Vicksburg Waterworks Co. v. Vicksburg

Citations

• 185 U.S. 65
• 22 S. Ct. 585
• 46 L. Ed. 808
• 1902 U.S. LEXIS 2241

Syllabus

<p>By the act of March 18, 1886, the city of Vicksburg was authorized to provide for the erection and maintenance of a system of waterworks and the contract made in accordance with its provision was within the power of the city to make, and the subsequent legislation, state and municipal, set forth in the bill, impair the contract rights of the water company, within the protection of the Constitution of the United States unless the city can point to some inherent want of legal validity in the contract.</p> <p>It is one of the most valuable features of equity jurisdiction, to anticipate and prevent a threatened injury, where the damages would be insufficient or irreparable; and the exercise of such jurisdiction is for the benefit of both parties, in disclosing to the defendant that he is proceeding without warrant of law, and in protecting the complainant from injuries which, if inflicted, would be wholly destructive of his rights.</p> <p>This cause presents a controversy so arising under the laws and Constitution of the United States as to give the Circuit Court jurisdiction.</p>