The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-08-12

Asserted His Rights
The Democratic arraignment of the
United States supreme court for the de
cision in the income tax cases is not with
ont precedent. CuriouSly enough. the
example was set by an acknowledged
leader and statesman of the Republican
party-no less man, in fact, than
Charles Sumner, of Massachusetts. BY
the side of his denunciation of the su.
preme court the language of the Demo
cratic platform is as mild rs milk
This platform criticises the income tax
decision without vituperation, and is
plain, conservative and direct 1t is as
follows:
There would he no deficit in the rev.
enue but for the annulment by the SUI
preme court of IL law passed by Demo-
cratic Congress, in strict pursuance of
the uniform decisions of that court for
nearly 100 years, that court having in
that decision sustained constitutional
objections to its enactment, which had
reviously been overruled by the ablest
judges who have ever sat upOn that
bench. We declare that it is the duty
of Congress to use all the constitutional
power which remains after that decision,
or which may come from its reversal by
the court as it may hereafter he constitu-
ted. so that the burdens of taxation may
be equally and impartially laid. to the
end that wealth may bear its due pro-
portion of the expenses of the Govern
ment.'
For this declaration the Republican
press has censured the Democratic par
ty. and have held it up to scorn as the
party which proposes 10 break down
|. : 1 Il; ~.
try. AT the time when the shoe was on
the other foot, these same papers, or
many of them, regarded the bitter pro-
tests of Charles Sumner as righteous ut
terances.
1t so happened that the decisions of
the supreme court in the bred Scott and
fugitive slave law cases did not meet
with the approval of Mr.. Sumner, just
as the decision of the court in the case
OF the income tax was at variance with
the views Of large numbers of Demo-
Gratis. There has not been, however,
since the income tax decision one-thouS-
andth part OF denunciation such as was
showered upon the court by Mr.. Sumner
If any United States Senator had uttered
in his place in the Senate or in IA public
speech one iota of the bitter invective
employed by Mr.. Sumner there would
have been ii chorus of disapproval from
Maine to the Pacific.
Mr. Sumner WAS not content with
merely commenting on the degeneracy of
the personnel of the court, nor with ref.
erence TO the ''unfortunatc character Ct
that personnel, nor with openly accus-
ing the judges of degrading them selves
In his written opinion OF the impeach-
ment case of Andrew johnson he laid
down the principle that 1.-THE supreme
court is not arbtcr of the acts of Con-
gress.n He held that the court had no
power to issue its veto of Congressional
legislation. Nothing within the Just
powers of the court he said, ''can
touch an act Of Congress, except inciden-
tally, and then its judgment is binding
only on the parties. The incidental rca-
son assigned-as, for instance, that a stat
ute is unconditional-does not bind any
body, not even the parties or the court
itself" In view of the fact that The
court was not itself bound by its own
judgments, Senator Sumner asks wheth-
er, when Il bench stands five 10 four.
we shall say that the majority declare
Il fact and the minority simply de
clare an opinion" Here, too, are some
of his other sentences:
The bred Scott decision was as alb
surd and irrational as the reversal oil
tiiC tnIcT a
standing protest against that atrocious
judgment, which was false in law and
also false i'll the history with which it
sought TO maintain its false law
But the height OF Senator Sumner ;
contempt for the decision OF the supreme
court was reached III his speech delivered
before the Massachusetts State Republ-
| can convention at Worchester Septem-
Der Z, 1854. In this address he brought
| all the power of his eloquence, his logic,
| his experience and his satire to bear
against the highest tribunal in the land
to II degree far beyond anything that has
| been or will be said against that court
even by the most sincere believer in the
constitutionality of the income tax In
| the course of his speech he said:
| 1T is sometimes gravely urged that.
| since the supreme court of the United
| states has affirmed the constitutonality
| of the fugitive act, there only remains tC
| us, in all places, whether in public sta
| ton or in private life, the duty of abso
| Lutte submission. Yes, sir, that is the as
| sumption. which you will perceive is ap
| piled To the humblest citizen who holds
| 10 Office and has taken no oath to sup
| port the constitution, as well rs the pub
| Tic servant who is under the special obi
A