Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-12-20
LIVE NATIONAL NEWS.

IuYE NdllONAL NEWS.
Some Important Decisions in the Supreme
Court-The Harper Case Settled by
Justice Shiras-The Ohio and Indiana
Tangle Slaughtered Out-A New RumOr
About Cleveland.
WASHING GToN, Dec. 19-The Important
case of Henry L. Ycsler, plaintiff, in error,
versus the Board of Harbor Line Commits
sioners, of the State OF Washington, involv-
ing harbor rights of great value along the
water front of Seattle, was to-day dismissed
by the United States Supreme Court for want
OF jurisdiction. Yeslcr is the owner of
wharf property at Seattle, and sought by
writ of prohibition to restrain the State
Board of Harbor Line Commissioners from
changing the harbor lines, it being the pnr-
pose of the commission to so locate the har-
Dor lines that they would include within
them 1esler's property. Yesler claimed
that this action would amount to a depriva-
tion of property without due process of
law, contrary to the provisions OF the Constr
tuition. The Court below decided against him,
holding that as against the State the l1ttoral
owner, simply as such owner, can assert no
valuable rights below high tide. The Su:
preme Court dismissed Yesler's appeal
chiefly on the ground that the affidavit pre-
sented was so detective as not to fairly raise
the Federal question. Chief Justice Fuller
announced the decision.
TODAY the Supreme Court Strengthened
out complication in the new Circuit Court
of Appeals for the Ohio and Indiana circuit
by designating Chief Justice Fuller to tenn
porary duty in the Seventh circuit, to which
Justice Harlan is permanently assigned. 1t
denied the application OF counsel on each
side TO bring up direct from the Circuit
Court and without trial in the newly created
Circuit Court of Appeals, the suit between
the Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Rail-
road Company and w. Il. Mexican, arising
out of the railway operations of Henry S.
Ives q few years ago. This is the case i'll
act, making it impossible TO organize the
Appeals Court without the presence of JUS
tice Harlan or a substitute justice.
THE bill increasing the pensions of pen
sioners of the Mexican War was to-day
passed by the House.
THE United States Supreme Court to-day
rendered a decision against the trustees of
E. L. Harper, the Cincinnati grain plunger
and defaulting President of the Fidelity Ma
tional Bank in q suit brought against him
by Preston & McHenry, grain brokers, of
Chicago, to compel Harper and his associ-
ates to pay their unpaid subscriptions to the
capital stock of the Cincinnati Columbus
and Hooking Valley Railroad Company, in
order to satisfy the judgments OF Preston,
McHenry and others against the company,
which judgments remained unsatisfied after
proceedings at law. The court. in an opin-
ion by Justice Shiras, says that the evidence
connected with Harper'S organization of
the company lully justify the opinion of
the court below that it "was grossly fraudu.
lent from first to last, without a single hon.
est incident or redeeming feature" and
that the generalization of the property
transferred to the railway company by Har-
per in pretended payment of subscriptions
to the c6 pital stock w;ls SO gross as to clear
ly entitle bona fide creditors to enforce &C.
tua1 payment of the subscriptions. The
Court then considers Harpers defense that
Preston, McHenry ct a. were not bona Tide
creditors. His allegation that Preston and
McHenry,. when they agreed TO take the
company's bonds in payment Of Harper's
Indebtedness to them, were fully cognizant
of the mode of organization OF the company
and privY to it, Is not supported by the evil
dence. 1t also holds that the evidence like
wise fails to support Harpers averment
that his original indebtedness to Preston
and McHenry, in payment OF which they
took the railway bonds, arose out of a gam
bling wheat deal on the Chicago Board OF
Trade.
EX-ATToRNEY GENERAL GARLAND to-
day moved the United STATES Supreme Court
to advance the case of Alexander F. Smith
VS.. Eddy b. Townsend. The determination
of this case will affect title to a large part of
the most valuable lands in Oklahoma.
The ''close, personal friend" of the
President-elect is abroad again, and reports
to-day that Mr.. Cleveland is now in iavor of
an extra session. This will be news to the
Senators and members of the House, to
whom he has expressed himself to the con-
trary. 1t is probable, however, that the
ultimate opinion of Mr. Cleveland will not
be issued, even to his ''close, personal
friends" until he is nearer the executive
chair than he is at this moment.
THE Senate adjourned soon after assem-
bling to-day upon motion of Senator Cor
man, OF Maryland, as mark of respect to
the memory of the late Senator Gibson, OF
Louisiana. In his prayer the chaplain
touchingly appealed for blessing from on
high for Mr.. Blaine. In the House, to-day,
it was manifest that the Christmas holidays
were rapidly approaching. The unoccupied
seats tar outnumbered those that were oc-
cupied, but in the cloak rooms there were
little groups OF members chatting, smoking
and relating stories.
The United States Supreme Court to-
day affirmed the Judgment OF the Circuit
Court of the United States for the Northern
district of Ohio in the case OF George J. Nc
Gourkey, trustee, appellant, VS.. the Toledo
and OHIO Central Railway Company. This
was an attempt on the part of holders OF
car trust certificates of the road named to
have their rights aujudged to be paramount
to those of the first mortgage bondholders
and to compel the performance of the lease
between McGourkey, as trustee, and the
Ohio Central Railway Company for the
rental of rolling stock by the sale of said
stock and the satisfaction of their claims.
The Ohio Central was sold by order of the
court for the foreclosure of a mortgage for
$S, 900, 600. was bid in by the bondholders and
reorganized under the name of the Toledo
and Ohio Central Railway Company. The
rolling stock was sold along with the other
property, and McGourkey's proceeding was
in the nature of an intervention to secure
the cars, locomotives, etc. Justice Brown
delivered the Courts opinion. Chief JUS
tice Fuller and Justice Brewer Qissented.
In order to overcome the decision of
Judge Walter Q. Gresham in the United
States Circuit Court for the Northern. dis
trict of Illinois, declaring unconstitutional
that part of the interstate commerce law
which gives the commission authority to
compel witnesses to answer questions, Mr.
Wise, of Virginia, Chairman OF the Commit
tee of Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
to-day introduced q bill defining the author
itY OF the commission in the matter The
bill is generally similar to that introduced
last week by Senator Cullom for the same
purpose.