The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-07-29
|COUI|.N|jS|:IEL|I0'APPEAR.
FORHC0 4 \ ]
hut. Name Of the q; Lawyer Not
Yet Given to the pa
Public.
RATHER CURIOUS POSITION
Attorncy-G General ; Must Be Nett
trial and Corporation Commits
sion Employ Own Attorney.

I!
Tho case Of Joseph Button against the
State Corporation Commission, being an
application Of Colonel Button for II writ
OF irlandamus recurring tho said com
mission to swear him In as state 1nsur-
anto Commissioner, and accept his bond
as such, lie having been elected to that
position BY the Legislature, will DO called
before Il special session OF the Supreme
Court 81 Appeals Tuesday morning. 4
As has already boon stated In this pa
per, Attorney General Anderson will not
appear In the case. 8S5 That 9 fllccr seems
to have been PLACID In q sonlcwha t en-
barrassing position II hos been cen UNDER 4
stood eyer since Virginia has "a been q SOY ~
creIEnS Commonwealth that the Attorney
General stand for the acts Of tho Leg
isiatute III d general way, and whenever
that body orr its acts shall be attached
in any court OF the land he will be on
hand to defend the Legislature and u It's
work. " But the late constitutional Con-
yehtion, 4 evidently not foreseeing that
there might ever be q clash between the
nov department OF government a 1t cre-
ntcd Is known tas 8t the State Corporation
Conn, isslong and the III Leg islaturc, pros
ylded that In q general way the Attorney
General should also be the legal adv wiser
and the counsel for tho Corporation
Commissio on. 548 III S.5575 3555SS
s The commission claims to have had no
feeling OF any Kind in; the matter Of the
< election or Colonel But ton by the Legis-
flnture III o V the lleWly X created Office III OF
Insurance Commissioners but thought tho
action OF the Legislature in creating the
( Off e was Sunconstit utional, the Constitu :
3tion giving powers OF TINT character to
tia mission.33 And as the commission
had no feeling in the matter, and only
wanted to sec the right prevail, and have
the question set tiled BY the highest .t rl-
bunal w known Il q II the V State law. ~ they
would make no contest before the Su-
preme Court Of Appeals. SSs
Commits ion En- barrassed.
That determination n however, seems to
have been reached while the commission
was under the impressio that the Attor-
ney G eneral would, & of his own Y accord,
tfpear for the commits sion and de fend It's
contention. Since then the 8Attorne ien-
icr,il has cons! dered the matter from. al
points Of view and decided itlsl hat hathe
cannot appear a Il all Y Fbut must be ~ eu-
$tral-si II on thers fence and see the pro
cessions 20 by. This leaves the commits
sion III g q somewhat embarrassing posi-
ton, for il the mem ers empl oy counsel
Isto make the fight before the Supreme
Court, q it will naturally seem to- an out
slider that they really have some feeiing
lin the matter; and yet they cannot very .e
well afford & to let the whole lma ter go
BY default and make no defensessaat g al y
Tor the position they have ia ken. 5ls
The members OF the commission have ma
been SO busy forsta week pa ct In the =
railway rate hearings they have really real!
!shad no time to- confer In regard to this
rather delicate question, but yesterday
AFTERNOON theySdd talk the matter oyer
and decided that they ugllt to be repre- re-
scented before the supre me Court q q. Ap-
penls TUESDAY next BY counsel.
lf8T TO Times Dispatch reporter Judge
Crump. the chairman Of the comm ION,
said 1--we have decided to have counsel
before the higher court but have not de-
3cideds wllo 1t will be. VIII i be time
enough Monday to settle that matter ma e1
{ we will not make much OF O Tight but
1t ~ duo to tho com,niss lon that an able
lawyer shall be present to speak for ne
commission and explain its position s h lf
m one viii be there, but I cannot say
now who 1t will be.
Hon. Isl. Il. Kelly and Maj Hi Garter r!
will & appear for Colonel Blu ton, The 'l
hearing before the Supreme Court OF A AZ
peals wir be very interesting.