The Portland daily press., 1895-05-25
.--'------
Especial to the PRESS.)

railway commissioners was raised this
morning and there was also some discus
sion of particular interest to Portland
electric railway to the Cape The matter
before the commission was the hearing
on the question of approving the articles
of association of the Cape Elizabeth Street
Railway, a corporation organized under
the general law This new company is
already organized company under the
charter obtained from the last legislature,
and have secured a location under it in
the city of Portland. They say that they
now want to proceed under the general
law in order the better to finance their
road, the doubt as to the constitutionality
of special legislative charters interfering
with the raising of money if they con-
struct the whole road under the charter
On the other hand the town of Cape
Elizabeth and the county commissioners
claim that the legislature intended that
the whole road should be built under the
charter, and they also say that this new
move is made in order to escape from the
restrictions imposed by the charter.
The hearing brought out difference of
opinion as to the duties of the commits
sioners 1t was maintained on behalf of
the road that the statute provided that
the articles should be certified as correct
and approved if they conforned to the
law The other side claimed that the fact
| that the commissioners were to certify
that the articles confo1ned to the statute
| and then in addition, were to approve the
articles clearly gave the right for the
commissioners to go into questions out :
side the mere form of the articles.
| After the hearing, the commissioners
voted to approve the articles as the loca-
| tion of the road must still be approved
and then all the questions raised today
will doubtless have a bearing upon the
decision A failure to approve the loca-
ton would leave the company but it
could not do anything in the territory it
desires to cover. In that case, the road
must be built under the charter. 1t was
evident as the hearing progressed, judg-
inc from questions asked by the commits
sioners, that they proposed to approve the
articles and then allow the considerations
presented today, to come up at the hear
ing on the location.
There were present at the hearing
Clarence Hale, ESQ.,, Captain j. S. Win
Slow, Captain A. d. Boyd, and Thomas
S. Kroutz and W. W. Cook of New York,
representing the gentlemen who want
the articles Of association, County Com
missioner Lord and County Attorne-
True were on hand to look after the
INTERESTS OF THE COUNT
Judge Robinson of Portland, repre-
sented the town of Cape Elizabeth, and
F. H. Hartford, Esq, appeared as an in
terested citizen and property holder.
Mr.. Hale began proceedings by reading
the articles of association. They provided
| for road about nine miles in length be-
ginning at the southerly end of Portland
bridge in South Portland and running
| through Knightville, South Portland vii
| lage and Willard to Simonton's Cove
also beginning at the intersection of
Broadway and Sawyer streets in South
Portland and running to the intersection
| of Front and Sawyer streets; also begin
ming at the southerly end of Portland
bridge and running through Pleasantdale
and Ligonia to Cash's corner. The
capital stock is fixed at $50, 600 Jacob S.
Winslow, Albert D. Boyd, Henry B. Mac
Leod, James II. Boyd and Thomas S.
Krutz are to act as directors.
- After reading this document, Mr. Hale
| SAID that this was SIMPLY a maGter Where
the commits ssioners were asked to certify.
that in these articles of association the
provisions of the statutes had been
carried out.
Then Judge Robinson spoke for the
remonstrants. He called the attention OF
the commissioners to the fact that the
statutes contained a provision which
probably through inadvertence Mr. Hale
had failed to mention. 1t was that the
commissioners were not only to certify
that the articles sconformed to the
statutes, but they We're also to approve
them in writing. Turning to the history
of the proposed road, Judge Robinson
said that the legislature by special enact
ment had granted charter giving the
right to build a road across Portland
bridge, structure never intended to b(
the support of railroad track. Thi!
charter gave some extraordinary rights
and with them it imposed certain restric
tions. 1t was the evident intention o
the legislature to make the territory
covered by the charter an exception tt
the general law. But here was a very
peculiar and striking course taken by the
gentlemen to whom this charter wa
granted. They had gone ahead and or