The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-01-28
Reasons for and Against the Taking
of Jurisdiction by the Supreme
Court of the q. S. Are Given
COURT TAKES 1T UNDER CONSIDERATION
For the Company
w. D. Guthrie,
John w. Griggs.

lands and their STABILITY will be greatly
| impaired by the consolidation. The in
| come of the state derived from taxation.
Tor the maintenance of state Institutions,
| as we'll as the performance of its execIl-
tive, legislative and judicial functions vii!
pc seriously impaired and interfered
| with py reason of such consolidation The
state mas granted many millions of acres
of land to various companies, as a consid-
Grafton for building and maintaining par-
ailel and competing lines of railway
Wlthln the state. many of which railway
mes are now owned or controlled by
either the Great Northern or Northern
racine RalIWay company. It IS therefore
submitted that the state Of Minnesota is
| SO lar interested, in its Individual ca
| pac1ty, in the subject matter of this ac-
ton, as to entitle it to maintain the
same.
| The state also claims the right to main
| tam this action as parens patriae or
! as trustee or representative of al her
ctlzens. very large portion, if not all,
| OF the citizens of Minnesota will be ma
| terlally injured by the consolidation OF,
ana the removal of competition in freighE
! ana passenger rates between the lines of
| ranWay owned and operated by the two
! companies. We take it that this court
| VIII assume that the citizens Of the state
generany VIII suffer material injury by
the remoVa! of competition in freight and
passenger rates within the state Pre-
sdmaDly- 1t was in recognition of this
| same principle that all Of the antitrust
| laws or the various states have been
| ADOPTED, and, in fact, this is the basic
| principle of all of the decisions holding
| common law monOpOlies invalid and
i against public policy. Such being the
| case, we contend that it is not only the
| right but the duty of the state to nrose~
| cue this action i'll behalf Of the citizens
| of the state.
| SUMMARY OF THE
SITUATION BY DOUGLAS
/ The situation can thus be summarized.
| Inc holders Of large majority of the
capltal stock Of the two railroad corpo-
| rat1ons authorized to construct and main
tam lines within the limits OF the state
OF Minnesota have organized a corpora
tlon In another state for the express pur-
| pose of consolidating the railway lines
ana property of such companies and
| eVadlng and violating one Of the laws OF
| the state Of Minnesota, which bears di-
! rectly upon and gives the state and IFS
| citizens certain rights and priv eyes IN
! connection with the property owned and
| controlled by the railroads thus sought
| to be consolidated.
| The only way in which the state can
| reach fuch an evasion OF its laws and
| enforce its rights is to bring an action in
/ this court against the Instrument or
| means by which consolidation is sought
! to be accomplished If the state of Min
| nesota cannot avail itself Of the original
| jurisdiction of this court to enforce it's
| right, 1T cannot go into the state of New
| Jersey and ask the courts of that state
| to enforce its rights, because the same
reasons urged against the jurisdiction of
! this court could be urged with equal
| force before the courts of New Jersey.
! The bill discloses that this consolda-
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