The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-06-01
HIGH COURT DECISIONS
RULINGS OF SUPREME JUSTICES IN
SEVERAL IMPORTANT CASES.
Nebraska Maximum Rate Decree
Modified-CiviI-serv Law ana
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Bonds.

fcation of the decree in the Nebraska mari
mum freight rate case. The motion was tn
strike out the words And below those
now charged by. said companies and add
the words: And party from reducing its
present rates of charges for transportation
of freight to those presented in said act''
In granting the appeal to eliminate the
court said: THE general question argued
before US on the original hearing was
whether the rates established by the
Nebraska statutes looking at them as an en-
tirety were so unreasonably low as TO pre-
vent the railroad companies from earning
such compensation as would be just having
due regard to the rights of both the public
and the companies. In our examination OF
that question it was appropriate and neces-
sary to inquire as to the earnings Of the
respective companies under rates estab-
lished by them looking at such rates as an
entirety. We did not intend by an affirm
ance of the several DEGREES TO adjudge that
the railroad companies should not at any
time in the future. If they saw proper. re-
duce the rates under which they were con-
Quoting business at the time the final de-
crees were rendered, nor that the State
Board of Transportation should not reduce
rates on specific or particular articles below
the rates which the companies were charg-
ing on such articles when the DEGREES were
entered. We did not pass judgment upon the
reasonableness or unreasonableness of the
rates on any particular article prescribed by
the statute or by the railroad companies.
If the State should by statute or through
its board of transportation prescribe new
schedule of rates the question will arise
whether such rates, taking into considera-
ton the rights of the public as well the
rights of the carriers. are consistent with
the principles announced by this court. OF
course the reasonableness of schedule Of
rates must be determined by the facts as
they exist when such schedule is put in
force"
In the United States Supreme Court to-
day the opinion of the court below was re-
versed in the case of the Pullman Palace
car Company VS.. the Central Transportation
Company. The case involved property
amounting to about 81 000, 900 passed over to
the Pullman Company by the other COM
pany under lease made in 1870 the lease
to run for ninety-nine years, and tha
rental to be $4,000 per year. The Circuit
Court for the Eastern district of Pennsyl-
vania gave judgment for $425O,460. This
judgment was reversed by to-days opinion
and the court below was instructed to enter
a judgment for $727 ,846 with interest from
1885, when the lease was Cancelled. instead
of the amount as originally granted. The
opinion was rendered by Justice P Ca5n
may have been injured by the result of the
lease yet that is a misfortune which has
overtaken 1t by reason of the rule of law
which declares void a lease of such ma
ture, and while the company may not have
incurred any moral guilt. it has nevertheless
violated the law by making an illegal con-
tract and one which is against public
policy and it must take such consequences
as result therefrom." The judgment is for
the value of the Central CompanyS proper
ty in 1855 and SIT coo in cash advanced by
the Central Company; Justices Harlan and
White dissented.
Justice Harlan to-day handed down ths
opinion Of the court in the cases of a. B.
White, collector of internal revenue for the
district of West Virginia. against Berry,
Butler & Ruckman. appealed from the Cir
cult Court of the United States for West
Virginia. The appellees were gaugers and
storekeepers at the Hanris distilery, in
West Virginia, and Mr.. White, who was APP
pointed to the office of internal-revenue col
lector by Mr.. Mckinley. announced his pur-
pose to. remove them and appoint Repuo-
mova o 10 tbe ground that as they We're en-
ployed under the civil-service law they could
not be removed except for cause SHOWN
Court an order was issued sustaining the
appelleeS and restraining and inhibiting
White from IN any wise interfering Win
the plaintiffs in the possession OF their OF.
fees and the discharge of their duties. II
was commended on behalf of the government
that the Circuit Court, sitting in equity; o as
to entertain the suit. The opinion to-day ac-
cepts this view of the matter, reverses the
Circuit Court and does not therefore en! ;
upon the merits of the various questions in
volved. Justice Harlan said IF the as
signment of some one 10 duty as gaueer AT
the Hannis distillery in the place OF the
plaintiff did not work his removal from Of
flee a court of equity ought not TO assume
to control the discretion which the eH-
ecutiVe department has in all matters. IN
reference by the judicial department Woulu
lead to the utmost confusion in the man
agement OF executive affairs"
An opinion was rendered In the case OF
Marianne ]. Badly VS.. John H. Hunter, ad-
ministrator, affirming the validity of invest
ments in Confederate bonds during the civil
war In rendering the opinion of the court
Justice Harlan said: THE transactions be-
tween persons actually residing within the
territory dominated by the government or
the Confederate States were not invalid, for
the reason only that they occurred under the
sanction Of the laws of that government OF
of any local government recognizing It's au-
thority The preservation of order. the
maintenance of police regulations, the pros
ecution Of crimes, the protection or prop
erty the enforcement of contracts, the ceie-
bration of marriages, the settlement Of es-
tates the transfer and descent of property
and similar or kindred subjects were during
governments constituting so-called Con-
federate States. What occurred or was
done in respect of such matters under tho
authority of the laws of these local de facto
governments should not be disregarded or
held invalid merely because the govern
ments We're organized in hostility to the
Union established by the national Constitu-
ticn, because the existence of the war did
not relieve those within the nsurrectionary
lines from the necessity OF civil obedience
nor destroy the bonds of society" The case
came to this court on writ of error from
the Supreme Court of Georgia and the opin-
ion Of that court was affirmed.
Justice Brown handed down the opinion
of the court in the case of the Tidewater
Oil Company VS.. The United States. The
case involved the consideration of the ques-
ton as to what constitutes manufactured
article The suit was instituted to secure
a drawback on shocks. sides and bottoms or
boxes. The Tidewater Company was in the
habit of importing these from Canada and
iron rods from Europe and of manufactur-
ing boxes from these articles and then eX-
porting the boxes. In deciding the case
Justice Brown said the question was wheth-
er the boxes were wholly manufactured in
the United States and he held that they
an important part of the manufacturing
process.
The court. through Justice Harlan, rem
dered an opinion In case involving a tract
of 10000 acres of land in Virginia and West
Virginia The land was patented by the
State Of Virginia to Robert Morris in 1895.
W.