Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 25.pdf/16

 Ithamar Conkey Sloan 1874 he says: "The power reserved to the Legislature by the constitution of the state, to alter or repeal at any time after their passage, all general laws and special acts under the provisions of the Consti tution, particularly, under sec. 1, Art. XI, is, by its terms, an unlimited power. The existence, powers and capacities of a corporation, and its mode of exercis ing them, must depend upon the law of its creation. The exercise of the cor porate franchise, being restrictive of in dividual rights, cannot be extended beyond the letter and spirit of the act of incorporation. Corporations have no right to charge toll on freight, except as that right is granted by their charters. There is no limitation on the power of the Legislature to alter the charter of a corporation, where that power is re served without any words of limitation. The legislative discretion cannot be con trolled by the courts. The reserved power of the Legislature is not affected by the fact that its exercise may inci dentally impair, or even destroy, the value of the securities held by the creditors of the corporation. Thus, where the state has not granted any ex clusive right to one corporation, it impairs no contract by incorporating a second one which injures or destroys the first." These quotations seem so thoroughly fundamental in the law as to make needless the citation of authorities to support them. But many citations are

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submitted, leaving no room to doubt their correctness. And the same argu ment is presented before the Supreme Court at Washington, but the proposi tions are announced with a little more care. Mr. Dixon was associated with him in the case at Washington, but was unable to attend. - And the argument for the state was made by Mr. Sloan only. Enough has been said to show that as the apostle of constructive law, of the law that tends to the upbuilding of the state, Mr. Sloan stands without a supe rior in the state, perhaps not in the whole country. He reveled in the presenta tion of carefully worked out principles of law. But he was not a mere theoribt. His view was that of the clear-minded lawyer, of the sound-headed statesman. Yet, withal, he was a truly modest man. The world needs more of such great men. And it is the writer's contention that we all need to know much more about such great men and their valuable work. He died, ripe in years, with public and professional honors well won. Thus has passed from public view, but let us hope not from the public mind alto gether, a truly great lawyer. And "the fame and example of a great lawyer should be cherished, while it may, by his professional survivors, for the imi tation of those coming after, that they, too, may be aided in the fullness of time to die full of professional honor."

i/E have often been told of the enormous waste of war, and the cost of supporting "European armaments. The withdrawal from production of so many men as are required for the standing armies of those militant nations can easily be understood as a factor in the cost of living. But we are not as ready to consider the enormous cost of litigation in this country, and the enormous waste involved in the withdrawal of so many of the most capable men of the world from productive work in order that they may fight our private battles for us. Here is a cost comparable with that of European armaments. — Professor T. N. Carver.