The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1931-10-08
MT. LAKE INCORPORATION
Is HELD CONSTITUTIONAL
Judge d. Lindley Sloan UphOlds
Act of 1881 in Lengthy Opinion
Filed Here Tuesday Morning
BILL ORDER DISMISSED

That the Incorporation OF Mt.
Lake Park, under the provisions
of an Act passed at the 1881 ses-
sion of the General Assembly of
Maryland, was a valid exercise
of legislative powers and that
the bill of complaint filed by GER
tain property owners in the Park
attacking the constitutionality
of the measure, praying the Cir
cult Court for Garrett County to
declare the Act illegal and void,
was passed upon in a lengthy opinion
upholding the Legislative Act and dis
missing the bill of complaint filed in
the local Court Tuesday morning by
Chief Judge D. Lindley Sloan who
heard arguments of the points atissue
on Saturday, September 9Th.
Judge Sloan's decision in the matter
was as follows: 81 am Of the opinion
that the Act of 1881, Chapter $780,
the valid exercise of legislative power
and the defendants demurrer will be
sustained, the injunction refused and
the bill dismissed"
Judge Sloan in his opinion decided
favorably for the corporation on all
three principal points at issue: the
| impairment of contracts, qualifica-
lions of the voters and the legality of
the title of the Act.
The complainants in the bill, the
Community of Mountain Lake Park,
and Charles W. Baldwin, T. Davis
Richards, H. V. Leighton, Mrs. Eliza
beth T. Talson, Mrs. Minnie o. Rich
ards, A. D. Naylor and E. L. David
son, complained that the Act destroy
ed certain vested rights of the Noun
| tain Lake Park Association in the I'M
pairment of certain contracts; con-
tended that the Act was void because
the title of the Act included two sep
arate and distinct matters in violation
of the Constitution of Maryland, and
that the voting qualifications were
also unconstitutional as set forth in
the Act of the Assembly.
In his opinion Judge Sloan declared
that it was not within the power Of
the Mayor and Councilmen of Moun-
tain Lake Park to interfere with con-
ditions and covenants contained in
deeds of lot owners, but that this
question had not arisen.
He declared the Legislature had
right to name such qualifications for
voting, as had been done, wherein
wives or husbands and children Of
property owners 81 years or over
could vote. He also stated that only
the subject of the Act must be de-
scribed in the title of bill, but that
neither the details of legislation nor
the means of instrumentalities by
which the subject is to be carried into
effect constitute the subject Of the
Act.
According, therefore, to the law as
interpreted by Judge Sloan, Mayor
Mcclellan Clayton, and W. L. CAM
den, Thomas Schooley, Floyd R. Ut
terback, James F. Elliott and Albert
F. Schrock, Councilmen, chosen by
vote in August as the first officials Of
the newly Incorporated town, are le-
gally entitled to assert the power and
authority vested in them by the Act.
Judge Sloan's opinion is of such in
terest and touches upon the rights Of
such a large number Of people resid--
ing in; the Park and elsewhere, that
The Republican prints it in full. ~
Under the General Laws of this
State the Mountain Lake Park Assoc
citation of Garrett County" was in
corporated September %, 1881, the
object or purpose of which was "to es-
tablish and maintain mountain re-
ligious, literary and musical summer
resort" and Ito build hotel and stores
and to operate the same for the ac-
commodation and convenience of resi-
dents and visitors at Mountain Lake
Park"
The capital stock was fixed at fif-
teen thousand dollars, divided into
fifteen shares of one thousand dollars
each. By Act of Assembly of 1882,
Continued on Page Three)