Moor v. Texas Co

• Decision Date: 13 January 1936
• Docket Number: No. 49,49
• Citation: 80 L.Ed. 509,297 U.S. 101,56 S.Ct. 372
• Parties: MOOR v. TEXAS & N.O.R. CO
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

297 U.S. 101

56 S.Ct. 372

80 L.Ed. 509

MOOR

v TEXAS & N.O.R. CO.

No. 49.

Argued Dec. 10, 11, 1935.

Decided Jan. 13, 1936.

Messrs. Thornton Hardie, of El Paso, Tex., and Henry E. Hackney, of Uniontown, Pa., for petitioner.

Messrs. Ben C. Dey, of New York City, Jules H. Tallichet, of Houston, Tex., and Maury Kemp, of El Paso, Tex., for respondent.

Mr. Stanley, f. Reed, Sol. Gen., of Washington, D.C., amicus curiae for the United States.

[Argument of Counsel from page 102 intentionally omitted]

PER CURIAM.

Lee Moor brought this suit on October 23, 1934, for a mandatory injunction to compel the Texas & New Orleans Railroad Company to transport 10 bales of cotton from Clint, Tex., to New Orleans. The company had refused to transport the bales because of the lack of the bale tags required by the Cotton Control Act of April 21, 1934 (sections 10, 14, 48 Stat. 598, 603, 604 (7 U.S.C.A. §§ 710, 714)). Moor contended that the statute was void, as an attempt to regulate the production of cotton contrary to the provisions of the Fifth and Tenth Amendments of the Constitution of the United States. On final hearing, the District Court did not rule upon the constitutional question, but denied the injunction and dismissed the complaint upon the ground that it had not been shown that the plaintiff would suffer irreparable injury for which he had no adequate remedy at law. The Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the decree (75 F.(2d) 386), and certiorari was granted.

The complaint alleged that the plaintiff was the owner of more than 3,500 acres of land in El Paso county, Tex.; that the encumbrances and the taxes and charges assessed for water were such as to require that he raise and sell annually 2,000 bales of cotton for at least 10 cents a pound net, or lose his land through foreclosure proceedings; that his cotton would have no value unless it could be transported to cotton markets; that the Cotton Control Act (section 4 (7 U.S.C.A. § 701)) imposed a tax of 50 per centum of the average central market price per pound of lint cotton, and in no event less than 5 cents per pound; that having ginned about 1,000 bales of cotton, and being under the financial necessity of selling them, which was impossible under the statute unless he procured bale tags showing that the cotton was exempt or the tax had been paid, he had sought, under duress, and had obtained tax exemption certificates for 855 1/2 bales, the entire amount to which he was entitled; that he would raise and gin a total of about 2,500 bales, each of the average weight of 500 pounds during the year 1934, and had already ginned 1,833 bales; that he had tendered, without the required tags, 10 bales to the Southern Pacific Railroad Company for shipment to New York, and 10 bales to the defendant for shipment to New Orleans, but shipment had been refused solely by reason of the absence of the tags; that the average central market price of lint cotton was about 12 cents per pound, and, if transported, his cotton would be worth about $60 a bale and the tax would be about $30...