The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1879-11-27
SERIOUS QUESTION.
Is John Sherman Eligible TO tn Q
office he Holds!
Washington Special to Enquirer.

Washington Special to Enquirer.
In view of Secretary Sherman's own
admission, whether he is eligible to
be Secretary of the Treasury, and
whether for nearly three years he has
not been holding au office contrary to
the statutes of the United States. In
an interview with Geo. Alfred Town
send, published in the Enquirer late in
October last, Secretary Sherman is re.
ported to have said, in response to q
query as to whether he had seen Til
den since the Potter Investigation dis
banded: yes; we met in New York
at the annual meeting of the Board OF
the Fort Wayne Railroad. l had
known Tilden very we'll in connection
with the lease OF that road to the
Pennsylvania Company, to which lease
we were both favorable. was pretty
certain that he would be at this meet
ing, and, although l knew that he had
expressed himself with feeling against
me-to the effect that l had been q
chief instrument in counting HIM out
concluded to shake hands with him
unless he showed anger. l entered
the room and shook hands with one
after another of the Directors, who
were looking on with considerable in
terest to see how Tilden and should
meet sc.
Article l, section 8, clause of the
Constitution says: Congress shall
have power to regulate commerce with
foreign Nations, and among the sew
eral States and with the Indian tribes
In the case of Gibbon VS., Ogden 70
Wheaton, page l Chief-Justice Mar
shall defines commerce as follows
Commerce, in it's simple Specification
means any exchange of goods, but in
the advance of society labor, trans
portation, intelligence, care and the
various mediums of exchange become
commodities and enter into commerce.
The subject, the vehicle, the agent and
the various operations become the OBJ
jects ofcommercial regulation Again,
Story on the Constitution says: Com
Inerce is traffic, but it ia much more.
1t embraces transportation by land
and water, and all the means and ap-
pliaaces necessarily employed in car
rying it on This definition is also
laid down by the United States Su-
preme Court and II Wallace, page $50.
That the transportation of goods and
passengers from one State to another
is an act of commerce has been time
and again decided by the United States
Supreme Court in Is Wallace, 2O6; 10
Wallace, 584 15 Wallace, 232 and 2S4
90 u. S., 259 and 275; SO U. 5, 4, 80
and 1SS, and 81 U. S, 246.
From the foregoing definitions of
commerce, it is clear that railroads
engaged in transporting goods and
passengers from one State to another
are engaged in commerce. Hence
they are commercial corporations;
hence the Presidents and Boards OF
Directors of such commercial cOrpor-
ations are persons engaged in carry
ing on the business of commerce and
hence John Sherman, Secretary of the
Treasury, being, according to his own
a member of the Board OF
Directors of the Fort Wayne Railroad,
a corporation engaged in the business
of transporting goods and passengers
from one State to another, is a person
engaged in the business of commerce.
All this is very evident, and so is Sec
ton 243 of the United States Revised
Statutes, which enacts shat no person
appointed to the office of Secretary of
the Treasury, First Comptroller or
First Auditor, or Treasurer or Regis
ter, shall, directly or Indirectly, be
or interested in carrying on
the business of trade or commerce. X
And every person who
oiends against any of the prohibitions
of this section shall be deemed guilty
of high misdemeanor, and forfeit to
States the penalty of So 900;
and shall, upon conviction, be remov-
ed from office, and forever thereafter
be incapable of holding office under
the United States