44
 

which the City acquired a portion of the 14th Street
manufacturing station for the extension of the hospital.
These proceedings began on January 31, 1907, and ex¬
tended over a period of 16 years.

This case is typical of many similar ones, wherein the
cost of the condemnation proceedings has far exceeded
any advantage derived therefrom by the municipality. In
this case, the amount awarded by the Commissioners,
as stated, amounted to $341,354.82. The amount
claimed by the Company was $378,633.50. The saving,
therefore, amounted to only $37,278.68. The cost of the
proceedings to the Company, including special counsel
fees, expert testimony, printing, the preparation of ex¬
hibits, appeals in the various courts, etc., amounted to
$102,009.13. The cost to the City was probably an equal
amount. The Company ostensibly received $341,354.82
for its property. It actually received this amount, less
the expenses of proving the value of its property, or
$239,345.69. The stated cost of the proceedings to the
Company does not include the time of engineers and
other employees, more or less of which was devoted, di¬
rectly or indirectly, to the trial of the case. The interest
paid with the award, which, as will be observed, amounts
to only a little less than the award itself, is computed at
6 per cent, simple interest. Compounded semi-annually
it would have amounted to $559,637.57 instead of $336,-
234.49. The Company is entitled to compound interest,
but the law does not allow it. The 6 per cent, simple
interest rate places a premium on dilatory tactics on the
part of the counsel for the municipality, such as pro¬
longed cross examination of witnesses on trivial points,
interposing baseless objections to material evidence, etc.,