The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-10-12
WHERE NJ GILL
STANDS.
His Great Opinion Demol-
ishing the Monopolist1c
Coal Combine.
PUBLIC RIGHTS UPHELD
The Duties of Corporations to
State and People Clear
ly Defined.
Scathing Denunciation of Men
Who Increase the Cost Of
Necessaries of Life.
PUBLIC RIGHTS UPHELD

One of the chief articles of the stock
in trade of the Hon. John w. Griggs in
his trip through the State drumming up
votes for himself for Governor OF New
Jersey is the course of the Democratic
Legislature of 1892 in passing the Dill
legalizing the combination of the Lehlgh
Valley, New Jersey Central and Phila-
delphia and Reading Railroads for the
purpose of controlling the anthracite coal
market He and his aides and abettors
in his conspiracy to make him Governor
are wearing away their throats IN de-
nouncing the wicked Democrats who vot-
ed for the bill, but nowhere is it record
ed that they ever denounced the good
Republicans in the Assembly and Senate
who cast their ballots for the measure
Neither do they take time to tell their
hearers that Democratic Governor
killed the bill with his veto and that a
Democratic Chancellor, Alexander L. Me-
Gill, the nominee of the Democratic party
for Governor at the suit of a Democratic
Attorney General made futile ali future
efforts at such a combination by an
nu,iing the lease of the Central by the
Philadelphia and Reading and set
ting aside the tripartite agreement to
control the anthracite coal market.
When Governor Albeit vetoed the bill
and for year at least completely put
an end to the advance in the price OF
coal that great necessity of life, 1t was
freely predicted by the friends OF the
combine that another attempt to carry
out the nefarious design would be made
at the next session. Many OF the pest
lawyers in the State, among them Gov
ernor Albeit, were of the opinion that
the lease and agreement under which the
combine was effected was Illegal and
void. In order to test the question and
if possiole remove all color of law for
another attempt at carrying out the
combines vile scheme, Governor Albeit
directed the Attorney General to spp'y to
the Chancellor to have the lease declared
void and issue restrictive decree per
petually restraining the Port Reading
Railroad Company, the New Jersey name
of the Phfladelphia and Reading Com
pany from carrying out its design of
forcing up the price of coal.
GENERAL STOCKTON MOVES.
Attorney General Stockton, in accord
ance with the Governors instructions,
fled such bill in the summer of 1892.
Considerable testimony was taken and
the argument began before the Chancel-
lor in his court at Trenton on July 2O
The Attorney General and eX-Judge Fred
GT1Ck w. stevens Ol -sSNelhs 1OA LIN
State, and the late ex-Chancellor Benja-
min Williamson, of Elizabeth; Thomas
N. McCarter. Samuel Dickinson, John ].
Johnson, a well known railroad lawyer of
Philadelphia: John r. Emery of Newark
,at present Vice Chancellor, and Thomas
Hart IT. for the railroad companies.
1T no doubt has escaped the attention
of Mr. John w. Griggs and his allies
that the gentlemen who argued for the
destruction of the combine were all Dem
ocrats, while those who strove for the
continuance of the wicked combination
and the advance in the price of coal were
all good, upright, virtuous Republicans,
who have the true welfare of the people
at heart. It took this eminent array of
counsel several days to argue the case,
ard on August %, 1892, the Chancellor
delivered his opinion.
He reviewed at length the history of
three railroads in the combine, and
showed how they had gradually absorbed
other roads and Pennsylvania coal fields
until they controlled about 80 per cent.
of the entire anthracite coal fields of
PENNSYLVANIA and about so per cent. OF
the unmined coal.
He then showed how the competition
of these roads with each other, and the
Delaware and Hudson Canal and the
Pennsylvania Companies had greatly re-
dueed the price of coal to the consumers
Of New Jersey. He traced the history OF
the Port Reading Railroad Company,
small single track road extending from
noint on the Philadelphia a & Reading, near
Bound Brook, to deep water on the Ar
thur Kill, distance of twenty miles
On January r. 1892, while this road had
only a few miles Of track laid upon an
unfinished road bed and was without
rolling stock of any kind or depots, it
leased the New Jersey Central and the
tripartite agreement was entered into be-
tween these two companies and the
philadelphia and Reading Railroad Com
pany.
Tho chancellor next quotes numerous
authorities to show that IN the absence
of any legislative consent resting upon
. clear expression of Legislative consent
m such leave can be made. Then he
nroceeds to enquire If such legislative
consent existed ait the time uhe leave
was made. and exhaustively reviews the
statutes upon the subject and the argu-
merH Of the Attorney General with the
conclusion that even though the act OF
1880 may confer the power to lease, that
power irnpl.edls-, from the character OF
railroad corporations as quasi public
bodies, is limited to leases designed for
the public welfare and docs not warrant
a lease In furtherance of scheme to
prevent competition and create mon
opoly.
RAILROADS MUST SERVE THE PUB
Lie.
Continuing he says:
.sRaGlroads afford speedy and COM
fcrtable passage to and from divers
parts of the country. carry produce of
mines, farms and factories to markets.
distribute industries throughout the land,
feed the multitudes in populous cities
ard accomplish many other beneficent
ends Water, gas. telegraph and SINH
lar corporations also render to the public /
benefits which readily suggest them