Semi-weekly herald., 1908-12-10

ince of congressional action; and four
OF the nine justices held Il valid. II
was, however, adjudged unconstitu-
tionai by bare majority Of the court
five to four. It was surely very
slovenly piece OF work to frame the
the question open at all.
Real damage has been done by the
manifold and conflicting interpreta-
| tions OF the interstate commerce law.
Control over the great corporations
doing Interstate business can be ef-
fective only If It is vested with full
power in an administrative depart
| meDt, a branch of the federal execu.
tive. carrying out federal law; 1t
can never be effective If divided re-
sponsibility is left In both the states
and the nation; 1t can never be ef.
fective II left in the hands of the
courts to be decided by lawsuits.
The rapid changes in our social and
Industrial life which have attended
this rapid growth to concrete cases
the great rule of right laid down in
our constitution, there should be a
full understanding and appreciation
OF the new conditions to which the
rules are TO be applied. What would
have been an infringement upon lib
erty half century ago may be the
necessary safeguard of liberty today
What would have been an injury to
property then may be necessary to the
enjoyment of property now.
Every judicial decision involves two
terms-one. an Interpretation of the
the facts to which it is to be applied
The great mass of our judicial Off
GERS are, believe. alive to these
changes Of conditions which SO ma
terially affect the performance of their
judicial duties. Our judicial system
is sound and effective at core, and
1t remains, and must ever be main
tained as the safeguard of those prin-
ciples of liberty and justice which
stand at the foundation OF American
institutions; for, as Burke finely said
when liberty and justice are separated
neither is safe.
There are, however, some members
of the judicial body who have Jagged
behind In their understanding of these
great and vital changes In the body
polite, whose minds have never been
opened to the new applications of the
old principles made necessary by the
new conditions. Judges OF this stamp
do lasting harm by their decisions
because they convince poor men in
need of protection that the courts of
the land are profoundly ignorant OF
and out of sympathy with their needs,
and profoundly indifferent or hostile
to any proposed remedy.
To such men It seems a cruel mock.
cry to have any court decide against
them on the ground that 1t desires to
preserve liberty" In purely technical
form. by Withholding liberty In any
real and constructive sense. 1t is de
sirable that the legislative body should
possess. and wherever necessary exer.
else, the power to determine whether
in given case employers and employ.
es are not on an equal footing, SO that
the necessities of the latter compel
them to submit to such exactions as
to hours and conditions of labor as
unduly to tax their strength; and only
mischief can result when such deter.
mination is upset on the ground that
there must be no interference with
the liberty to contract"-often a mere
ly academic liberty" the exercise Of
which is the negation of real liberty.
There are certain decisions by va.
rious courts which have been exceed.
ingly detrimental to the rights of
wageworkers. This is true of all the
decisions that decide that men and
women are. by the constitution, guar.
anteed their liberty" to contract to
enter a dangerous occupation, or to
work an undesirable or improper num-
ber Of hours or to work In unhealthful
surroundings; and. therefore, cannot
recover damages when manned in that
occupation, and cannot be forbidden
to work what the legislature decides
IL an excessive number of hours. or
to carry on the work under conditions
which the Legislature decides to be
unhealthful. The most dangerous oc-
cupations are often the poorest paid
and those where the hours of work
are longest; and In many cases those
who go into them are driven by ne.
cessity 30 great that they have prac.
tically no alternative.
Decisions such as those alluded to
above nullify the legislative effort to
protect the wageworkers who most
need protection from those employers
who take advantage of their grinding
need. They halt or hamper the move.
ment for securing better and more
equitable conditions Of labor. The
talk about preserving to the misery.