The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-03-24

ecuting or attempting to execute the state 1 rate law. Certain stockholders of the 1 Northern Pacific Railway company filed | suit at the same time asking for an | injunction prohibiting the state officials | from carrying the law into effect. The injunction was granted on the ground that the law was confiscatory and it's promulgation was immediately fol- lowed by the commencement of an action by Attorney General Young in the Ram sey county state district cours in whicn that court was asked to direct the issu- ance of a writ of mandamus, commanding the Northern Pacific company to comply with the state law The state court inn mediately issued the writ in compliance with MT. Young's petition and this pro- ceeding precipitated a sharp conflict be- tween the federal and the state courts. MT. Young was summoned before the former to give al account of his defiance of the courts injunction and failing to make a satisfactory explanation he was subjected to 8 file of s10O for contempt of court and at the same time ordered t9 dismiss the case in the stale court. Refusing either to pay the fine or to dismiss the case, MT. Young immediately brought the case to the supreme court of the United States on a petition for writ of habeas corpus. He based his petition upon the ground that the United States circuit court was without jurisdiction in the original proceeding because there was no diverse citizenship and that the suit instituted against him as attorney gener- al was in effect suit against the state and not against him.
 North Carolina Case.
 The North Carolina case was that of Sheriff Hunter of Buncombe county vs Agent Wood of the Southern railway, which attracted much attention during the greater part of last summer, and was for time the cause of a sharp conflict between the courts of the United States and those of North Carolina. Wood was indicted and found guilty and sentenced to serve a term of 30 days on the rock pile at Asheville, on the charge of selling railroad tickets for more than the maxi mum rate established by the statute. He appealed to Judge Pritchard, sitting in the United States circuit court for the western district of North Carolina, and the latter promptly issued writ of ha- beas corpus ordering Woods release by Sheriff Hunter.
 This action of the court was the culmi- nation. of several important steps in the controversy, beginning with the issuance of injunctions by Judge Pritchard against the state of North Carolina, prohibiting the carrying of the rate law into effect. lnlS proceeding WAS lOlloWeu Dy all du- dress by Governor Glenn to the superior court of this state, questioning Pritchards authority and asking them to see that indictments were found aganist the agents of the railroad company. In ac- cordance with this address. number of arrests were made so that the Wood case became a test case for many others.
 Pritchard's Opinion.
 So important did Judge Pritchard con- slider the action of the state courts that he said in his opinion:
 .If the criminal prosecutions against the agents, conductors and employees are permitted to continue, the managers of the railroads cannot successfully operate their trains, carry the mails or continue their usefulness as common carriers do- ing an interstate business"
 Considering the North Carolina case 10 have been disposed of by the action of the court in the Minnesota ease, Justice Peckham did not elaborate his views in the former proceeding
 He said:
 Being detained in custody by virtue of this conviction by one of the police courts of the state. he has the right to apply for a writ of habeas corpus to the United States circuit judge and that judge had power to issue the writ