The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1913-05-15

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master in being ordered away from
blockading the entrance to the station
building It will be observed that this
man was not a passenger, but on &C
count of the words which he alleged
the court rendered judgment in his
favor for $1,000, which the company
ultimately was compelled to pay. Wher
the case was affirmed, he was at thai
time blockading the entrance of the
station again, but I believe he was al
lowed to stay there. Being insulteC
beats driving hacks This $1,000 rep
resents the salary of a railroad com
missioner for half year.
Five hundred dollars has been al
lowed for three hours delay. the con
ductor forgetting to put lady off the
train, and then not stopping the train
after it had left the station to put
her off; six thousand dollars for an
agents cursing and insulting a dis
charged employee who had returned to
the station, and pushing him through
doorway, but doing him no physical
harm. How much would a merchant
have to pay? | confess this seems
to me great deal of money for the
people of Mississippi to pay for trifling
annoyances, deplorable indeed, but for
, which money is really no compensa.
ton and which are the common lot of
mankind. Would it not be better to
pay our money for hardihood and en-
durance than for sensitiveness and the
exaggerated ego? Why not give the
money to somebody who fights?
A verdict was in one instance OBJ.
tanned by negro against a railroad
company for $4,000 upon the sole com.
plant that the conductor called him a
liar. In another instance a man sued
on account of cold depot One of the
defendants witnesses testified that he
was at the depot and did not notice
that it was particularly cold and did
not suffer, but when the supreme court
affirmed Judgment in favor of the
plaintiff, this witness also brought a
suit and although confronted with his
own testimony in the previous case he
obtained judgment of $3.50.
In another instance a lady was car
ried by her station a few miles and
returned in the day time riding in
the parlor car both ways. She obtain
ed verdict for $4,000.
This sum is, believe, more than the
honored chief justice of this great
commonwealth receives for his years
work. Why should the people of Mis-
sissippi pay so much for so little?
Where does the money come from that
pays these verdicts if it does not come
from them? 1t is their money which
is being wasted an dstolen, and they
don't even have the fun of being
drunken sailors.
Size of Verdict,
1t is the size of the verdict that is
the life of the business. If the same
suit brought against the company by
a negro were brought against a local
planter or merchant there would be no
verdict at all; yet perhaps under the
false idea that railroad companies do
9 profitable business and have piles
of dollars just waiting for some one
to roll them the jurors puts both hands
into the lean purse and get the money
into circulation. He could not pick out
case where an excessive verdict will
harm the public more.
A short time ago in the interesting
little city of Mound Bayou, which as |
you will remember is practically a |
composed of negroes. a
factory was opened, resulting entirely
from the thrift and industry of the
negro race. This joyful occasion
brought the negroes to Mound Bayou
rom everywhere. Special trains were
run from New Orleans Memphis and
Jackson on the day Of the celebration
and the resources of the railroad com.
'any were taxed to the utmost to find
equipment of any kind in order to car. |
" all the people who offered them. |
selves for the journey.
The hotel Accommodations in Mound
Bayou were not as great as in some
'ther cities of the country and unfor.
there came an unexpected !
'old wave which reduced the tempera.
.ure the night the visitors went home !