The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 5, July 1901 - April, 1902 Page: 64
370 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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64 Texas Historical Association Quarterly.
amendment to the Constitution was proposed. This also was
defeated (Acts 1887, p. 158), and no further attempt at relief
was made until after 1879.
Corporate activity had become great and many people were
becoming alarmed at the massing of capital and enterprise. The
first legislative expression of this uneasiness is found in the Quo
Warranto Act, passed July 9, 1879 (Acts 1879, p. 43). This is a
substantial re-enactment of the Statutes of 9th Anne, and gives to
the law officers of the government and to the courts much greater
power over private corporations than either had theretofore pos-
sessed. On April 10, 1883 (Acts 1883, p. 67), the office of State
engineer was created. His duties were largely connected with rail-
roads and their business. This did not prove satisfactory. March
28, 1885 (Acts 1885, p. 65), the proper officers throughout the
State were required to begin prosecutions against all private cor-
porations violating Sections 5 and 6, Article 10, of the constitu-
tion. On the same day an act was passed requiring all railroad
companies to maintain their general offices within the State (Acts
1885, p. 67). The next session of the Legislature, on April 2,
1887 (Acts 1887, p. 116), passed quite a stringent law, attempting
to regulate foreign corporations in their Texas operations. Next
came the statutes regarding receivers, authorizing the courts
through these instrumentalities to take charge of and operate rail-
roads and other corporate enterprises for causes enumerated in the
statute (Acts 1887, p. 119). This was followed by the trust law
in 1889 (Acts 1889, p. 141). On April 8, 1889 (Acts 1889, p.
171), the joint resolution submitting the amendment to the con-
stitution providing for the railroad commission was passed. This
amendment was adopted, and thus was laid the constitutional
foundation for our present commission law. April 3, 1889, the
law regarding foreign corporations was amended to make it con-
form to the constitution (Acts 1889, p. 87). In March, 1889
(Acts 1889, p. 130), the law requiring corporations to keep their
principal offices in the State was amended so as to make it more
stringent.
Legislation during this period evidences a complete change in
the State's policy as to the use of lands owned or controlled by it.
Early in 1883 (Acts 1883, pp. 2 and 3), all such lands were with-
drawn from sale. As soon as the plan could be matured and legis-
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Texas State Historical Association. The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 5, July 1901 - April, 1902, periodical, 1902; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101021/m1/70/?rotate=90: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.