The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-05-26
THE BOTTLE CORKED.
Supreme Court Upholds Orig.
inal Package Law.
CONGRESS DELEGATED POWERS
Iowa Could Not Enforce Prohibitory
Law Against Unopened Packages I'm
til a Federal statute Was Passed.

States supreme court today upheld the
constitutionality of the original package
law passed by congress, and also held that
it was not necessary for Kansas to re-
enact its prohibitory law after the passage
of the congressional act in order to shut
out liquor in original packages.
The case came up on appeal of Wilkin-
son, sheriff, against Raherer, the lower
court having decided against the state.
This court reverses the decision of the
dered the decision, the entire court being
with him.
Justice Gray announced that Justices
Harlan, Brewer and himself assented in
the decision, but did not concur in all the
reasoning of the opinion of the court Rah-
rer was an original package agent at KAN
sas City, Kan, of a liquor firm. and was
arrested the day after the original package
law went into effect. He claimed the
law was unconstitutional, and also
that it could not go into
operation until the state changed
the prohibitory law. The circuit court de-
cided against the state, and the case was
brought here on appeal. The supreme
court says the power of the state to impose
restraints and burdens upon persons and
property in the promotion of public health,
good order and prosperity, is a power
always belonging to the state. The power
of congress TO regulate commerce among
the several states when the subjects
are national in nature, is also
exclusive. but was left free by
the constitution except as congress might
undertake to regulate it. Intoxicating
liquors are undoubtedly subjects of COM
merce like any other commodity, but
nevertheless it has often been held that
the laws prohibiting the manufacture and
sale of liquor within state limits does not
necessarily infringe any constitutional
privilege or immunity. This right rests
upon the acknowledged right of the states
to control purely internal affairs.
The Iowa laws held to be unconstitu-
tional in the former original-packagec case
were enacted in the exercise of state
police power, but, as it amounted to regu-
lation of interstate commerce, it was held
that so long as congress did not pass any
law to regulate traffic between the states
in intoxicating liquors, or act in
such way as to allow state
laws to operate upon it, congress
thereby indicating its will that such COM
merce should be free and untrammeled,
and, therefore, the laws of Iowa were in
operative IN so far as they amounted
to regulations of foreign inter-
state commerce inhibiting the bring
ing of such articles within the state
for sale upon arrival in the form in which
imported. 1t follows that when congress
acted at all the result of its actions would
be to operate to restrict the perfect free
dom which its silence insured.
Congress has now spoken and declared
that imported liquors shall upon arrival
in a state fall within the category of
domestic articles of similar nature.
Congress did not use terms of permits
sion to the state to act, but simply re-
moved the impediment 10 the en-
forcement of state laws in respect to
imported packages in their original
condition, created by the absence of a
specific utterance upon its part. The act
of congress removed the obstacle, and no
adequate ground is perceived for holding
that re-enactment of the state law was re-
quired before it could have effect upon
imported, which it always had upon do
nestle property. Jurisdiction attached
not in virtue of the laws of congress, but
because that law placed the property
where jurisdiction could attach.
In the case of the Chicago Distilling
Company against Stone, internal revenue
collector, Justice Bradley delivered an
opinion in favor of the distilling company,
holding unlawful the government method
of assessing at the end of each month
what he called ''mulct money" to make
any distillation by disti'lers in excess of
the capacity estimated from day to day.