The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-12-06
NEW STATUTES
ARE ENJ0INED
Alabama is Again Held Up By
Federal Judge Jones.
ROADS RESUME FIGHT
AL Laws Passed at Special Session and
Everybody Connected With State
Government Subject to Order.

Judge Thomas G. Jones Of the United
States district court at Montgomery,
Ala, late Wednesday afternoon grant
ed a restraining order which has the
effect of temporarily suspendlng all OF
the railroad regulation legislation pass
ed at the extra session Of the leglsla'
ture which recently adjourned, as they
apply to the Louisville and Nashville,
the South and North Alabama, the
Nashville, Chattanooga and st. Louis,
and the Central of Georgia railroads.
The court suspends the laws Temporal
rily for an investigation of the claims
made in the bills that they are conds-
catory and unconstitutional.
All sheriffs, solicitors, clerks, posi-
BILE passengers or shippers are estopped
from in any way interfering with the
operations Of the Central Of Georgia,
the Louisville and Nashville, the South
and North and the Nashville, Chatta-
nooga and St. Louis. The bills are
sought to be supplemental to the in
functions now pending against the old
laws, and the orders cover every posi-
Bile offender.
In addition, the Central Trust com
pany of New York has filed suit
against the Central of Georgia, as
result of which an order like those in
the railroad petitions has been issued,
restraining every officer Of the state
from attempting to enforce the rates,
also preventing any employee OF the
road from making or accepting rates
lower than those now in effect. This
company holds the second income mort
gage bonds of the Central, and alleges
that at any less rates than those now
collected it will be impossible to earn
enough money to pay the interest.
The railroad cases will be heard be-
fore Judge Jones on December 2, and
that of the Central Trust company on
December Is. Counsel in the Trust
company case includes J. G. Spooner,
former United States senator from
Wisconsin; Albert Rathbone and Henry
V. Poor of New York.
The order is sweeping. Any officer
who violates it, shipper or passengers
who attempts to bring suit, or person
who in any way undertakes to render
it ineffective, will be liable to imme-
diate Imprisonment without trial, even
to being sent to the penltentiary.
The bills declare that the whole
scheme of legislation is unconstituion.
al because it seeks to deprive the rail-
roads Of the right to 80 into the fed
eral courts without danger of great
penalties.
All Of the bills filed by the railroads
attack the classification acts OF the spe-
cial session as being "manifestly I'M
fair and unjust" Railroads which en-
tered into an agreement with Governor
Conner, it is alleged, were given unjust
and Illegal preference over the rail-
roads which failed or refused to enter
into the agreement, and are permitted
to charge a much higher rate"
The order Of the court leaves the
new laws in exactly the same shape
as the old laws, which were repealed
by the special session OF the legisla-
ture. The Louisville and Nashville
fled supplemental bill Wednesday
night with the United States court,
praying that the litigation on the dock.
ct Of the court, in respect to the old
laws, shall not be dismissed. This in
dicates that the company will insist
on fighting the former litigation
through to the United States supreme
court.
Attorney General CARRIER said that
he would examine the bills at once,
and would call a conference of the
states lawyers before taking any ac-
ton.