Show POLITICAL LAW The attorneygeneral of New York maybe may-be a great lawyer but if what he sometimes some-times lays down as law is valid then law common sense reason and justice are by no means harmonious The Atlantic street railroad company Brooklyn had difficulty with its employees several months ago the utter striking and tying up the road for three or four days the cars were not run the public being inconvenienced and the company losing much money It seems under the franchise thecompany was required re-quired to run its cars daily and as it had not done this the attorneygeneral decides that the franchise has been forfeited This is a strict and literal interpretation of the law it is true and it would be the same if the forfeiture were declared by the failure of the cars to run from any other cause as the washing out of the road the tearing up of tho tracks by a mob the sickness of horses Railroads contract with the government to carry the mails on certain schedule time and penalties for failure are stipulated a bridge is burned a train is wrecked the road is blocked by snow or employees quit work and the contract is not fulfilled under such circumstances cir-cumstances would it be right to hold the railway companies to tho strict letter of the bargain punishing them by the infliction inflic-tion of penalties for failure to carry out the terms of the contract It would be Just as right and just as lawful as it was to declare the Brooklyn street railway fran thiso forfeited because the strikers pro tented tho running of the cars Tho New York attorneygenerals decision deci-sion in the case is like a good many other things done in the name of the law political The labor vote is to be conciliated concili-ated at the expense of right and justice |