Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1890-05-08
LIQUOR SEIZURES.
Important Decision By the United
States Supreme Court
State Laws For the Seizure of Liquors In
Original Packages Unconstitutional
Opinion of the C0urt-Threo
Justices Dissent.

WASHINGTON, April e9.-The United
States Supreme Court, through Chief
Justice Fuller, has rendered an opinion
adverse to the constitutionality of State
laws providing for the seizure of liquor
brought into the State in -riginal
packages. Such laws, the court holds,
arc an interference with Interstate
commerce. Alter the liquor becomes
the property of the importer the State
may, under its police powers, regulate
or prohibit the transportation of the
article from another State and its de-
livery to the importer.
The case in which the decision was
made was that of Gus Leidy & Co.,
plaintiffs in error, VS.. A j. Hardin. It
was brought here on. appeal from the
Supreme Court of Iowa and this court
reverses the decision of the State court.
Justices Gray, Harlan and Brewer dis
sented: The case is one of great impor-
lance to Prohibitionists and liquor
dealers.
Leidy, beer manufacturer of Peoria,
Ill, shipped beer to Keokuk, Iowa,
which was seized in the original pack
ages by Hardin, State official, as hav-
ing been sent there in violation of the
Iowa law. The Supreme Court of Iowa
held that the law under which this
official acted was valid.
The Chief Justice in delivering the
opinion of the court cited a number Of
cases bearing upon Interstate COM
merce, among others ''the license
cases." where laws passed by Massachu-
sets, New Hampshire and Rhode Island
in reference to the sale of spirituous
liquors came under review in the court
and were sustained, although the mem
bers of the court who participated
in the decisions did not concur
in any common ground upon which
to rest them, in which Chief JUS
tice fancy is quoted as holding that
spirituous distilled liquors are univers-
ally admitted to be subjects Of owner
ship and property and therefore sub
lects Of exchange, barter and traffic, like
any other commodity ia which right of
property exists; that Congress, under
its general power to regulate commerce
with foreign nations, may prescribe
what merchandise shall be admitted and
what excluded; but, inasmuch as the
laws of Congress authorized the importa-
ton of ardent spirits, no State has a
right to prohibit their introduction.
After referring to these and other de-
CiSlOuS DcdTluB Oh lpCt2tSe laws, Guo =,
in its opinion, says:
The decisions rest Npon the undoubted
right of the States of the Union to control
their purely internal affairs, in doing which
they exercise powers not-surrendered to ohe
National Government.
The power vested IN Congress to regulate
commerce among the several States is the
power to prescribe the rule by which that
commerce is to be governed and is a power
complete in itself, acknowledging no limita-
tiOnS other than those prescribed in the
Constitution. 1t is Co extensive with the
subject which it acts and can not be
stopped at the external boundary of the
state but must enter its interior and must
be capable of authorizing the disposition OF
those articles which it introduces, that they
may become mingled with the common mass
of property within the territory entered.
That ardent spirits are subjects of Inter
State commerce can not be denied. When
ever law of St2te amounts essentially to
aregulation of commerce, as it does when it
fnhibits directly tie receipt of an imported
commodity IT'S disposition before it has
ceased to become article OF trade be.
tween one State AID another it comes in
conflict with power which in this partcu-
lar has been exclusively in the Gene raj
Government aid is therefore, void. Un-
dOubtedly it is for the legislative branch
OF the state Go "nment to deter
mine whether the manufacturer O. par
ecular articles of traffic will injuriously
affect the pubic and it is not for
Congress to deteCmne what measures a
Vtat may pCOpcFis duOpC as appropriate OF
needful for the prot ction of the public
morals, life or safety; but notwithstanding
it is not vested with superv isory power over
matters ofaocal ministration The respon-
sibility is upon Congress so far the regu
1ation of Int r t:sso commerce is conc ern ed
to remove the restrictions upon the State in
dealing with imported articles which have
not been mingled With the common mass OF
property therein.
Whatever our inSiv idual views may be as
to the deleterious qualities of particular ar
ticles, we can rot hold that any articles
which Congress recognizes as subjects of In
ter->tate commerce are not such that
whatever are Thus recognized can be con-
trolled by state lsV<s amounting to rsgula
tions, while they resain that character al
though at the same time if directly dangerous
to themselves the Etate may take appro.
pirate measures to guard against inj0ry be-
fere it obtains comp lete Jurisdiction over
them. To concedc tCaa state the power; to
exclude directly On indirectly, articles sc
stu ated without Congressional permits
sion is to concede to a msjorzty OF
the people of q State, represented
in the State Legislature, the power to regu-
late commercial intercourse between the
States by determining what shall be itosub-
tects when that poUer~Tas distinctly grant
ed 10 be exercised hy the people ca the
Unhed states represented in Congress, and
its possession by the latter was con sidisred
essential to that more SSerfect union xsIicI
the tHonstitution WAS adopted to create
Undoubtedly there &s 'df<ticulty in draEing
the h5le between the municipal powers OF
one Government and the commercial bow
ers OF The other, but WI aza that line is da1er-
mined. cd alton .tC it without serious
incons snience may Eeadsly be found IN a
frank sad candid CO. ope rSfion for the gen
eral aasd. The decision of the Suprem me
Court cL3owa is reversed.
Justices Gray, Har}ana and Brewer IN
summing up the reasons which satisfy
them AhsS the judgmenstcef the Supreme
Court OF Iowa should he affirmed, say
that thesHower of regulating or prohibit
ing thetIaanufacture and~Sale of intoxf
eating 1ianors belongs AS branch OF
the poEie power to the Lesi slatures OF
the severn States and car be judici-
.ously and effectively exercised by them
ablone according to their views of public
policy and heal needs, and can not
practically, hit can constitutionally, be
welded bytCaHgress as partvOf;A national
and uniform ssys tenn.
The Iowa RxNhibitory laws were en-
acted by the Legislature in the exercise
of it's undonhtstl power to protect its in
habitants aEainsr the evils, physical,
moral and social, attending the Sree use
OF Intoxicating Zig uors. They ese not
aimed at Interstate commerce and have