Edward Douglass White

“ Rep. 622, where a writ of error to the supreme court of Florida was dismissed, as follows: 'The supreme court of Florida gave no opinion, and, therefore, we are left to conjecture as to the grounds on which the pleas were held to be bad; but if the judgment rested on two grounds, one involving a Federal question and the other not, or if it does not appear on which of two grounds the judgment was based, and the ground independent of a Federal question is sufficient in itself to sustain it, this court will not take jurisdiction. ”

“ The Cuyahoga River Power Company, plaintiff in error, was chartered under the laws of Ohio to build and maintain a system of dams, canals, and locks in the Big Cuyahoga river for the generation of electricity for light, heat, and other purposes. The corporation was granted authority to acquire by condemnation or purchase property necessary for the conduct of its business. In July, 1911, the Power Company commenced this action against the Northern Realty Company, one of the defendants in error, to condemn a large tract of land owned by it adjacent to the river. ”

“ The four preliminary questions were these: (a) the existence of the petitioning corporation, (b) its right to make the appropriation, (c) its inability to agree as to the compensation to be paid for the property, and (d) the necessity for the appropriation. The defendants not only relied upon these four preliminary propositions, but also resisted the taking on the ground that a condemnation of the land under the petition of the Power Company would be inconsistent with and destructive of the public use to which the land had been applied by the Traction Company. ”