The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1897-04-13
HEARING POSTPONED.

The Injunction suit brought before
Judge SimOnton, of the United States
Circuit Court, which was to have been
heard at Greensboro last Tuesday, was
postponed until June 9Th, at Asheville-
The suit was to stop the State from
trying to get its rights in the North
Carolina Railroad lease matter. The
Southern Railway Company is try
ing to prevent the State officers from
interfering with the nice little snap
which was Matched out one night
at Burlington about a year ago when
the Southern leased the N. Q. Railroad
for a term of 80 years.
Attorney General Walser and the
other State officers involved were pres
ent through Rttornies. The Attorney
General presented an elaborate an
swer, but it is too long for our columns.
However, we give Gov. Rassell's an
sWer and the answer by the Southern
Company:
GOVERNOR RUssELL's ANSWER.
United States Circuit Court for the
Western district of North Carolina.
The Southern Railway Company
VS..
The North Carolina Railroad Company.
Sydenham B. Alexander, W. Q.
Maxwell, Lee 8. Overman, Charles
". Johnston, Ed. Chambers Smith,
V. E. Turner, Hugh MacRae, John
P. Allison, II. W. Fries, Bennehan
Cameron, R. F. Hoke, j. J. Young,
Daniel L. Russell, Z2bulon Vance
Walser and J. M Wolfe.
IN EQUITY.
Daniel L. Russell, who is sought to
be made a party defendant in this suit
by the Southern Railway Company,
responding to the bill of complaint as
an individual and not as Governor of
North Carolina, and doing this much
as g matter of courtesy to this court,
makes answer as follows:
1. 1 have read the answer of z V.
Walser, who is Attorney General of
North Carolina, and all the denials and
allegations Of said answer, as we'll as
the answer itself, 1 adopt.
2. 1 reserve to myself all the right Of
exception to said bill of complaint and
protest that under my oath of Office as
Governor of North Carolina I will not
recognize as binding upon me nor will
I yield obedience to any order of any
court that binders or retards or inter
fere with me in the exercise and per
Torrance of any of the duties commit
ted by the people of North Carolina
through their Constitution and legisla-
ture to my judgment and discretion as
their Governor; nor will I obey or re-
gard any order Of any court which I'm
dertakes to prevent the State of North
Carolina from exercising it's constitu-
tional powers as a sovereign State, and
I hereby expressly decline to appear in
this court as Governor aforesaid, OF to
do any act which might seem to make
the State Of North Carolina a party to
this suit.
3 / deny that the State of North
Carolina ever entered into any contract
with the Southern Railroad Company
for the lease of the North Carolina
Railroad. The ninety-nine year lease
was made by the North Carolina Rail
road Company Of the first part, to the
Southern Railroad Company Of the
second part, and the State was and is
no party to this alleged contract or
lease. The State has an il terest in the
North Carolina Railroad Company, be-
ing the owner Of three-iourths of it's
capital stock. The agents Of the State,
being the State proxy and the State
Directors, voted for this lease. l allege
that in doing so they committed an un-
authorized and unlawful act. They
violated the charter of the North Caro-
lima Railroad; they made an alienation
for the ninety nine years, equivalent 10
a sale, without any authority in their
charter or in any law of North Caro-
lima, and in their actions in this behalf
they acted as unfaithful and unauthor-
lied agents, and committed an ultra
wires act that is not binding on the
stockholders Of the North Carolina
Railroad Company nor on the State as
one of the stockholders.
4. The State as a sovereign, and also
as a etockholder, has the right to test
the legality and validity of this lease in
its own courts. This plaintiff, the
Southern Railroad Company, a cor
poration foreign to North Carolina, is
seeking to strike down this right of the
State. The only purpose of this action
on the part of the Southern Railroad