The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-02-10

saying that in the Eastern States there
| We're pending Is damage suits. in the
| Western 81, in the Pacific States & ana
In the South Sal suits.
II a man lost 4 dollar by reason of
| delay in the state, he could recover
/ il, said Mr. Busbee and he could catch
| the company for mental anguish, also.
| If in addition TO that he could get a
! penalty of $500, why-and again Mr..
| Busbee made up for the lack of the
| strong word that he wanted with a
gesture of the most utter despair.
| After making some objections to the
| bill which Mr.. Wright broke i'm to
| explain We're already provided for in
| the provisions of the general law as
| to damages. Mr.. Busbee went off on
the discussion of what he termed hos
tiity to corporations run mad" citing
| the case of the woman who sued for
mental anguish for the death of her
'son." the deceased being her step-son
and the father when the wife arrived
| already being in consultation With a
| lawyer before the burial of the de-
ceased. He complained that if the
| bill went into effect it would open the
| door to INSCRIPTIONS persons to mulct
| the companies to their hearts con-
tent, all that would be necessary being
/ to pick out the names of a hundred
obscure persons. invest twenty-five
| dollars i'll kilograms and send each
man jack of them a message to $50
| to the devil, trusting TO the suits
which would accrue to get rich quick
Mr.. Busbee characterized the bill as
having arisen out of state of "reck-
| less and absolute hostility to corpor-
atoms" and stated that if there was Il
state which recognized mental anguish
| and had Il penalty also. he did noe
know it, He made special plGa
against the bill on the ground that the
telegraph companies could not select
| their own agents but had to DEPEND
on those Of the railroads. and again
came back to the question OF mental
anguish suits.
One of these arose at P0llocksville
Ia place as big as your hat
and though it appeared that the plain
tiff was drunk on his perth and was
nut 10 bed by three men ana couldn't
have gone to the station had he re-
ceived his message. he still recovered.
If anybody thought that the tele-
graph companies We're not paving
handsomely for all the mental anguish
that they caused they would strain
their suspenders." The companies
had been made the targets of judicial
opinion until they had come TO have
tough hides. but if they We're to be put
up for the legislature to shoot at also.
that would be a misfortune which
would render the small offices impos-
sible.
He was not discussing the specific
provisions of the BILL said Mr.. Bus
bee: ut is q horror as IL exists"
The Bugaboo of Eminent Domain.
After Mr. Wright had replied to Mr..
Busbee and expressed his willingness
to insert any amendment which
would bring the bill clearly within the
provisions of law and Senator's Ward
and Fleming had both spoken in favor
OF the bill as had Mr.\Long. of Ire
dell, and Mr.. ZolQcoffer and Mr. Ma
son, of CASTOR, had spoken against it,
the latter gentleman in the midst of
general discussion arose to make q.
speech that was one of the warmest
bits yet heard in committee during the
session.
We were getting along. said Mr.
Mason. to the point where a penalty
was inevitable for everything from
saw-dust in Jones' check to fishing. in
Smiths pond. People have got more
grievances. said he than they ever had
before. We are suffering from a Sc
we're attack of legal dyspepsia"
Eminent domain" declared Mr.
Mason was not a gratuity to corpor-
atoms. but an inducement. Eminent
domain had been made the pretext of
governmental supervision. but it
discriminate attack. People talk
about corporations now as though
they We're foreign enemies, and OPP
posed to the government.
"Aint that sou asked Mr.. Mason
at the end of a warm and indignant
period.
The people and the Democratic
party, declared he, were fighting too
many things. There was a tendency
In its midst to do anything aimed at
corporation. 1t was becoming a
destructive instead of a constructive
party
The companies. he said, were trying
to serve the people. and were really
giving better service than ever be-
fore. 1t was unjust TO prosecute them
with penalties. He himself was
lawyer, said he, and he knew that
there were lawyers who would make
this bill preteXt to go into a regu-
lar damage suit business.
eminent domain said Mr. Mason
again, was "bug-a-boo pretext' used
for the purpose of imposing on cor
porations things that nobody would
thlnk OF imposing on the people,
Nv Pearson Approves.
Mr.. Pearson said that he entirely
approved of Mr.. Mason's speech and
that while he did not speak from Il
party view point, Mr.. Mason's remarks
served q warning that ought to sink
into our hearts. We are on danger
GUS ground, and we ought to content
ourselves with going slowly.
The subcommittee which has the
bill will make new draft and sub
nit the bill with the amendments
suggested by Senator Wright The
meeting was 4 gay one from start TO
flush and the time passed on swift
wings.
In Memory of a Deceased