The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1892-04-09


to portray the part that he assumes in a
manner calculated to attract the most
favorable criticisms. His supporting
company is said to include number of
players of excellent merit and the entire
production is said to be marked by deal
of perft ctness in every detail.
CAN BE MODIFIED OR REVOKED.
The Legal Aspect of the Street Car Ordin-
ance Discussed.
Sumner w. Ladd read Tuesday night
before the Single Tax league paper on
'"rhe Legal Aspect of the New Street
Car Ordinance" which was in fact dis
oussion of the history and relations exist
ing between the city of Minneapolis and
the street car company. First he aimed
to disabuse the popular mind of the
vague notion, as he termed it, hat a cor
poration has power like the government.
A corporation is mere artificial person
existing by no life of its own, but deriv-
ing it's powers from the people The pri-
mary object is to subserve the interests
of the people.
1.-THE street railway company he said,
''is corporation. It derived it's power
from the city council acting under the
city charter. The council could confer
only such power a. the charter gave.
That is derived from the legislature and
the general laws of the land. That char.
ter gives to the city council power to
license hackmen, draymen, expressmen
and all other persons. engaged in carry
ing passengers All licenses are subject
to regulation and revocation. The
phrase, and all other persons engaged in
carrying passengers, gave the council
power to license the street car company,
but not to grant franchise.
According to the organic law of the
land streets are held in trust and cannot
be given away without limitation as to
time and regulation" In substantiation
of this point Mr.. Ladd read from the re-
ports of the decisions of the supreme
court of New York, of Maryland, of Illi-
nois, of Pennsylvania and of Wisconsin.
A city council is but the trustee and
cannot grant an irrevocable charter.
Perhaps some one will say that the
old ordinance under which the street car
system, was first operated was legalized
by the legislature. They will perhaps
grant that the city council has not the
power to grant a franchise under the
charter, but only to grant license. But
the act of the legislature was retroactive
and courts do not uphold retroactive
legislation. Kent says in his common
law writing that it has been held valid
when conducive to the public welfare.
But provided it does hold, the new Or
dinance of 1890 cannot draw any life
from the old one.
1.-THE ordinance of 1890 under which
the present system is operated ia Ger
tainly mere license. The council could
confer only license. And license can
be modified and regulated.
"But the ordinance itself permits am
pie changes. The clause in section 8,
closing with the words so far as applica
tion in the the regulation Of the lines
permits it. But If it did not, police
rights which pertain to the safety and
welfare of the people are more inviolable
than contracts"
After the reading of the paper it was
open to discussion.
THE DISCUSSION.
The first speaker was NJ. w. Meagher,
another attorney. He regretted that so
few of the 1850 people OF Minneapolis
we're present to hear such an able paper.
It was said that lawyers were the cham
pions of liberty, and the paper just read
was certainly proof of it. Yet he did not
hold all the points Of the paper to be
good law, though many were. Theoreti-
cally surely every point was right. The
people can, under our system, and do
vote away franchises. New York, which
had been quoted, had clause in it's fun
damental law allowing the revocation OF
contracts. Certainly the council had no
power except that conferred by the city
charter. People have right to exercise
the police powers Of the state, but it is
difficult to always determine what they
are. al d u
@. j. Buell. said the principles enunci-
ated in the paper were born II him AN and.
he surely could not criticise il And IN
regard that the assertion that the legis l
lation in regard to the old ortlinan did e
not apply 10 tho new one of 1890 he l1i
some confirmation of this from the com q
spany itself. Two years aegoS II tried 70