The news & observer., 1897-02-09
Investigating the
oo-Year Lease
Continued from lst page.)


idea Of the Southern, and said there had
been no offer by the Seaboard Airline.
which had no legal existence aud the
offer now came from such a source under
impossible conditions. There is no such
corporation. Capt. Day told how the offer
was signed and that it would not have
been signed without authority. Mr.. Bus
been contended that the offer Of "Prcsi-
dent meant nothing, with the caption
Of Seaboard Airline.
Capt, Day asked If Mr. Busbce thought
Hoffman would dare to sign that offer
without authority?
Mr.. Busbee said he could not answer
that, but insisted that he should have
been authorized by the stockholders Of
the Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad be-
fore this Legislature could consider the
offer-and no lawyer would say that 1t
could. Moreover, the proposition was
coupled with conditions as to paralleHng
which should not be considered. Com
petition would thus be destroyed.
But coming back to the two points
stated above.
First, the committee could not say that
these gentlemen had acted fraudulently,
but they did it because they thought It
was the best thing.
Second Did they have the authority?
And he insisted that no case had been
cited in which the length Of term had
been the point acted upon. Here Mr..
Bu9bee defended the course Of eX-Attor-
ney-General Osborne, who, in conference
with an eminent jurist, came to the CON
Clusion that not one OF these cases. sus-
taine1 the theory Of ultra wires.
If the committee were satisfied as To
the two points, how could a bill be re-
commended to bring a suit. There was
no trouble in bringing a suit. But there
was no use in putting the State to un-
necessary expense.
Mr.. Busbee had no connection with
the Southern, but the Governor had the
list OF stockholders, and if the Southern
had owned any of it, the Governors coun-
sci would have known it. The stockhold-
ers don't want it. But you are asked to do
1t by rival corporation. Who will pro
fiji by it? If it were abrogated .to-mOr-
row, you haven't got an offer that would
bind anybody.
Mr., Busbee stated the Governors in
teryiew i'm the Wilmington paper recon-
mend the sale of the State stock, and
acquiescing in If not recommending a
freezing out of the $1,000,000 private
stock. He did not believe this commit
tee would sanction any such scheme.
Capt. PEBBLES wished a few moments
as his name had been used Judge Mac
Rae yielded him 10 minutes. Capt.
PEBBLES and Mr.. Bennehan Cameron
owned as trustee about $1,000 of stock.
Mr.. Cameron was in favor Of the lease.
and he, himself, thought the committee
acted for what they thought best, and he
would have so acted. But when he saw
the 10 per cent offer he was against the
lease, but and the "sale" clause out he
was in favor of testing the validity of
the lease: because developments had
caused him to think that the road was
worth more. He thought the Southern
would give II per cent; he didn't think
the Seaboard would get it,
Capt. PEBBLES took no stock in the rail-
road claim that this bill would not be hon
orable. The honor of North Carolina
was not involved.
He admitted there was no fraud.
But as to the power-that was the dry
legal question. Referring to the Logan
case, Judge Bynum, at the last moment,
had written an opinion which was dis
senting only on account Of Settles
change.
The interest of North Carolina demand
ed the testing of the validity of this con-
tract. Say it ultra wires, let the State
court pass upon that; let the Supreme
court of the United States decide it and
stop the agitation.
If it should be decided that it was
unconstitutional, then, here was an offer,
not binding it was true, but it would be
to the interest of the corporation to get
it. They could make the Southern road
pass over it.
In thirty years it would be worth Is
per cent, and would increase. The claim
that long lease was more valuable was
sophistry. The road had wanted the 90
years because it would grow more valua-
bic, not to protect the stockholders.
Capt PEBBLES didn't object to foreign
capital coming in. hut let them come in
as others. But they say the Governor
would destroy you. Let them pay $3.50
license to make them State corporation
and that provision wouldn't disturb you
Mr.. Fab. Busbee was willing to do this
and accept the Clark bill But Capt
PEBBLES asked who said that. If it was
made home institution, nobody would
oppose it. Capt. PEBBLES represented in
fants, and, therefore, was against the
''sale" clause, but with Mr. Burton's
amendment, he was willing to accept the
bill.
Judge MacRae was glad that the
clouds had rolled by and that peace reign
ed. He conceded honesty to everybody
and impugned nobody.
The Judge took up the four points of
the bill asked about by Chairman Cook
The first was, should a foreign corpora
ton be put on the same footing with a
State corporation. Here at the last mo-
ment they had consented to come in.
But this bill applied to all foreign cor
porations. Was this right? Was it feas-
ible? 1t had been applied to insurance |
companies, and Doyles case was again |
cited
If it were right to pass it, the penalty |
should be such as could be enforced. |
That's the first proposition.