Los Angeles herald., 1890-05-21
ORIGINAL PACKAGES.
How the Senate's Time Was
Engrossed Yesterday.
The Silver Bill Temporarily
Laid Aside.
Wilson, of Ohio, Explains His Orig
inal Packages" Bill.
The Supreme Courts Decision Makes the
Iowa and Kansas Prohi hibitionists
Very Unhappy.
Associated Press Dispatches. |

Associated Press Dispatches
WASHINGTON, May 20.-In the senate
today Stanford introduced bill for
loans ON public lands and announced
that he would hereafter address the SEN
ate on the subject. The senate then pro-
ceeded to consider the Original pack
age" bill.
Mr.. Wilson, of Iowa, who introduced
the bill, addressed the senate in explain
alton and advocacy of it, stating that it
was made necessary by the recent decis-
ion of the supreme court. 1t was in re-
sponse to the suggestion contained in
that decision that congress could permit
the exercise of restraining power of
state, and it was for the purpose by Civ
ing that permission that the bill
had been introduced and reported.
The effect would be to leave
each state to determine for itself
what it's policy should be in regard to
the traffic in Intoxicating liquors. At
the present time Original package" sa-
looms were being organized in his state.
1t was to put a stop to such practice and
lCSOShLLC Ill SNClS UiO POWCl W
regulate its own internal policy that the
bill was reported.
Vest Opposes the Bill.
Vest said he was not able to agree
with the majority of the committee in
reporting the bill, because it would
sweep away the exclusive jurisdiction of
the United States over interstate COM
merce. The supreme court had decided
emphatically that alcoholic stimulants
were articles of interstate commerce,
and the power to regulate commerce
among the states and with for
eign nations was an exclusive
power vested in congress by the consti-
tuition. The intimation that con-
gress might delegate to state that
power was contained in the obiter dictaem
of that decision. He (Vest) contended
that it could not be done. The supreme
court had decided that the power of
congress over interstate commerce was
exclusive. If it could be delegated in
regard to one article of merchandise
(alcohol, it could be delegated to any
other article-wheat, corn, rye, oleomar-
garine, etc. Was the senate going to
make that new departure? Was it on
the mere dictum of the supreme court to
tear down the barriers of the constitu-
ton? The real question, he raid, was
whether congress could delegate power
vested in it by the constitution, to any
state or number of states. He believed
it could not. To do so would be to de-
strov the interstate clause of the consti-
tuition, and all the purposes for which it
was entered. So far from having any
uniformity. there would be in that case
a diversity Missouri would shut out
one article, Kansas another, and so on
until there would be chaos from one end
of the union to the other.
The Silver Bill Laid Aside.
At 2 O'Clock the silver bill came up as
unfinished business, but was laid aside
informally.
Vest continued that if this (''original
package") bill were passed, it would
open up an opportunity for a successive
series OF such bills, just as the emergen
cies or opinions of the different states
might call for that sort of legislation.
How long would it be, he asked, until
another demand was made upon con-
gress to give permission to all the states
to exclude something else-tobacco for
instance.
HOar's Argument.
Hoar argued in favor of the bill. I'm
less what was proposed in this bill, or
something equivalent could be done, it
would be the law of the United States
for all future time, unless the cOnstitu
tion was amended in that respect, that
any person living in another state or for
,eign country, could send Intoxicating
liquors into any state and dispose of it
through agents and that it should not
be competent for any state authority to
prohibit it.
Edmunds's Remarks.
Edmunds remarked upon it as Gu
rieus and interesting circumstance that
condition OF things had been reached
when, according to the debate and ac-
cording to the judgment of the supreme
court, states had no power to deal with
subject, and congress had no power to
deal with it. The result was that there
was in every man in one state an lnher-
ent, individual, personal right to carry
into another state what that state might
consider injurious to it's safety, and there
to sell it, and that congress has no power
to stop it, and that the states could not
stop it unless congress gave them that
power. 1t was only necessary to state
such proposition to show that some
where had been taken the longest step
ever taken within hundred years in the
republic, towards the Capitalization of
power-somewhere, either in the
supreme court or in congress. He did
not believe in the Capitalization Of
power.
Speaking of the importation of intox-
icating liquors into state, Edmunds
claimed that oncs they got there,
they were (whether in the hands of
natives or not) subject to the state laws,
and that was what the supreme court
would come to within the next twenty
years.
EuIOgies on Kelley.
After further discussion, the bill went
over without action, and the senate pro-
ceeded to consideration of resolutions
offered by Cameron in respect to the
memory of the late Representative kel-
ley, of Pennsylvania. At the close OF
the eulogies, the senate, as further
mark of respect to the memory OF Mr..
Kelley, adjourned.