The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1905-03-03
A QUESTION OF CONTROL
BY FRANK S. MoNNETT.


called upon Governor Hoch late
yesterday afternoon with a criticism
upon the provisions of the Kansas
pipeline bill. Governor Hoch lis
tened attentively to their criticisms
and made some very significant in,
quiries. One of the queries that he
put to the alleged friends of the
pipeline measure was how it hap
pened they had SO much informa-
tion and seemed to be possessed
with so much accurate data bearing
upon the rights of the Standard Oil
Company or its Kansas adjunct, the
Prairie Oil and Gas Company.
1t would seem that the new found
friends of the pipeline company are
greatly impressed with the fact that
the new system of pipelines owned
by the Standard Oil Company that
have been laid to all the producing
oil fields have private and vested
rights independent of the states
control. These critics point to the
fact that the Standard OIL Company
did not acquire its right of way
through the farm lands, across the
rivers, roads and streets of the state
by the right of eminent domain, but
are the purchasers and lessees and
owners in fee absolute.
The corollary to this proposition
is that the state can not enforce the
rights of common carrier upon the
existing pipeline company for the
reason that it would be taking prl-
vate property without due compen-
sation to the owners and savors of
conhscation of property. The gov
ernor's answer to the critics and the
new found friends has been that
whatever rights the companies are
exercising are the rights of corPo-
ration and that this corporation is a
creature of the state and exercises
all its rights, privileges and fran
chises at the will of sovereignty,
and it can not be heard to com
plain under the Kansas constitution
if the right of common carrier and
the right of eminent domain be
made by statute an incident to their
existing transportation business.
The principle laid down in the
Dartmouth college case that fran
chise once granted by a sovereign
state to corporation is an irrevcc-
able contract can never obtain in
the state of Kansas for the reason
that they have constitutional pro-
vision in their bill of rights, known
as Article IL, Section I wherein it
provides that the legislature shall
pass no special act comforting cor
porate powers. Corporations may
be created under general laws; but
all such laws may be amended or
repealed.
With this sign board hung above
the legislative halls as constitute
onal provision, general law max
Ing all pipelines common carriers IS
only an amendment of their charter
by virtue and by force of legsla-
tive act. 1t is a far more potent
inquiry and one that concerns the
Standard Oil more than the above
bubble if it has not been exercising
the right of eminent domain in the
state of Kansas without any statu-
tory or corporate authority whatso
ever. Every public highway it
crossed or every public stream or
bridge it crossed, every railroad
right Of way it followed without the
concent of the underlying owner
In fee of these premises has right
to question its title and authority to
so burden the fee with its pipelines
And even now that the state has
given it the powers of common car
riers it still must answer sooner or
later TO the owners in fee adjacent
to the public highways and to the
owners in fee adjacent to the rail
way rights of way either in damages
or by removal of its pipe lines in
near future.
Another haven of refuge that the
Standard is Haunting In the faces of
citizens of Kansas is the fact that
it is immune and has crawled un-
der the protecting wing of the At
Gibson, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway
company's right of way.
But this will not avail it, for the
lawyers in the legislature who repre-
sent the sentiment of Kansas, the
prosecuting attorneys of the to5
counties and the attorney general of
the state all have their attention
now called to the fact that Kansas
will no Longer tolerate any more
corporate collisions or combina-
tions that transcend the original
purpose for which the corporate
rights were granted to these, their