by John Marshall Harlan

“ It is equally true that that tribunal has no general power of assessment, but only jurisdiction to assess 'the franchise, roadway, road-bed, rails, and rolling stock' of railroad corporations operating roads in more than one county, and that all other property of such corporations, subject to taxation, is assessable only 'in the county, city, city and county, town, township, or district in which it is situated, in the manner prescribed by law.' Such is the declaration of the state constitution. ”

“ The 'roadway' has a more extended signification as applied to railroads. In addition to the part denominated road-bed, the roadway includes whatever space of ground the company is allowed by law in which to construct its road-bed and lay its track. Such space is defined in subdivision 4 of the seventeenth section and the twentieth section of the act 'to provide for the incorporation of railroad companies,' etc., approved May 20, 1861. St. 1861, p. 607; San Francisco & N. P. R. Co. ”

“ Of those patented, 3,138 acres are in Santa Clara county, and 18,789 acres in Fresno county. When these proceedings were instituted, no part of its above mortgage debt had been paid, except the accruing interest and $1,632,000 of the principal, leaving outstanding against it $30,898,000.
In the year 1852, California, by legislative enactment, granted a right of way through that state to the United States for the purpose of constructing a railroad from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean ”