, 1890-10-30
WISDOM OF WINDOW,
He Will Execute the Tarie
Law as 1t Stands.
DUTY OF AN EXECUTIVE OFFICER
It Is Not His Province to IA
termine Constitutional
Questions.

WASHINGTON, Oct 23.--Secretary Win.
dom said this morning that he knan.
nothing officially about protests aaaIns,
the legality Of the Mckinley tariff bin
81 do not" he said, regard Ii as M.
province of an executive officer to ouo.'
tion the constitutionality of acts of con
gress. II Is for him to enforce the l,w
as ne finds 1t, and not determine oue.'
tions affecting its legality. am, thera.
fore, executing tho Mckinley tariff sc,
as find 1t, and shall continue to do a.
unless competent legal tribunal, sucb
as the supreme court, decides the law
unconstitutional. 1t Is not for Inc n
question the validity of any signature,
to the bill as enrolled, neither is 1t 70,
me to determine whether the bill signed
by the president did or did not in fac,
pass the lower house; much less is II Of
me to determine whether the omission
OF the tobacco drawback section or anv
other provision of the bill inyalldate,
the law,
"As understand 1t, the act of octo.
ber, 1900 Is tho law of the land. Nv
duty, therefore, is plain, and shall ex.
ecute its provisions to the best OF Inv
ability. Its constltutionality is que,.
ton for the courts, and until they de.
eide against it shall be governed by /,
as it stands"
Attorney Gener ral Miller positively de-
clined to discuss the question, saying II
was manIfestly improper to do So unless
it came to him in an official way. Com
missioner of Internal Revenue Mason
said: ut Is not for me to say whether
or not the omission OF the tobacco pro-
vision vitiates the tariff law. Imust en-
force it as ! find 1t. Anyhow the tobacco
schedule does not take effect until Janu-
AIRY l, so II congress desires to refund
cents pound on all tobacco on hand
when the law takes effect, II has ample
time to legislate To- that end"
No alarm whatever is felt here among
the friends of the Mckinley bill AS to the
legality of its enactments. "Precedents
of unnum bcred cases. said an old aud
experienced employe of the house 10.
day, leave no doubt that errors.
whether Of omission or commission, in
the enrolment of bill passed by con-
gress, do not vitiate any part of the
measure except tnat part to which the
errors relate
Captain McGrsgor, chief of the Gus.
toms division, recalls IA somewhat sim.
liar case under the wool act OF 1867 The
tariff act bore date of March ?, but con-
gress extended the session of the ID
over 90 the ith, so, as a matter OF fact,
the bill was not signed till about noon
on the 4th of March. The question
arose whether cargo that arrived on
the Sd should pay duty at the old rates,
as the hill was not signed until after |,
arrived, or the new rate. The case was
carried into court, which consented TO 90
behind the public record and take the
testimony OF President Johnson himself
Us to when the act was signed.
A similar question will, OF course,
come up in connection with the McRin.
ley bill. The copy of the act which
went TO the president and was signed by
him certainly bore the signatures of the
presiding officers OF the Two houses Of
congress certifying to its correctness, 1t
must now DO settled whether ~ he Lawful
to 90 behind this certitlcation and as
certain what was really passed BY lhs
two houses.