The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-25
SAYS LEGAL BATTLE
IS NOW INEVITABLE
City and Street Railway Com.
pany Must Take Gross Earn
ings Question Into Courts.

1.-THE inevitable legal clash between
the city railway company and the city
OF st. Paul cannot long be delayed, and
although both sides are carefully pre-
serving to themselves the legal phases
upon which the outcome of the case
will depend, enough is already known
to give an idea. of what is coming"
said a city official yesterday.
"a test is to be made of the charter
provision requiring, in case of extern
sion of street railway lines, the pay
nent to the city Of per cent of the
gross earnings Of the street railway
company. The company desires to
bring the case according to its ideas,
and it is known that Corporation At
torney Michael is seeking and even
waiting for an opportunity TO get into
the courts with a case that will give
the city a fair chance Of winning.
eff the threat of the First Ward I'm
provement association is carried out
and an effort made to force the street
railway company to extend the Lafay-
cite line to Phalen park, it is thought
that the city will be placed at disad-
vantage in the subsequent litigation
that is sure to arise. This action would
be brought under the most important
of the amendments to the original cleo
trio franchise granted the street rail-
way company, which was passed in
1893. This amended franchise was ac
copied by the company, and all the
provisions have been carried out, with
the exception Of the extension Of the
line to Phalen park. The provision as
to this line read, after marking out
f1oa on a ND
brier to Earl, and on Earl to the park:
".And shall have the same in opera
ton as soon as the city of ST. Paul
shall have acquired, by purchase or
condemnation, title to real estate In
Phalen park, so-called. for a public
park
Wants Company to Act First.
at is commended by the city authori
ties that if this provision is enforced
with the consent Of the city the street
railway company will certainly escape
the payment of the gross earnings tax
as to this extension, as the provisions
of the charter could hardly be expected
to be retroactive. And it is also held
that if the case should go against the
street railway company on such a
showing the result might be the raising
Of a reasonable contention that the
city, by bringing the action and en-
forcing the provision, waived its right
to demand the gross earnings tax on
future Improvements and extensions.
1.-THE street railway company, 1t Is
claimed, will take the broad ground
that under no conditions can the gross
earnings tax be enforced except on
new lines, holding that extensions of
existing lines will not constitute the
grant of new rights. The company de-
sires that street railway extensions be
ordered by the city authorities at this
time thus complicating the situation
and bringing the questions before the
courts in the light that the company
made the extensions through compul-
sion and refusing at the same time to
comply with charter provisions and be
made subject to the gross earnings tax.
AS the case in question will likely
take some time in dragging through
the courts, the proposed extension Of
the Rondo and of the Lafayette lines
will likely be delayed for some time"