The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-04-03
Letter 10 The Editor
THE THREE FOLD DAMAGE 40
Mir. Knight Says Advertiser Article
 Was Inaccurate.

Was Inaccurate.
 Elba, Ala, March 30, 1905 Editor The Advertiser.
 headlines on the front page, IS a spe- cial dated Elba, March 2S, which does Senator John A. Lusk, candidate for grave % injustice. The special in ques- ton must have been written by some person wholly unadvised as to the facts in question. for 1t is full of misstate- aging to Senator Lusk. l have not had the opportunity to see the local correspondent for The Advertiser. ana ask him to correct the mistakes in the article. so l write this. hopi& that you will be just and fair enough to pub tish 1t.
 In the first place 1t is indeed true that Judge Pearce held court at Eioa H. Lee) had suit before the court against the l.. & N. Railroad for dam ages and penalty on claim TOT iost goods; most of the remainder of the The case was not ably and eXhaus, lively argued" .n fact was not argued at all; it had been set for the hrst week of court. and had been informal, ly discussed and passed to the second week. When 1t came up for hearing the second week, it was again intor- maliy discussed, there were some ne. gotiations looking to settlement, and 1 am creditably Informed that Judge Pearce read the act in question ana expressed, informally. a doubt as 10 the validity of the penalty law on the ground that the caption was too oriet: but he made no bench entry to that effect: in the meantime the lawyers agreed on the amount of verdict, ana judgment against the railroad was on this agreement rendet cd was not in the court when the judgment was rendered or when Judge Pearce made the remarks about the probability of the law being unconstituttonal. But an examination of the Judges bencn docket made by me today shows that regardless of what Judge Pearce may have said about the law, by his rui- ings he held t valid; for the oehch f he denied the motion to strike the count of the complaint that claimed penalty and likewise overruled the de- murrers filed to said count. This Is matter of public record, and what the Judge did and ruled can be easily as- certalned by any who are interested. :, Tn common wth other. friends and gives me pleasure to say. that so far as "intimations" of judges are con cerned, a decision was cited to Judge Pearce in regard to the claim case point" with the Lee and L. & N. case; the case was one of Seaboard Air Line Railroad against Seegars; 1t is claim ed that Judge Pearce announced that
 
 constitutionality of laws placing a penalty upon railroads for falling to pay lust claims promptly; this case Is reported in recent advance sheets of the United States Supreme Court Re- ports. Now we all remember that Senator Lusk was a prominent mem Der of the Code Commission. and Is re- puted to be the author of the railroad features of that compilation of laws In the new code which is now out and which will soon be m effect. is pro vision for penalties on railroads for being slow to pay claims. There will be no trouble about the caption of this law, for lawyers say the code does not have captions.
 The full publication of this letter will be only fairness on the part of The Advertiser. in view of the damag- ing effect such an incorrect article as that on the first page of The Adver- tiser, with It's extended and pointed head Is calculated to have upon a candidate for the Supreme bench.
 Respectfully