The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1893-08-16
VERY IMPORTANT.
How the Courts have EncrOached
upon the Rights of the
People
And are Turning this Nation into
an Oligarchy CT Lawyers Con.
trolled by Corporations.
An Article which Every RefOrmer
Should Read.

most striking and important arti
cles that have appeared for long
time. We regret that we have not
space to get more than extracts
from it, but we shall continue them
from week to week
The article is from the March
April 1892 number of ''The American
Law Review" published at St. Louis,
one of the oldest and most distin-
guished law magazines of this coun-
try. 1t is entitled "Abuses of Cor
porate Privileges" written by Judge
Seymour D. Thompson, Chief editor
of the Review and one of the ablest
lawyers in the West. We want our
readers to remember, while reading
this significant article, that it's bold
and radical utterances are not from
some populist stump orator, but
from Judge and an attorney by
profession. Nothing could indicate
more clearly than this article the
abyss towards which the free people
of this country are advancing.
Nor did the difficulty of degrading
sovereign legislation to the plane
of private contracts at all weigh upon
the minds of the concurring judges.
The court had decided nine years
before that a legislative grant is a
contract within the protection of
the constitution of the United
States. They had at the same time
decided arg,tendo, that such a grant
could not be impeached for fraud,
and they had decided on supposed
case in judgement that it could not
be impeached for fraud as a against
subsequent bona fde purchaser for
value. AS they foresaw, their doc
trine that an act of the legislature
making grant cannot be i'm
peached for fraud, from the very
necessity of the case, has come to be
settled maxim of American juris-
prudence. But every private con-
tract can be impeached for fraud,
both at law and in equity. By these
decisions, then, the legislation of
sovereign State creating grant of
any species of private property
rights, is not only reduced to the
level of private contract, but Is de-
graded beloaU that lerel. Although OBJ
tanned by bribing and corrupting
the temporary tenants of legislative
power, 1t is sanctifed by the Federal con-
stit,hion and endoaced uih Immortality.
For the benefit of the corporal ion
it is not sovereign legislation but
mere contract vesting rights which
cannot be recalled. For the benefit
of the corporation it Is sovereign leg
islation, and hence no contract in
the sense of being improbable for
fraud.
But the iJamy did not stop here.
The court had already decided that
the doctrine extended to a legisla-
tive grant of exemption from taxa
ton; that such a grant, unless vol
unfairly surrendered by the grantees
or their successors was eternal, and
this has come to be the settled doc
trine of the court. And yet this
right of taxation is conceded by that
court and by all other courts, to be
the highest incident of sovereignty
to involve the very right of self
preservation on the part of the
State. Nevertheless it was estab-
lished by this and the preceding de-
cisions that individuals could pur-
chase by bribing the temporary
agent of the people the right, for
themselves and their successors, to
exist forever as an artificial being,
and to enjoy forever exclusive pri-
vileges and franchises purchased in
this way, although these prlvileges IN
volved the surrender by the State of the
highest right pertaining to sovereignty.
Fraud and bribery acere thus deifed,
armed IN triple mail, and endoaoed acith
Immortality. The incorporated rogues,
escaping from State control, took
refuge under the sheltering 9gis of
the Federal judiciary. Sovereign
rights got by bribery from the tenn
porary tenants of legislative power
had passed from an outraged people
beyond recall; fraud had become
eternal, and the little finger of the
corporations was stronger than the
lions of the State.
Nor did the concurring judges in
the Dartmouth College case STUN
BILE over any historical difficulty.
Interpretation, as Sir William Black
stone and DR.. Lieber have so we'll
pointed out, is a faithful effort to dis
cover in the language of the instru-
ment, and in other evidence, the
real meaning of the author. Where
the meaning of the Instrument is
doubtful, surrounding circumstances
may be looked to for the purpose of
discovering what its authors really