The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1890-05-29
THE PROGRESS or REVOLUTION

THE PROGRESS or REVOLUTION,
In the formation OF q federal con-
stitution and Of 4 union Of States un.
der one government, the strongest
argument in that behalf was their
mutual interests and the absolute,
unqualified and untaxed free-trade
within the boundariea OF the United
States that could be thereby estab
lished for the mutual benefit of all.
No state at the time OF adopting
the Constitution supposed that Con
gress possessed any power or right tc
in any manner restrain this free and
untaxed right OF one state to ship it,
products into any other state or ter
ritory within its jurisdiction.
A score Of decisions Of the United
States Supreme Court extending
back more than three-fourths Of q
century, upholds the Court in decid.
ing any law Of any state that adopts
prohibitory legislation against such
commerce, unconstitutional and
void. Neither the Legislature OF any
State nor the Congress Of the United
States has any authority to regulate,
limit or restrain the citizens Of any
state Of the right to transport their
products into any other state OF the
Union. The free trade it establishes
within the Union is rs binding upon
Congress as upon the states. The
state cannot enact law to prohibit
bringing any product or article own
ed by the citizen of another state nor
can it prevent his actually coming
into the state with his shipment.
This has always been the law and the
rule, and Congress, because the right
to prohibit such commercial inter-
course is not conferred upon the
state, may not assume the right and
set up tariff and free list Of goods
which may be sent from one state in
to another.
But after the thing gets across the
line into the state, then the state is
sovereign, and it may regulate, re-
strain or prohibit the traffic in that
under the constitution and
the recognized right Of the State, un-
til the obiter dicta in the recent de-
cision, upon question which was,
not before the Court, and that was
intimating that the Congress might
limit, regulate, restrain or prohibit
the free-trade of the Constitution
among the States.
II its dicta is sound and good law,
then Illinois, il it can obtain sufficient
strength in Congress may prohibit
Iowa or any other state sending it's
products there to de-
press the prices Of similar products
produced by its own citizens. Penn
sylvania, il it can obtain sufficient
strength in Congress, II the position
Of the Court ia correct as to the pow
er of Congress, may prohibit Ala
balna or Missouri from sending their
iron products into Pennsylvania to
the injury Of it's iron furnaces and its
or into such other
states or territories rs Pennsylvania
may, through such congressional in
reference, obtain exclusive control
over.
Fire crackers, explosives, the sale
of recognized poisons, no matter
whether made in China or in Con-
necticut, may be regulated and con-
trolled by state law whether in the
original package or the single fire.
cracker or grain of arsenic.
The decision of the Supreme Court
is revolutionary inasInuch as it takes
from the state this right and
duty. Under its ruling, SO
long as the obscene publ
cation is in its original cover, the dis
easedsmeat in its original carcass, the
impure milk in the original can, the
poison in the original bottle, the dyn-
amite in the original bomb, the state
may not interfere.
Intaking away the right Of the state
to regulate, restrain or control the sale
of these articles within the state and
comforting it upon Congress, the SUI
preme Court Is creating strong Gen.
trail government, and il wiplng out
the states as effectually as though
their state lines were Obliterated.
Under the ruling Of the court, in
stead of dutiable list, congress is
authorized to prepare a forbidden
list and permitted list of the articles
and commodities that one state may
ship into another.
The Wilson bill now before the
Senate il the entering wedge to all
these congressional absurdities, and
as such should be consigned to obliv-
ion.