The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1895-01-25
MUST nuS oAl,s.
Judge Garuor Issues u Decision Which
WIN Compel tho Companies to Operate
IhNlr IinLls.

JhuEc GNrhOr Issues u Decision WlilCli
WIN Compel tho Companies to Operate
Their Roads.
BRooELYS, Jan. 2L-Justico GRynor,
Of tho supreme court. handed down his
decision on the application Of Joseph
roadnr, for the m%nndamus to compel
tho brooklyn Heights railroad to opur.
alto Ito cars In sufficient number to nc.
commodate tho travelling public on tho
Fulton street. Putnam avenue, Greene
and GRtou, and Tolnpklm avenue lines.
lie slgnidod his intention Of granting n
mandGmuu. tho form to DO determined
on tho argument Of COUNSEL IN court to.
morrow.
Mr.. Louder, upon whose application
the writ Of mandamus Is issued, Is n
merchant who alleges that his business
suffers by reason OF the failure Of the
company TO operate its limos.
Judge Gaynor's decision Is rs fol.
Iowa: ut Is my duty to declare tho law
OF this case. Tbs railroad corporation
IS not In tho position Of u mere private
individual or company carrying on bus.
ineas for private gain, which may sus.
pend business temporarily or perma.
monthly at pleasure. On the contrary, it
has n dual relation-a public relation to
the people Of tho state, aud n private
one to Its stockholders. 1t must not be
forgotten here. though it may scein to
DO wholly forgotten elsewhere, that in
its Chief aspect it Is n public corpora.
ton. having duties to perform to the
public which transcend any obligation
which in its private aspect 1t owos TO It's
stockholders. It has received frau.
chiscs oil great value from the state, and
had conferred upon 1t the states tran.
acendent power Of eminent domain.
I'm return, 1t tookupon itself tho PEI.
lormancGs OF public duties and iunc-
tions, In the performance OF which ii ia
in law aud In fact not au independent
individual or entity, but the account.
able agent OF the stale. Though the
principles arc old aud inherent IN tho
idea OF the sovereignty OF the people, il
would seem that In tho recent rapid
growth OF corporate power, and Of the
tendency to uie public franchise'fo for the
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF the individuals lirst
and tor.thc service and benefit OF the
public second, they have ON TO be
somewhat overlooked, aud need to be
restated.
Tho duty OF tho company now be-
Tore tho court ia to carry passengers
through certain streets Of Brooklyn and
10 furnish. man aud run cara enough to
fully accommodate the public. 1t NAV
not lawfully cease to perform that duty
Tor even one hour. The directors of a
private business company may, actuated
by private greed, orimotives OF private
gain. stop business and refuse to employ
labor Of all, unless labor como down to
their conditions. however distressing;
for such are the existing legal, indus
tria! and social conditions. But the
directors OF q railroad corporation NAV
not do the like; they are not merely &C
countable to stockholders; they are &C.
countable to the public first and TO the
stockholders second.
They have duties 10 tho public to
perform, and they must perform them.
1t they cannot &c. labor to periorm
such duties at what they otter to pay,
then they nus pay more, and as much
Us is necessary 10 get il. Likewise, il
the conditions in respect OF hours or
otherwise which they impose repel
labor. they must adopt mo.c lentent or
Just conditions. They may not stop
their cars for one hour, much less one
week or one year. thereby 10 beat or
coerce the price or conditions OF labor
down to the price or conditions they
offer. For them to do so would be n de-.
ianco OF law and Of government, which.
Incoming general, would inevitably, by
the force Of example, lead TO general
ilsqulet, to the disintegra,ion OF the So
cial order, and oven the downfall of
government itself. Experience shows
the wisdom OF our fathers in retaining
at least some control OF corporations to
whom are given public franchises for
the performance OF public duties,
ut being admitted that tho
is not fully operating its lines OF road.
feel it my duly to allow the wri,
prayed Tor, either in its peremptory or
Alternative form, unless n sufficient
answer has been made in law. As |
have said, the learned Judge who heard
the previous application decided that
the answer then made was even INSULT.
cient to raise d question OF fact, and only
refused the writ in order TO give the
company more time with an ad monition
10 1t that it should not longer DELAY. |
do not think the present answer Of the
company is sufficient to prevent a writ
from being issued. The claim OF VIC.
lence amounting to u prevention is not
legally made out. Instances OF violence
generally by other than the former EN-.
ployes OF the company is shown, bn. il
is also shown that not only the police
force OF the city, but also over 1000
soldiers are preserving order, and / can
not believe that the mpa ia not
protected In its rights, nor do | think
any question OF fact is fairly raised on
that head.
beside, tho persistoncy OF the co m.
pany III falling to run its cars except as
1t may gradually got employees to accept
It's terms, being in itself unlawful, must
necessarily by lis bad example tend to
public disQutet, II not to some disorder.
In respect OF the question Of hours and
o! wages between the company and its
employees, its duty was to have gone on.
INT now Is 10 20 on, with its full com.
plement OF employees. having tho right
gradually and from dag TO day to super.
ssde its employees il it can BY ncw en-.
ployes who will work on its terms. or 10
snperscde them all at once when il bas
obtained Il sufficient number OF now ON.
ployes Tor that purpose; but in such n
controversy 1t has not tho right to sion
its cars while il is thus gradually rot.
ting other men. Ii tho people OF tho
state were running these roads th,v