Williams and man
known as Jim" were driving across
the tracks of the Greenwood Lake rail
road, at Mountain View. when an ex-
press train struck the wagon and hurled
the occupants many feet in the air.
The horse was crushed to shapeless
mass and the wagon knocked to pieces.
The three men were hurled distance
of thirty feet, and We're unconscious
when picked up. Baldwin and Will
Jams We're taken to the Mont Clair hos
pital, and they will probably die.