Trade might increase with cheaper rates, or economies
might be made by the company, or both causes and many others of
increased earnings might combine. Corporation counsel, however, argued
that, were the principle of the statute admitted, and should all the
states through which the line passed do the like, ultimately a point
might be reached at which the railway would be unable to maintain, even
approximately, its dividend of eight per cent, and that the creation of
such a possibility was conceding the power of confiscation, and,
therefore, an unreasonable exercise of the Police Power, by the State of
Nebraska. With this argument the Supreme Court concurred. They held the
Nebraska statute to be unreasonable. Very possibly it may have been
unsound legislation, yet it is noteworthy that within three years after
this decision Mr. Hill bought the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, at the
rate of $200 for every share of stock of the par value of $100, thus
fixing forever, on the community tributary to the road, the burden of
paying a revenue on just double the value of all the stock which it had
been found necessary to issue to build the highway.
Pages:
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119