The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1910-08-27

the real property of the plaintiff where
soever situated
/ Finley Shuyne's name led the list Of
! defendants. followed by that of the
/ Aerostatic Power company and page
/ after page of names of people owning
aerial craft. and airships everywhere
We're hemmed in by the real proper
ty" Of the plaintiff. like whalcrs frozen
in the ice. The real property" was
that wonderful spiders net Of grants.
and the plaintiff was the Universal
Nitrates and Air Products company.
Craiglead's opium dream was explain.
cd. The relation between the twin
companies was disclosed. Two perfect
~ we'll known legal principles were
here united in an audacious attempt to
monopolize the air. the rights attach
ing to ownership of land and that Of
injunction to prevent trespass or nui-
sance.
Public and press were struck with
amazement. The unthinking laughed
at the unheard of and preposterous
/, claim to private control of the atmos-
phere. Lawyers began porting over
cases dealing with rights in and over
land, with growing dubiety as to the
outcome of the case of the "Universal
Nitrates and Air Products company
versus Shayne ct a."
When the case came on to be heard
the laugh had disappeared. the very
army Of lawyers appearing for the de.
! PENDANT rendering it serious matter.
Cralghead sat in court with Filley. his
hair rumpled. his crooked nose high.
In suit Of legal black. drawing more
attention than did Carson. whose face.
bleached of the gulf beach tan. had
assumed the pnllor of the scholar.
while vast responsibilities had been
imparting to him an atmosphere Of dis
tinction. He sat scanning the people
OF the defensc-Shaync. Silberbcrg and
other great financial figures.
While the pleadings and atiiGavits
We're read Craighead skctchcd tho
bailiffs. shuffled his feet and drummed
on the table until the court tapped for
silence
1--WE will hear from the plaintiff"
said Justice Mclfaddcn. and as the
facts seem practically undisputed'-
But. your honor" protested the
counsel for the defendants. I'VE GER
tainly do. not admit
For present purposes" replied the
Justice. 1.-The showing seems ample that
plaintiff owns certain rights In lands
so distributed that the defendants
must pass over them in going from
place to place; that the defendants
have hahitually done so and that the
situation constitutes threat that this
will be repeated The defendants by
Ginning the right to pass these lines
confess this for present purposes We
will therefore hear from plaintiffs
counsel on the law"
MIR. Filley gathered up his papers;
but. with 81 professional sounding May
1t please the court" that dumfounded
Filley and drew from the justice re-
quest for the gentleman's name, Craig
head rose.
"Craighead." said he in response to
the courts query. II will offer few
remarks on the law and then yield to
my learned colleague. who will lay be-
fore your honors the feeble attempts of
the courts to crystalline it in prece-
dents. The law is fully as plain as the
nose on the face Of the most Roman Of
your honors. AS to its righteousness.
it is as moral as landownership. That
it has not heretofore been applied has
been owing to the stupidity of the
legal profession. to the asininity of
landowners and to the fact that the
law is so plain. for that which is all
around ever remains undetected. like
the pressure Of the atmosphere or the
picture with trees and clouds repre-
senting faces or animals. And as when
once the cat in the landscape Is seen
the landscape fades. and one can see
nothing but the cat, so in this case
when the law is once made plain your
honors will be able to see nothing else.
We are taking the liberty of unsealing
the blind eyes of the courts"
Mr.. Filley was outraged at the eff
frontery Of this unlicensed actor in
thus taking the scene. but to make Il
disturbance now would be worse than
TO let him 20 on. and Mr.. F'illey sat
down frowning and hoping that Craig.
heads offense might escape discovery.
'Cujus al solum. eius est usque al
coelum.'" went on Craighead. lis the
maxim on which we stand. the mean
ing Of which has been decided in hun
dreds of cases and strange to say. is
still clear--'Hc who owns land owns
to the sky He has as much moral
right to the sky as to the surface.
The man with deed to square mile
of the surface of this planet under
this law owns great pyramid. apex
ing at the earth's center and extending
out into space in diverging lines in
Hpifaiv on that iP ho cun chnlv that