The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-01-31
BIG BIDS FOR BONDS.
New Yorkers Want Thirty Million
Dollars Worth.
sovEREIGNs CASE THROWN OUT.

Judge Cox Declares That the Knights of
Labor Have No Standing In Court, and
| sustains the Legality OF the Proposed
Bond Issue.
WASHINGTON Jan. 8l.-Two kilograms
| were received by Secretary Carlisle from
New York informing him that subscrip-
tions to the amount Of $50, 900, 900 would
be made for the s per cent. ten year bonds
| which the secretary is to issue on the 1st
of February. The secretary said that
he had no doubt that the entire issue of
| $50 100000 would be hoatcd at the fixed
price Of l17.22 and upwards
Judge Cox, of the supreme court of the
District Of Columbia, yesterday rendered
his decision denying tho application of
General Master Workman Sovereign and
General Secretary MCGUIRE representing
the knights of Labor, for an injunction
TO restrain the secretary Of the treasury
from issuing 10000 900 gold bonds. The
first question, the judge said, that sug-
Rested Itself was what standing had these
complainants in courtf 1t was a well
known principle of law that In cases Of
this character the complainants must
show that the alleged illegal act would, If
carried into execution, injuriously affect
their property rights. He did not think
that this had been shown.
The allegation was made in tho bill that
the knights OF Labor had q membership
Of over 100000, and that the issue Of the
bonds would incur a public indebtedness
of about sos 900, 900, or 81 for each inhabi-
tant of the country. This, the judge said,
could only happen in case of per capita
or poll tax, and there Is now in force no
law Of that character or any other levy
ing direct tax for the payment of public
indebtedness. Neither had their been
since 1851. The complainants had not
shown that they would be taxed to pay
the bonds on maturity, and therefore as
tax payers they had no proper standing in
court. The interest each one of the &, ,00O,-
600 people In the country had in any pub
lie debt was too infinitesimal to be seri-
ously considered by any court.
The point that the Knights had special
and peculiar interest in this case by rea-
son of the fact that very large number
OF them were engaged In mining in the
opinion of the Judge was not well taken.
| 1t was not even shown that they were
mine owners. but only laborers 1t would
| be just as competent for number of
| factory hands to come to Washington and
seek to prevent by legal process tariff
bill from being put into effect because of
some provision inimical to their interests.
In his opinion there was no merit in the
allegation that the proposed action OF the
secretary was discrimination against
silver, and therefore 1t was a matter in
| which the Knights of Labor had pecu-
| liar aud particular right. The title of
their association indicated that 1t was an
organization Of laborers, and not even of
mine owners. This part of the bill was,
In his opinion, fatally defective The
| question of whether the United States
should pay its debts in gold OF silver was
not question OF law, but was question
OF public policy, and it was not matter
in which the courts could properly inter
| fere.
The Knights of Labor will appeal.