Daily Kennebec journal., 1900-12-20

/ the isthmus. a station for naval base.
unless at the cost of admitting those In
habiting the soil to full rights as citizens
of the United States. whether they be
cannibaIs or savages, granting them the
! glorious potentiality OF being part OF
| the people of the United States? Did our
4 forefathers hamper us like that? III So
this constitution Is as mfs-shapen as
Richard the Hunchback. sent into this
world before his time. scarce half mace
up and that SO lameiy and unfashionaDle
| that ma tons laugh at us as We halt by
The attorney general made this com.
parison between the constitution as II
was sought to be construed and the mis-
shapen hunchback in tones which rang
| through the chamber and out into the
corridors.
| The crowds continued to all the
courtroom during the afternoon. among
| those coming in being Senators Fair-
| banks. Bacon and Nelson; Representa-
tives Mccall and Littletield who To-
gether made the fight against the Porto
| Rico bill: Solicitor General Richards,
Secretary Pruden. of the Presidents s
executive staff, and many officers OF
the treasury and other branches.
When the attorney general resumed
his argument Justices Brewer and Har-
Ian asked Il number of questions. JUS
tice Brewer asked if the attorney gen
eral held that as Congress extended the
| constitution and laws to the organized
territories, Congress also could take
them away from the territories. Mr..
Grigss answered that this was most
serious question. but he thought il safe
| to say that when the laws We're once
extended to territories an inVioia bic
| contract was created and could not be
| broken
Justice Harlan asked the attorney
general to state later on to what ex-
! tent Congress could impose a tariff to
be collected against goods coming from
! New Mexico Arizona and Alaska. JUS
tice Brewer also reminded MIR. Griggs
that Oklahoma was not included in the
treaty. taking in the Louisiana and
Mexican territory and was an apparent
! exception TO the rules stated by the at
torney general. Mr.. Griggs said that
Congress at its last session in effect de-
clared that the existing tariff laws We're
applicable against the goods OF Porto
| Rico. This was in the act Of last
March. renting to Porto Rico certain
duties collected under existing laws. "
| Justice White asked the attorney
general if he claimed that Congress
| could so exempt territories from the
| laws as to give them privileges not en-
| joyed by the states. Nr. Griggs re-
| sponded that he did so claim. that in
! fact the territories had been for years
exempted from internal revenue ana
| direct taxes.
| The attorney general referred to the
| celebrated case OF Loughborough VS.
! Blake. Whereupon Justice Harlan. read
/ ing from that decision. asked Mr..
GriggS what Chief Justice Marshall
meant in saying: The power 10 lay
and collect duties. imports and eXecises
may be exercised. and must be eXer
cised. throughout the United States. "
Mr.. GriggS said throughout the
United States" referred to the states
of the Union. but Justice Harlan point
| ed out that it referred also 10 the Dis
trict OF Columbia and the territory
west of the Missouri
! Mr.. Griggs closed his five hours
speech with a brilliant and eloquent
| preparation.
The court adjourned as soon as Mr..
| Griggs finished. and members of the
| bar gathered about him to congratu-
late him upon his able and eloquent
| presentation of the governments case.
Mr.. Aldrich will close for the plain
tiff in the Philippine case, tomorrow.
and the cases viii then be submitted.