Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1901-05-28
4 GIg III DECISION.
Reasons lAdvanced for the Decision Of
sthe United States sup reme Court IA
ii Porto Rico Case. ss5#
New Posses sions are Declared to Be
United States Territory but
Congress IS Supre eme slsS
Fora lkler Act IS Held Valid, and Con:
# stitution Does Not Necessarily
! Follow Flag.

ashingt ton, N Mays 22ss,-,-I he United
States supreme court 81 has handed
down opinions covering all Of the is-
sues on all the new insula posses
sions which have been In controversy.
Although several OF the decisions up
held the contestants on certain Is
sues, in the most imp portant decision.
that of Downs against BidWell Justice
Brown announced the sweeping de-
.cisIon pf the court upho olding the gen
eral attitude and poll Icy of the govern
ment up to- the present time The ef-s
feet of this decision IS to affirm the
CONSTITUTE iona1ity OF the Foraker act
and 10 give congress power to deal
with a newly acquired territory In
such manner as the legislative branch
may conside der suitable for the new
territory The decision also has the
effect Of declaring that the new in-
.sular possessions do not by virtue of
the treaty Of cession acquire all the
privileges and rights Of the constitu-s
tion. Js3
MD The first opinion OF the court was
IN the Delima case involving the Inn
5portation OF goods into the United
States from p Porto Rico after ratifica-
ton of the treaty Of Paris and before
the passage Of the Porto Rican act. II
D.lelinla .l me doing business in
New Ne York imported from San Juan,
Porto Rico, during the months Of June
and 1899, 81 certain sugars, the
product Of Porto Rico. pom this su-
gar the collector at New York demand
ed and collected about ssl33, 900 as Gus
toms Sduti es.8 's 8sss &
DelimaS 81 Co. sued BidWell, the col
slector as. an individ dual, IN the supreme
court OF the state of New ~ ork, to rss--
cover the duties thus paid. amounting
al all to $l3 145, alleging that they.
we're unlaWfully demanded, in viola
Stion Of the constit lion, and collected
by duress. On the petition of the col
lector the suit was removed to the cir.
;cuit court sof the United States for the.
Southern district tSof New ork; which
sustained a demurrer to5 the complaint
both on the ground that no cause for
action was stated and that the court
had no jurisdic on. From the jud 81
smsnt Diminishing the comp laint Deli
ma CO. appealed to the federal sl-
spreme court "a
Porto Rico Not 4 Foreign Country. s
The aJority opinion which was
read nv Justice Brown, held that
whether the sugars imported from on
Into Porto Rico were dutiab1e depends
upon whether Porto Rico is d foreign
country It held that the right to ac.f
quire territory involves the right to-
govern and control 1t Slby congress, but
he said that country could not be-
both foreign and domestic. He con-
|cluded that at the time the duties were
collected Porto Rico was not q foreign,
country hut q territory OF the United
States. Justice Brown concluded as;
follows sssSs ss
II an act of congress- be necessary
10 convert 81 foreign country into DO
nestle territory the question at once
suggests itself what is the character
of the legisl alton d demanded for this
purpose Will an act appropriating
money for its purchase be sufI1cient?
|sApparently not. III an act appro-3
Epriating the duties collected upon I'M
ports into and from such country FOR
The benefit of Its government be sufs
heient Apparentl lot.
acts making appropr ions
ffor Its postal service, for the establish
|ment of thouses for the mai aintain-E
ence8 of ntine sta ions, for erect;
ing public bui "a 81, ave that effect?
b |EsAyly an act ,esta blishing IA complete
local government. but witt the reser-
ton nj Al right to ollect duties upon:
commerce be- ad dequafe for that purs
pose None of hese nor all together
will pc safacient, IL tie contention Of
the oyeTnnen int be sound, since acts
embracing All these provisions have
been passed ins connect ion With Porto,
Rico, and II III insisted that 1t .iss still
a foreign country wit Thin the meaning
,rf the startf laws 8 are unable to
acquiesce In this assumption that q
territory may be at the same time
both foreign and domestic.
we are there efores of the opinion
Isthat at the time hesa duties we're
levied Porto Rico N as nots 4 foreign
country Within the neaning of tie ttr-
| Iffs but q terri tory o9 tbs United
States thar the ID iss were illegally
3exacted and thar The plaint SYs are en-.
titled to recover them back
e Sud gment of le circuit court
Tor Tie Southern dlstgl lcs of New Fork