Year: 1866

Il d. ~
]. Walker, having spoken on behalf of the defend
ants and Mr.. Gibbons and Mr. Ouyler on behalf
of the compliments, Judge Porter made the con-
cluding argument as follows:


Strange, indeed, may 1t please your Honors, was
the remark that has Just fallen from my learned
opponent, ga lawless invasion OF the complain
ants rights" A man calls me by bill in
eq uity TO show how claim certain rights. 1 make
my answer to his BILL and present IL to the court,
and ask them to decide upon 1t. Am to be ar
raigned for a lawless invasion OF his rightsl A
man sues me on promissory hoie' ana state state
thing hear is that am entering upon lawless
invasion of his rights.


fell most painfully upon my ear-most extraordi-
nary words, such as are seldom heard in argument
and which i could hope never to hear again, "the
dishonesty ana bad faith" of the position taken by
the defendants in this case. What will come next!
The PeLnsylvania Railroad Company talking
about dishonesty and bad faithl L will tell you
what did come next The attempt to read here
from newspaper something that was there said
about some attempt OF somebody TO try the effect OF
a bribe on the Secretary of the Common wealth, a
thing as absurd as 1t would be impossible.


MIR. r ]. Walker-It had nothing at all to do


Mr.. Porter-The Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany talking about bribes What is to come nexti
viii the Pennsylvania Railroad Company next
inveigh about motive power as means OF convey
ing passengersi do not know whether you OBJ
served what went after the trial of that humane
and amiable gentleman whose name was intro
duced into the ocSe by the Attorney General.
mean MIR. Probst, who was furnished with quar-
for a certain time at the public charge near the
city of Philadelphia. He cut the throats Of the
father, the mother, the children, and finally the
innocent babe, and he spent the most of his time
from that hour to the day of his execution In IN
Weighing against murder. Almost the last thing he
said before execution was that he thought he ought
to be hung about as often as the number of muir
ders he had committed. Probst talking about mur-
der! The Pennsylvania Railroad Company talk
ing about dishonesty and corruption! What will


As to this city of Philadelphia, IN which we all
have common interest, what has the city Of Phi
ladelphia to do with this casel do not know whe-
ther your Honors have kept up with the course OF
science respecting the diseases of the human eye,
and whether you have seen that the learned sur
geons who treat that subject in our hospitals have


invented pair OF speetacles naviag an aperture
ameter, so that no one can see through them, ex-
cept in one direction and at one objec Is that the
way you are to sit in this case, judges OF this
great State, to whom every man in the Common


wealth looks for the protection Of his rightsl II
the day should come when your Honors shall be
dwarfed from great, intelligent learned magis-


trates, deciding for the people OF the whole COM


monwealth, when you shall be induced to look, in


questions of this magnitude, invol wing the for


tunes OF hundreds of thousands of people, at one


small spot such as that, and have your eyes di-


rected 10 nothing else, how will it be possible TO
hope for a just decision of any easel ...


But there are those who think that the city OF
Philadelphia has deeper stake in this question


than she has ever had in any question of similar
kind. This is my opinion, and 1t is the opinion OF
my colleague, Mayor Henry, who has treated me
generously in this matter that he desires me to
make this argument; and what that gentleman
does not know about the interests of Philadelpha
no other man need attempt to learn. do believe
that the city of Philade phia has in this thing a


chance which she never has had before! Think OF
ii! Think of the advantage that would accrue TO
the people of Philadelp pha when man could


stand in the far west, with two rival lines of rail-


roads running directly to Philadelphia, and say
HHow much will you carry me and my merchan-
disc for to Philadelphia" And again, when a
man can stand in the city OF Philadelphia, with
two great rival lines of railroad leading out of 1t,
and say to these companies, "For how much will
you transport me and my freight TO the wes.r' I


tell you the advantage to that city would be meal
culable


But it is not the city OF Philadelphia, nor the


State OF Pennsylvania that we are to consider here


These charters were not made for the city of Phila-
delphia. These great rights were given by the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to these corpo-


raions for the benefit of the whole people, and this
Common wealth has never before had such a
chance TO secure q rival railroad line running


through the northern part of the State to the great


west through such counties as Venango, Clear


field, Jefferson, Centre and Norhumberland, must


this road run-counties, the existence of which is


scarcely known to that large class OF persons who
think that the world is bounded by the Delaware
and the Schuylkill. rival road running through
these counties, in opposition to the Pennsylvania


Railroad Oompany-what better than that could
the State of Pennsylvania Gesire2 At the end of
five years from the completion of such a road the


State OF ofPennsylvana and the city of Philadelphia


could afford to burn every security they own in the
present railroads and still be the richer


If you will look at the parties interested and the


projects contemplated in this enterprise, such as
all The nations of antiquity could not have accom-


pIished) you will see that it is not matter to be


discouraged, but to be encouraged. If rival line
TO the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, founded


as this great enterprise Is founded, be- as the Penn
sylvania Company call ii, monster rival, then


the best thing which, with all respect TO the Court
| l deem it can do for Pennsylvania, is to decide
this question in favor of this monster. care
| thing about its being constructed operated by
British capital. If these English gentlemen will
come over here and expend millions upon millions
OF dollars for the purpose of building railroad
across our State, by which every citizen in the
common wealth shall be benefited, have no OBJ
lection TO make to IL. If the projectors make mo-
ney by it 1 shall not covet their money. II they
lose money 1 shall not grieve over that circum
stance. The learned gentleman asks with what


face we come into this court and raise this ques-


tion. will tell him. 1t is with an honest face.


1t is with faces that never afraid TO meet the
gaze OF mortal man, because we never did any


thing that we were ashamed to lay before the


world. l think your Honors must conclude conclude with


matters as these the case must be very bare OF merit
in itself


have here but enc desire, but one purpose, bat
one duty. want TO say that which will be useful
to you. There is something that comes after an
arguments there is something that is called con-


sultation, In which nave soinetnes n been led 70


were before the bench The reason is, that you


throw out Of consideration altogether those foreign
topics which seem to be introduced with much
Ingenuity and which seem to exert some in uence
at the tiIne but which die away and disappear in
the severe discussion of the consultation. have
made this observation that while before you in
arguments, we introduced numerous topics, 70 the
number, sometimes of scores or hundreds When
you come to pronounce your decisions you sell


dom, II ever dwell upon more than one, two, or at


most three or four points Everything else disap-


pears therefore, If can say anything that will aid


In bringing your minds TO a direct conclusion in


deciding this case, that is the only ambition


have.


sat, yesterday, and for nearly an hour after he
commenced, heard the remarks OF Mr.. Gibbons in


profound astonishmenG and this morning, with


equal wonder, listened 70 those OF Mr.. Cuyler


for more than half an hour upon the discussion OF


matters that can have no bearing, no pertinency,
no relevancy TO this case. Let 1t be assumed for


the moment that have not the right to build ole


OF these railroads between FRANKLIN and Milton.