The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-10-18
WASHINGTON.
News Gathered About t he Capita
City.

City.
WASHINGTON, Oct. ia decision
was rendered by the supreme court of
the United States to-day in five civil
rights cases, based on the first and
second sections Of the civil rights act:
First-They are, respectively, prose-
cutions under the act for not admit
ting certain colored persons to equal
accommodations and privileges in inns
and hotels, in railroad cars and thea
tres The court holds that congress
has no constitutional authority to pass
the section in question, under either
the thirteenth or fourteenth amend
ment to the constitution. The deci-
sion, however, is held to apply only to
the validity in states and not in terri
tories or the District of Columbia,
where the legislative power Of con-
gress is unlimited so far as the sta
tutes are concerned. The two sec
lions of law above referred to are de-
clared unconstitutional and void. JUS
Justice Harlan dissenting.
The chief justice announced that at
the request OF the litigants in the i'm
portant tax case of the county OF
San Notes against the Southern Pa
cific railway company the case would
be restored to its place on the docket,
to await the hearing of other cases in
volving the same, or nearly the same,
question, and other cases relating to
state taxation Of corporations recent
ly decided by Justice Field in the
United States circuit court for the
district of California.
The tapping of wires of the West
ern Union telegraph company on Sat
urday, by means of which bogus dis
patches were sent all over the coun-
try, announcing false results of the
jerome Park races, and through
which nearly 100000 were lost by
pool sellers throughout the United
States, remains as much of mystery
as ever. The Western Union is hav-
ing strict inquiry made into the af-
fair. and if the guilty parties aredis-
covered they will be prosecuted to the
full extent of the law. Pool sellers,
or employers of sellers, are believed to
have planned the fraud.
Gen. Sherman has selected Col.
Tourtelotte and Col. Bacon as men,
bers of his staff to remain with him
at st. Louis after being relieved from
command of the army and until
placed on the retired list. Gen. Poe,
of his staff, will resume dutirs in the
engineer corps, and Gen. Tidball, an
other aide de camp, has been assigned
to the command of the artillery school
at Fortress Monroe. Gen. Sherman
leaves Washington tonight for Cleve-
land to attend the reunion of the
Army of Tennessee.
The most important decision rem
dered by the supreme court of the
United States to-day was that in tn e
five cases commonly known as the
civil rights cases, which were submit
ted to the court on printed arguments
about a year ago. The titles of these
cases and the states from which they
came are as follows; No. LIMITED
States VS.. Murray Stanley; from the
United States circuit court for the
district of Kansas. No. 2-United
States VS.. Michael Ryan; from the
United States circuit court for the
district of California. No. 3-United
States VS.. Samuel Nichols; from the
United States circuit court for the
western district of Missouri. No. 30
United States VS.. Samuel d. Single
ton; from the United States circuit
court for the southern district of
New York. No. 28-Richard A. Rob
inson and wife VS.. the Memphis &
Charleston railroad company from
the United States circuit court for the
western district of Tennessee. These
cases were all based on the first and
second sections of the civil rights act
of 1875, and were respect
lively prosecutions under that act for
not admitting certain colofed persons
to equal accommodations and privi-
leges in inns and hotels, in railroad
cars and at theaters. The defense sets
up in every case alleged was constitu-
tionally law. The first and second
sections of the act which were parts
directly in controversy, are as follows:
Section first, That 81 persons within
the Jurisdiction Of the United States