The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-03-21
THE EVOLUTION OF PRIVATE
CORPORATIONS.

have failed 10 ask himself how much 81
the diificulties inherent In the two cor
pontton statutes under discussion had
been created by oficeholders. oficsDeelssEs
and partisan politicians for personal and
party purposes and not for the publiS
welfare. Nor could Awyer familiar with
corporation literature fail 20 recall that
which was Naid nearly forty years ago by
the late Mr.. Justice Curtis. who resigned
from the court in 1851 Several years
later ha gave a course Of lectures In the
Harvard Law SchoOl on jurisdiction and
practice In thai Federal courts. In which
he said that -E,eitheg the trainers Of ths
Constitution nor the trainers Of the Judi
ciary act Of I7s0 had corporations in view
He added that -between the time when
the Constitution OF Massachusetts, was
framed and the Constitution Of tho United
States was adopted and tho Judiciary oct
passed. Massachusetts, created but one
private corporation" when private cor
Porations did come before the Supreme
Court at Washington they were treated n
first. he said. like partnerships when jrsris-
diction by reason OF citizenship OF two
States was under consideration. His do
scription Of the finally invented fiction of
citizenship OF members Of the corpora
tions IN very interesting.
he was speaking. OF course. not Of cor
pOrNtions creating political governments.
not OF religious or elssmosynary corpora
tions. but Of private commercial corpora
tons. With the first the trainers Of the
Constitution were quite familiar. The
British Parliament. the several States
which appointed the members Of the
constitutional convention. together with
their several cities. counties and towns.
were corporations. The trainers OF the
Constitution were engaged in making n
new aud greater corporation. which was
that Of the United States. The Consti-
tuition was TO he its charter.
Much Of the argunsSs: last week was
over the legality OF private corporation
composed Of other private corporations.
and yet the United States corporation
was made up Of other sovereign and in
dependent state corporations. Il pluri-
bus unum' Ia its motto. That corpora
ton 10 a public political body. q body
polite. created by law. immortal We hope.
composed Of States themselves sovereign
and united by a common name. A pri-
vate commercial corporation differs be-
cause composed Of individuals. and yet
n State or nation may be a member.
Very soon after the Federal Constitu-
ton had been adopted the several States
began creating with great rapidity private
commercial corporations the like Of
which. the historians tell US. had existed
from the dawn Of civilization In Greece
and Italy. whence they were carried 20
England by the Romans. went TO Holland
and thence came 60 America. AZ FIRST
the States looked askancs at them and
resisted them. The members Of the cor
poratiOns were made liable for the debts
OF the private corporations. Then size
was restricted. The lawyers in our coun-
try Of the first quarter Of the nineteenth
century had limited knowledge o. the
law Of private corporations till the pub
location in Is2s Of ten lectures by Chan
csllor Kent in Columbia College. Of Kent
Commentaries in 1860. and Angel and
Ames on Corporations in Is57. They
were the first American books treating Of
that branch Of law. and the subsequent
additions are interesting ~ showing how
relatively primitive the Law was in issI.
Since then some dozen editions Of each
publication have been made. They dis
our country. II was az = later date. per-
haps in Pennsylvania. that a mortgage OF
the property II a corporation and the
issue Of negotiable shares and bonds. the
latter payable To bearer were invented.
which by gathering up individual savings
have enabled state private corporations !
to contribute 30 much 20 the economic !
growth. happiness and prosperity Of the |
United States. Prevalent present hostil- |
ity TO those benehcent State institutions |
Wss painfully apparent in the Govern |
ment arguments % last week before the |
Supreme Court
Next. after the possession % more than 1
three and a half millions OF square miles |
~ land and a dual systerA 81 government |
" HIGH many politicians seem now willing l
to discard. IL may be safely said that |
our state system Of private corporations !
has done more for the health, happiness.
welfare and economic prosperity Of the |
United States than other discoveries or /
inventions Of the last century. includ- |
ing steam and electricity in all their ap-
plications. and measures for the relief and |
prevention Of disease. since without cor
porations they could not have been 40 1
efficient a. they have been. Nobody who |
had the intelligence. energy and self
sacrifice 10 Accumulpte loanable capital |
would have been likely To risk IL in specu-
iative enterprises IL all his property were
liable for all debts contracted by a ma
jority 81 partners or associates II has
been state corporations. drawing by
shares and bonds into their enterprises
the savings. great and ANAL. Of millions
u men and women. that have achieved
american economic prosperity and the
physical power OF the nation. and yet IL
was seriously argued last week az q fact
hat few business men controlled. against
lac interests AMI wishes Of thoss milliOns
n owners the uss Of the capital invested
n corporations in which q majority Of
'hares Ia master. With more truth might
{ be said. a. ie seems 10 me. that q few
ncn AZ Washington now control the az
airs Of the United States against the In
erests and wishes Of more than fourteen
Millions OF voters. A LIsTExKR.
WASHINGTON. D. c.. March 10.