International & G. N. Ry. Co. v. Anderson County

• Decision Date: 20 June 1912
• Citation: 150 S.W. 239
• Parties: INTERNATIONAL & G. N. RY. CO. v. ANDERSON COUNTY et al.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

150 S.W. 239

INTERNATIONAL & G. N. RY. CO. v. ANDERSON COUNTY et al.

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas. Galveston.

June 20, 1912.

Rehearing Denied October 17, 1912.

Appeal from District Court, Anderson County; James I. Perkins, Judge.

Action by Anderson County and others against the International & Great Northern Railway Company. From an order granting a temporary injunction, defendant appeals. Reformed and affirmed.

Wilson & Dabney, of Houston, and Williams & Steadman, of Austin, for appellant. A. G. Greenwood, Campbell, Sewell & Strickland, and Thos. B. Greenwood, all of Palestine, for appellees.

PLEASANTS, C. J.

This appeal is from an order of the district judge for the Second judicial district, made in chambers and without notice to appellant or opportunity on its part to be heard, granting a temporary injunction prohibiting appellant from removing its machine shops, roundhouses, and the general offices of its superintendent of motive power and machinery and its master mechanic from the city of Palestine, and commanding it to keep and maintain all of its general offices for the operation of its railroad at the city of Palestine, and within 60 days from the date of said order to return to the city of Palestine such of its general offices as were then being kept in the cities of Houston, Tex., and New Orleans, La. The suit in which this injunction was granted was brought in the district court of Anderson county in the Third judicial district, by Anderson county, the city of Palestine, and a number of named citizens of said city who allege that they sue in behalf of themselves and of all other citizens of said city, plaintiffs, against the International & Great Northern Railway Company, defendant. The petition alleges: "That the defendant International & Great Northern Railway Company is a corporation organized under the laws of Texas, as hereinafter shown, and required by law to keep and maintain its general offices at the city of Palestine in Anderson county. That the treasurer of the defendant is A. R. Howard, who resides in the county of Anderson, Tex., but who is temporarily in Houston in Harris county, Tex. That defendant has a local agent representing it in the county of Anderson, Tex."

After alleging the incorporation on October 22, 1866, by special act of the Legislature of Texas of the Houston & Great Northern Railroad, and the incorporation on August 5, 1870, by special act of said Legislature of the International Railroad Company, the first-named company having been chartered for the purpose of constructing and operating a railroad from the city of Houston northward to Red River, and the second for the purpose of constructing and operating a railroad from Red river across the state through the cities of Austin and San Antonio to the Rio Grande river, the petition contains the following allegations:

"That, acting under said act of August 5, 1870, the International Railroad Company had, prior to the 15th day of March, 1872, constructed a portion of its line of railroad from at or near the town of Hearne, in Robertson county, Tex., to the city of Palestine, in Anderson county, Tex., and was regularly operating said line of railroad as a common carrier of freight and passengers for hire, and was maintaining a depot at said city of Palestine.

"That heretofore, to wit, on or about the 15th day of March, 1872, the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company had constructed under its charter its line of railroad from the city of Houston northward to the north boundary line of Houston county, Tex.; and on or about said date said Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company, acting by its duly authorized president, Galusha A. Grow, contracted and agreed, in Anderson county, Tex., with the citizens of the city of Palestine, Tex., acting by and through Judge John H. Reagan, to extend its said line of railroad from the north boundary line of Houston county, to intersect the line of the International Railroad Company at Palestine, and to establish a depot within one-half mile of the courthouse at and to commence running cars regularly thereto by the 1st of July, 1873, and to thereupon locate and establish, and forever thereafter keep and maintain, the general offices, machine shops, and roundhouses of the Houston & Great Northern Railroad at the city of Palestine for and in consideration of the promise and agreement then made, upon the part of the said Judge John H. Reagan, to make a thorough canvass of Anderson county, to induce the electors thereof to authorize, by their votes, the issuance of the interest-bearing bonds of said county in the principal sum of $150,000, and for and upon the further consideration that Anderson county, on authorization of its electors, in the manner prescribed by law, should issue and deliver to the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company its interest-bearing bonds in said principal sum of $150,000, upon the completion of said railroad to its intersection with the International Railroad at Palestine, and upon the establishment of a depot within a half mile of the courthouse, and upon the commencement of the running of cars regularly to such depot.

"That, if said contract did not expressly name the citizens of Palestine as parties thereto (as plaintiffs expressly aver it did), yet the same was made for their benefit and in their behalf, and such citizens at that time and throughout the future, including the plaintiffs, were the parties intended by both Judge John H. Reagan and the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company as the parties to be benefited by the performance of all the obligations of the Railroad Company under said contract, and especially of those obligations which related to the location and maintenance of general offices, machine shops, and roundhouses at Palestine.

"That in order to induce the electors of Anderson county to authorize the issuance and delivery to the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company of the interest-bearing bonds of Anderson county, in the principal sum of $150,000, which bonds are hereinafter more fully described, the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company, acting by its duly authorized president Galusha A. Grow, and by other duly authorized agents, on or about the 15th day of March, 1872, and on or about the last days of April, 1872, and on or about the first days of May, 1872, and throughout the time from about the 15th day of March, 1872, to the 4th day of May, 1872, promised, agreed, and represented unto and with said Anderson county and the electors thereof that the general offices, machine shops, and roundhouses of the Houston & Great Northern Railroad, upon the completion of said railroad to Palestine, would be established and forever thereafter maintained at Palestine, in Anderson county, Tex.

"That said promises, agreements, and representations were deliberately authorized and made by the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company, with the intention that the electors of Anderson county should act and rely upon same. That the electors of Anderson county were induced, by said promises, agreements, and representations, to authorize and therefore did authorize by their votes at an election held in said county on the 1st, 2d, 3d, and 4th days of May, 1872 the issuance and delivery to the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company of the interest-bearing bonds of Anderson county for the principal sum of $150,000 in denominations of $500, payable in 20 years from their date, with interest at the rate of 8 per cent. per annum from their date, as per coupons to be attached, the interest and 2 per cent. of the principal to be paid on the 1st day of January of each year, said bonds to be issued and delivered upon the completion of said railroad to an intersection with the International Railroad at Palestine, and upon the establishment of a depot within half mile of the courthouse at Palestine, and upon the commencement of the regular running of cars by said company to such depot.

"That said electors would not have authorized the issuance and delivery of said bonds, nor the offer of same to the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company, but for the inducement of the above-mentioned promises, agreements, and representations, by the company, that it would establish and forever maintain general offices, machine shops, and roundhouses at Palestine, nor but for the fact that the electors relied and acted upon same.

"That the said Judge John H. Reagan made a thorough canvass of Anderson county between about the 15th day of March, 1872, and the 4th day of May, 1872, to induce the electors of Anderson county to vote to authorize the issuance of said bonds in strict conformity with his promise to, and agreement with, the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company and its president, as hereinbefore alleged.

"That said election was held under and by virtue of a proper order of the commissioner's court of Anderson county, Tex., and subsequently on the 6th day of May, 1872, an order was entered in said court declaring that more than two-thirds of the qualified voters of Anderson county had voted in favor of the issuance of said bonds.

"That prior to the 31st day of December, 1872, the Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company completed its railroad from the north boundary of Houston county to its intersection with the International Railroad at Palestine, and built a depot within one-half mile of the courthouse at Palestine, and commenced to run its cars regularly thereto, and thereafter, on or about the 29th day of January, 1873, said company, by its President, Galusha A. Grow, applied to the commissioner's court of Anderson county for the interest-bearing bonds of said county in the principal sum of $150,000, as hereinbefore described, and as authorized by the electors of said county; and, in order to induce the commissioner's court of Anderson county to issue and deliver said bonds, the said Houston & Great Northern Railroad Company...