Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1920-06-05
LETS DOWN BARS
To CORPORATIONS
Claim OF Basic Law Maker for
Stock Section.
ANOTHER BATTLE ON PROGRAM
Enemies Of Utilities Are Preparing to
Resist Alleged Excessive Rates;
Joker Said to Have
Been Found.

Springfeld.-The con.con decided
that In the forming of corporations
provision may be made by law for
the issuance of classes of stock with
restricted, or without any, voting
power and every certificate Of stock
shall show on its face its voting or
non.votlng character"
This. in the opinion Of Gale c. Gil
bert, "lcts down the bars to corpora
lions as in Delaware" and he predicted
the provision will be defeated on the
second reading. Gilbert, in addition
to being delegate, is head of the
blue sky" department In the score.
tary of states office. The present
constitution prohibits non-voting
| stock.
Delegate Dunlap attempted to pre-
vent the application of this constitu.
tlonai provision to agricultural and
horticultural societies"
81 move that section be adopted
| saying that this new constitution shall
not apply to farmers" sarcastically
| said Delegate Hamlll. The Dunlap
| amendment was defeated.
Delegate Mghcl of Aurora openly
| charged that one new section relating
| to corporations had "joker in it,
| That section said that the rates and
| charges of public utility corporations
shall not be discriminatory nor con.
fiscatory, but must and shall be mt
all times reasonable and just, both to
| the general public and to such cor
porations."
I Enemies of watercd stock and eX-
4 cesSlve utility rates In the constitu-
\ tional convention are getting ready for
another battle.
| They were able to do little more
;han dent the utility interests front
when the corporations committee re-
port was considered and adopted In
the committee of the whole, but they
claim they did make some Roadway.
They eliminated the Joker 1t Is as
serted. intended to tie the hands Of
the state In rate controversies, and
forced the recognition of two sections
Of the present constitution on railroad
regulation.
When the report comes before the
convention on second reading. Dele
gate Philip Il. Eltlng of Macomb In.
tends to renew the fight he made In
the committee of the whole for the
adoption of the minority recommends.
tons he brought In.
He does not believe that street car,
L iI,,h and
other utilities should he permitted 10
water and initiate their capital stack
and then demand of the public rates
hat will pay divldenS on the watcred
stock: and he will Insist that a prohl.
bition of this shall be written into the
draft for Il new constitution.
1t is contcnded he will have the sup.
port of several delegates who share
his views, but who stayed out Of the
fight In the committee of the whole.
Besides adopting the proposed artl-
Gle on interpretations the past week,
the convention approved 20 sections Of
the report of the committee on legis
lation.
1 When 1t adjourned for the week 1t
Il
l provides "No officer of this state shall
be Interested, either directly or indI-
| rectly, In any contract entered into by
4 the state, and no officer of any mu-
\ nicipal corporation, county, town or
| other officer, board or commission
shall be interested, directly or indl-
rectly In any contract entered into by
4 ouoh holinS
This, 1t was objected, would prevent
4 man who happened to hold few
\ shares of stock in II gas, light, telc'
phone or street car company from act
ing rs alderman or In any other OIL
] cial capacity in Il city that had given
| franchise to the company.
Efforts to change the present nrti'
4 Gle on the Illinois Central railroad
| failed. This road Is required to pay
7 per cent of it, yearly income to
! the state instead of taxes. This money
goes to the payment of the "Ordinary
expenses" of the state. Delegates
from counties through which the rOnd
runs argued that the counties should
get part of the money. Some of the
delegates said they will attempt re-
vision Of the section on the second
reading. Downstntc delegates have q
: plan by which they claim Cook county
would benefit financially by dlstrlbu
: ton of the railroad income, and they
g.. have convinced number of Chicago
delegates that this Is true.
!. Absent from all Or IL part of the SEES
sions the past week were: Oscar Wolf
Michael Iarussi Levi Mayer, $, Il
: Pincus, Ernest ID. Potts, Abel Davis
Thomas II. Frole, Walter ii, Wilson
!, A. ]. Carey, william IL, Bcckman anC
p. G. Baldwin of Chicago, Rodney
: Brandon, Mooseheart; Guy l.. Shaw
!. BeardstOwn; Henry w. Monert
I" Hoyleton; William NJ, Seaman, Peru
: Alvin Warren, Leland; Joseph w
|; FiSer, Bloomington william Stewart
Paris; Prince A. Pearce, Carmi; Her
!. bert +. Lii Mascoutah; william j
Sneed, Herrin; Clinton L. Conkling
Springfield.