The Saint Paul globe., 1897-10-17
SOME 1NJuNCr1oNAL DECISIONS.

lOuuudllOu.
SOME INJUNCTIONAL DECISIONS.
The use of the equity powers of
courts to restrain the coal strikers in
Pennsylvania, with it's tragical cul-
mination in the slaughter at Hazleton,
provoked a storm Of popular protest
that will undoubtedly have it's effect
hereafter in a more cautious use of
this extraordinary and arbitrary pow
er. That such a use of it will not be
made by any of the courts of this state
as long as Chief Justice Start presides
is made certain by the opinion he re-
Gently gave of the Pennsylvania in
functions. These orders, however, seem
to have melted a belief among mem
bers of the bar that there is absolute
ly no limit to the use of injunctions,
and we have had a few decisions re-
Gently that are worth noting.
1t seems that there are miliers out
side this state, who are not content to
rest the reputation of their flour on
its merits or on their own reputation.
and have branded their sacks and bar
rels Minneapolis -four" although their
mills were hundreds of miles from the
Flour City. Naturally Minneapolis
millers looked upon this as an invasion
of their rights and territory, and
brought suit in Judge Showalter's
court to restrain the offending parties
from the use of the name "Minneap-
oils" 1t is possible that careless buy
ers might be deceived by this trick into
buying flour, thinking it the output of
Minneapolis mills, and, to that extent.
there would be an injury to the millers
of that city. But Judge Showalter holds
that there can be no proprietary inter
est obtained in the name of a city. and
denies the writ. We cannot think that
the millers of that city place much re-
lance upon the name, either, for it is
not the name Minneapolis" that
strikes the eye whenever some bill
board or travelling sign sets forth mer-
its of the make of some mill but it is
the name of the proprietors.
Out in Colorado, some dealer in
ready-made clothing found his sales de-
creased by a rival firm which adver-
tised its stock as that of a bankrupt
that was being sold regardless of
cost" He averred that the stock was
not that of a bankrupt, that the state
ment that it was was a false pre-
tense, that people were being deceived.
and that he was suffering a loss of
trade as a result. He sought the in
terposition of the equity side of the
court to protect him, and, incidentally,
the public, by an injunction restrain
ing his rivals from thus deluding the
public. But the supreme court, to
which the case went, reverses the de-
cree the plaintiff obtained in the lower
court, and orders the bill dismissed,
with costs. Judge Wilson, who delivers
the opinion, says: I'VE cannot approve
practice nor subscribe to a doctrine
which permits the exercise by the
courts of the extraordinary power of
injunction in relief of every wrong or
other. Such course of procedure, if
carried to it's ultimate, natural conclu-
sion, would entirely subvert the fun
damental principles upon which our
system of laws is founded"
On the other hand, down in Iowa.
where a very fierce political battle is
now on, court has issued an order
restraining the publisher of paper
from printing or publishing, directly or
indirectly, in any manner whatsoever,
certain letters that have come into his
possession, the contents of which re-
feet upon the writer's who are candi-
dates for public office. We do not un-
derstand whether this is a preliminary
injunction or not, but it is probable
that the moving papers set out the con-
tents of the letters so that the Judge
was advised of their bearing upon the
private character of the writer's and
upon their candidacy. He must have
assumed that private letters remain the
property of the writer; that the recip-
lent gains no property right in them;
that facts that reflect upon the char
acter of candidate for public office
contained in such letters, should not
be made public, and, by logical infer
ence, that similar facts, however OBJ
tained can be suppressed by iniunc-
ton. If this is the case, there will be
numerous 1njunctions sued out here
after in every political campaign.