The news & observer., 1897-03-13
VIEWS OF MR. HICKS
Honors the Governor tor hounc
ing the Directors.
INDIGNANT AT INJUNCTION
cRowTH OF THE SOUTHERN'S
PULL" DURING 20 YEARS.
WOULD NOW COMMAND STATE
His Home Left in Charge of Fired
Man, it Should MOI, During His
Absence be Rented Fer
Ten Years.

Ten Years.
To 4he Editor: The State is sovereign.
The law is king. "E pluribus unum:
That is. one, sovereign eovernment COM
nosed of many sovereign governments.
"Imperium in imperio:" that is gov
arnment within a government. There
were some things it was supposed all the
States together could do better than they
could do separately. Hence the general
government. But a State is a sovereign
in everything except where it has dele
gated its sovereignty to the general gov
ernment One right is expressly reserved
was immunity from suits by other States,
governments, citizens and corporations
A suit is to compel some body to do or
refrain from doing something -that Is
to coerce it. Who ever heard OF KING
being sued or coerced except by arms
When a sheriff walks into my capital and
commands my Governor, chief magistrate
and the executive officer of this common
wealth IN his official capacity to appear
before Judge and in the meantime to
do or not do something, my blood bolls.
/ have mo one to look to for protection
against the wrong doer who would in
jure me but my State and it can act only
through its executive that is the executor
of its laws, its sovereign power, and II
that executive, that sovereign can be APP
preached by any power on earth Except
the sovereign law itself hath made) and
commanded to do this and not to do
that, then his hands can be tied and he
can't protect me when / need his protec-
tion, and he is no sovereign. SO / am
indignant at the suit of the Southern
Railway against the State. And it is ri
diculous to say it is not against the State.
If not why not sue me and my next door
neighbor instead of Russell and Walser.
We are just as angry at their conduct as
they are, and l fear a good deal more
so than the Attorney General, though
hope this attempt to coerce the sovereign
will get his dander up"
"Give one an inch and he'll take an
ell'' When the Richmond and Danville
Railway came 20 years ago ''as a thief
in the night" and took secretly and for
clbly possession of our property, changed
its gage,-defied the laws of God and man
it showed its true character, and not
having been punished and banished and
shot out of the State as it then deserved
daylight and proposes to command this
sovereign State what it may or may not
do.
1t is more important that there shall be
somewhere vested Supreme power
capable when needed of protecting these
two millions of people in the enjoyment
of life, liberty and the pursuit of happi-
ness, than that, the fears of the South
ern Railway of punishment for its wrong
doing, shall be allayed by tying the hands
of the Governor.
Injunction Is a clearly defined branch
of Equity jurisdiction. No doubt its mo
dern development embraces the idea of
commanding and restraining large num-
ber of people: perhaps as many as are
employed on a great railroad system.
l never lost any sleep because Debs was
sent to Jail. But if the sovereign State
of which | am a loyal subject can be
commanded we have no law or Constitu-
tion, "and they may take who have the
power and they may keep who can," and
the State will not be a fit or safe place
to live in
The ordinary form of an allegation I'm
a bill in equity-for an injunction is that
some one whom the court has the right
to command, has threatened to do irre-
parable injury to a vested right of the
complainant. / do not believe the books
will show case or precedent where even
temporary injunction was granted onthe
allegation of only q fear in the mind of
one we'll known to be of the class that
''fee when no man pursueth.'
j have not studied the particular as
poets of this lease question, nor have
read the North Carolina Railroad char
ter; but my understanding of common
English words aided by Bouyier and
Webster, tells me that it is the business
of a servant to serve, an owner to buy
or sell if he wants to, of director TO
direct. If | went from home leaying
my hired man in charge of the lot to
keep things in order and look after the
premises, intending to return in day or
two, | would be justly indignant to find
on my return that he had rented out my
house for ten years, no matter what the
price was, and all the more angry would
/ be if he had rented it for less than an
other was willing to give, for less than 1T
was worth. What would / do? would
kick that servant out resume my possess
sion, because he had transcended his au-
thority. That is how the Governor feels
about the directors / honor him for
kicking them out.
II. II. HICKS.
Henderson, N. c., March IL.