The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-12-18
STREET-CAR SITUATION
WORKS BOARD CAN REQUIRE CITY
COMPANY TO BEGIN TRACK LAYING.
City officials Hope to secure Reversal
of Supreme Court
Decision.

The city administration hopes to have
reversal of the decision Of the street-car case
in the Supreme Court. Under the practice
| OF that court sixty days are allowed for
| filing petition for rehearing. Early in
January the three new judges will go upon
the bench. Inasmuch as the opinion rem
dered Friday was divided, three Democratic
judges finding for the City Railway Com
pany and two Republicans sustaining the
contentious of the city of Indianapolis, the
administration hopes that the petition for
| rehearing will be granted, and that if it
is the court will reverse itself. A reversal
is hoped for, Notwithstanding prominent at
torneys were quoted as saying yesterday the
Indiana Supreme Court had not reversed
| itself in twenty years. What new points
| the administration expects to assign as rea-
| sons for a rehearing could not be learned
yesterday. Mayor Taggart said that there
was no hurry in asking for a rehearing,
| but that such course would undoubtedly
| be pursued after there had been a careful
| consideration of all points involved. The
decision wiped out all pending litigation on
| the street-car cases between the city and
| the two companies, with the exception of
| the 3-cent-fare case. Under certain con-
tingencies the Citizens Street-railroad Com
pany might appeal to the Supreme Court
of the United States, but this course is
hardly anticipated.
A. G. Harris, attorney of the City Com
pany, was telling very we'll satisfied yester-
day. For over five years ne had been fight
| ing legal battle on certain ideas and won
| his fight. After the company began laying
| tracks it was forever enjoined by the Fed
eral Court from laying tracks on any streets
| occupied by the Citizens Street-railroad
Company. In the United States Supreme
| Court the word forever" was stricken from
the injunction. Mr. Harris contends that in
so doing the Supreme Court virtually de-
| cided the Citizens Company did not have
rights in perpetuity, as it then commended
| This being the case, he believes that the
City Company has the right to enter upon
the streets now occupied by the Citizens
Company after 1901, and, under the law
passed by the Indiana Legislature in 1897,
acquire its property at fair cash value to
| be determined by the appraisers provided
| for in the act
I'VE have the right" said Mr.. Harris, "to
at once begin laying tracks in any streets
| not occupied by the Citizens Company, and,
in fact, could be required to so do by the
Board of Public Works. / cannot say, of
course, what the company will do in the way
of beginning to put in plant. There has
been no meeting of the directors since the
decision was rendered.
will they meet soon?"
Il imagine So"
Mr. Harris explained some Of the pro-
visions of the franchise the City Company
| holds. 1t is required to pave between all it's
tracks and for space eighteen inches on
| the outside, either with granite block on
concrete foundation or with material similar
| to other portions of the street. Beside this
| on acquiring tracks on streets already inn
| proved, the company is to pay into the city
| tmOrOVinQ bpt ha
| tracks and eighteen inches on the outside
This money is to be refunded pro rata to the
| the matter of fare the company is not to
charge more than cents with all privileges
OF transfer, beside which conductors must
be provided with tickets to be sold to pas
sengers at six for quarter.
The City Company commended two years
ago that the passage of the street-car law
then contemplated would not affect its
rights, on the theory that if it's franchise
was not valid and binding it had no rights
the city was binding the Legislature could
not affect it. The company asserts that the
different from those between the municipal
lty and the Citizens Company, as the latter
the Legsature The civ co Ig yG on Rs
other hand, holds that as the Legislature
In the new charter, conferred the right to
make contract on the Board of Works, it
conferred the right to make a binding and
irrevocable contract, not subject to future
legislative action. In other words that the
Legislature cannot and could not in 1897
make a law that would modify or abridee
the contract the company had entered into
with the Board of Public Works in accord
ance with the charter. BY this process of
reasoning the company arrives at the con-
fare law passed in 1897. and also that 1t is
not affected by the law ''wiping off the
ing required to pay for street paving and
to furnish six tickets. with transfer for %
cents, the company must pay large por-
ury. The gross sums are 10 per cent. the
first five years, 1919 per cent. the second five
years, 1919 per cent. the third five years and
14I5 per cent. the remaining fifteen years
for which the contract or franchise, is TO
run.
1T has always seemed to me-" said Mr..
Harris yesterday. that if the city has $780,
900 year so available for park improve
wanted. it will be most advantageous"
Mr.. Harris said that he did not know ex-
earnings would be. but it had generally been
regarded as about 100000 year. The City
Company is not In possession of information
as to what the gross earnings of the Citi-
Zens' Company are. Augustus l.. Mason.
former president of the company, said that
he did not feel at liberty to give informa-
that the tax payable to the city would
amount to about one-half cent for each pas
Senger carried.
r. NJ johnson. city controller, said yes
terday that he had given the street-car ques-
ton but little consideration. Some of the
difficulties that still lay in the way of set
Element of the controversies occurred to
him. The Citizens Company. he said has
franchises for the suburbs, Irvington. West
Indianapolis, Brightwood. Haughville, etc,
besides which it has the right of way over
the National road. Mr.. Johnson seemed to
think that the struggle would go on unless
some agreement could be reached by the
companies
There was much speculation yesterday as
to what the outcome would be, and there
was much guessing to whether the City
Company would purchase the rights of the
Citizens Company whether the latter
would not be willing to pay handsome sum
for the franchise of the former. now that
N has heen unheld by the Surname Court.