, 1880-02-08
AL the Points of the Conhu-
mist Lawyers Upset.
Armed Bodies Of Communists fot to
Be Allowed to Parade

Be Allowed to Parade.
Judge Barnum's Decision Rfu1}d and
the Cause RemandI
| 4 T.
Special Dt.patei to The cnyaadhst4':<.
| MOUNT VERNON, I'LL, Fey ine1e was
filed in the office 6f the Clef 4tne supreme
Court for the Southern gam DIVISION to-
day copy of tho opinic{ d the Supreme
Court in the case of Dump ihe feople,
an appeal from Cook. IEifbe remembered
that, soon after the pJsa;e Of the Militia
law by the Legislatte, which provided,
among othsr things, h:t armed bodies OF
men not forming paf Of the regular militia
organization shouItot parade through the
streets ofany city ythout a license Of the
Governor 4 man btthe name Of Bielefeldt
and mmbers his company were
arrested and fined in a: Chicago
police court. Bielefe1dt refused to
pay his fine, and applied to Judge Barnum
| for a writ Of labeas corpus. The Judge
granted the witt in lengthy opinion, in
with he declared that about every section
antlklause in tho Militia law was unconstitu-
| tior,l. Thv being habeas corpus case it
| vJ impossible to carry the matter to the
! S,breme Court. Soon afterwards, however,
| a han by the name Of Dunno, being stlm-
mined to appear as a petit juror before
| .Fdse Barnum, then sitting in the Criminal
| burt, pleaded his exemption, he being =
kember of the National Guard, and, by the
terms Of the law, not amenaoia to
fury service. The Court overruled the
point and, the juror refusing to serve, he
was fined; and from that decision an appeal
was taken to the Supreme Court, sitting last
November at Mount: v Vernon, where the case
was argued by Mr.. Charles 4: Gregory OH
behalf Of the Juror, and by Mr.. kubens OIL
behan Of the people. The opinion in this
most important case was fled to-day, and Is
as follows:
The Court said that the case involved the
validity of The statute under which the State
militia was organized. Mr. II. }. Dunno,
employed by one Of the commercial firms OF
| Chicago, raised a plea of exemption from
jury service in - the Criminal Court OF
Cook. County on the ground of his
| being member Of a State regiment
of militia. Judge Barnum, who was sitting
in this Court at the time, while he expressed
the absence Of disrespect to the gentleman,
| refused the excuse, Temarking that the Mili-
| tia law Of the State said that the militia
should consist Of s 900 men, and that If one
| militiaman was excused the remainder could
claim an equal immunity. The same excuse,
| in his opinion, cou1db as well applied to
save militiamcn from arrest in all cases ex-
| cept for treason, felony, or breach OF Inc
peace. lie regarded tie law fixing the NUM-
ber of the militia rs directly conflicting with
| the Constitution Of the United States regr-
J1yhi4
to be the only law in force. Under
| the latter law the militia we're called out in
the War Of the Rebellion, and he consid-
cred it the only one under which they could
| again be called for active service. The Court
held that there could not be two laws regulat-
ing the same subject, and that the State law
was suspended and imperative. Judge Bar
nun, therefore, when Mr. Dunno failed to
appear as juror, fined him $50 for contempt,
| from which an appeal was tazen-
"All preliminary considerations as to the
manner in which the case comes before the
Court on the inyalldity Of the act under the
Constitution Of the State will be waived, with
| view to
PROCEED DIRECTLY TO TIE QUESTION
whether an act or such parts Of it as pro-
| vide for the organization Of the active militia
of the State known as the Illinois National
Guard is void on account of its repugnancy
to the Constitution Of the United States and
| to the laws passed in pursuance thereof -
| The act is declared to be in perfect harmony
with the Constitu tion Of the State, and that,
| if it is void, it must be for the reasons above
assigned. The Court says: The Importance
of the questions involved has induced
| the most careful consideration, but
it will be our purpose to avoid all
! unnecessary discussion, and state our
views as briefly as practicable The
! first provision submitted against the validity
Of the act known as the Military Code IS,
that, the power Of organizing, arntng, and
| disciplining the militia being confined by the
| Constitution Of the United States 70 con
| gress, when Congress has acted upon tho
! subject and passed lazy t. carry 1nl2 enecs
cIudes the power Of legislation by the State
npon the same subject This Is not, In our
| Judgment, an accurate, certainly not tul1,
expression Of the law Two things mnSt & %
| that the constitutional provision in respect
| to the militia Is Of that character that 1t can
be only exercised by Congress, and that any
! State legislation would Of necessity be In
that article Of the Constitution; second, that
the Constitution itself places restrictions
| either directly or indirectly upon all State
| legislation in respect to the militia
NEITHER ASSUMPTION Is WARRANTED
l by any fair construction OF the Constitution
| Of the United States nor by ycontemporaneons
explanations by writer's whose authorl-
ty is to be respected, or by any sub
sequent judicial determinations with which
we are familiar. It is not true thai
all powers granted by Congress are exclusive
| unless when concurrent authority is re
served to the States. Examples OF concur
rent authority readily suggest themselves
Congress has power under the Constitution
| to levy and collect taxes, duties, lmpostS, anc
excises, but it has never been supposed thai
that grant OF power was rcsu1ct!on 1pon
the States to levy and collect taxes FOR SLate
purposes. Such construction would De
stroy all State Governments by taking froH
them the means Of maintaining order OF pro
tecting life and property within their 1u1l5
dictiOns.
@it might be we'll in this connection" say
the Court, "to call to mind that all power!
not delegated to the United States ~ Tx
Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States
are reserved to the States respectively, or Z
tie people. The power Of State Govern
ments to legislate concerning the militia ex
fsted and was exercised before the adoptoI
Of The Constitution OF the United States, a9d Cd