The Paducah sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1898-1906, 1904-08-29

the telephone company would have paid
100000 to have avoided being put
out of business, just as readily as 1t
paid $S.5OOOO.'
The former solicitor makes some good
points. Since the telephone matter Is
up. it might rs well be threshcd out
now as ever and the facts fully and fair
~ arrived at.
Il makes no difference whether the
telephone company has to pay fran
chise tax and pay rent for its poles or not.
Whatever legal claim a city has against
telephone or any other company can
be easily collected by law. Ii city
officials themselves cannot collect legal
claim by due process of law they are a
poor set Of officials. \ debt that cannot
be collected by law is not much of a
debt. hence whatever the East Tennessee
Telephone company or any other com
pany owes the city of Paducah can be
collected by law, and the city officials
are the proper ones to collect IL. Moth
ing that the telephone company does
not owe the city should be collected.
Blood money or blackmailing contribu-
tions should not be sanctioned by any
city official or any good citizen. If a
claim cannot be collected by the city by
law in the proper way and by the pro
per officials. it ought not be collected at
all. even II company is willing to pay
it for the sake OF friendly feeling
As to this particular compromise case.
the city several years ago concluded 1t
would in addition to the regular taxes
and license. make the telephone and tele-
graph companies took out'an injunction
pole inside the city limits. The tele-
graph companies too kout an injunction
in the federal court, and the federal judge
granted a restraining order, holding that
a city cannot in addition to the various
taxes, licenses and other revenues eX-
acted from telegraph company, make il
pay rent on its own poles. The city
then dropped the matter.
In the course of time an outside at
torney comes along and tells the city
that he believes these pole rentals can
be collected, and his firm is willing to
collect them for fifty per cent of what
ever is collected, nothing to be charged
if nothing is collected This was very
well. 1t simply meant that if the rent
for these telegraph poles were collected,
the lawyer was TO get half OF it. And it
meant nothing else.
The attorney proceeds to file suit
against the telephone company to "oust
it," not to collect the pole rent, mind
YOU, but to put it out of business" and
then according to the News Democrat,
prepares number of other suits, "oi
which he notified the company "and
which it was requested him not to file
rs it would compromise the case" It
is very plain why these suits We're filed
or prepared to be filed. as the company
was considerably notified beforehand
People are not in the habit of notifying
corporations before filing suits against
them. Why should this attorney have
notified the telephone company
But the next thing We know about
the pole rent contract, we find that the
attorney has prepared a contract con
ssting of "a iob-lots Of things he asks
the city TO give the telephone company
franchise for twenty years, a receipt
for its city licenses and taxes, and it,
pole rent. and TO dismiss all suits against
it, for s3.jOO-the attorney who was con
tracted with only to collect the rent on
few telephone poles to get 81 $50 foI
engineering this beautiful "hold-up," tn,
former city solicitor says il j.. The
city thinks it is getting something foi
nothing, the telephone company thinks
it is paying for keeping from being
"ousted from Paducah," while the at
torney gets 81 $50 for fixing it so both
! sides can get good thing
But the plan will probably not work
The general council did not Civ,
the attorney contract en-
titling nim TO fifty per cent
of any claim he collected from telephone
companies and telegraph companies
but merely a contract for fifty pc
cent of pole rentals" ne collected. We
| Ia connes in with a comnrouise IA
claims for city licenses, franchise tax
pole rentals, and agrees to throw in
franchise, which alone is worth NOR
than the entire amount If the cOmpan,
needs it at all. He has undertaken 4
settle all claims the city holds agains
the company when he has authorit.
only to collect the claims for pole rent.
Another point that is lost sight q