Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1908-12-08

The chief offender in any given case
may be an executive, legislature, OF
n Judge. Every executive head who
advises violent. instead ri gradual.
action, or who advocates ill-considered
and sweeping measures OF reform
(especially II they are tainted with
yindictiveness. and disregard Tor the
rights of the minority Is particularly
The several legisla-
lures are responsible for the fact that
our laws are often prepared with SLOW
enly haste and lack Of consideration.
Moreover, they are often prepared,
and still more frequently amended
during passage, at the suggestion or
Hired Lawyers.
the very parties against whom they
are afterwards enforced. Our great
clusters of corporations, huge trusts
and fabulously wealthy multimillion"
aires. employ the very best lawyers
they can obtain to pick flaws in these
statutes after their passage; nut they
also employ class OF secret agents
who seek, under the advice OF experts,
to render hostile legislation innocuous
by making It unconstitutional, OFTEN
through the insertion Of what appear
on their face to be drastic and sweep
ing provisions against the interests
of the parties inspiring them; while
the demagogues, the corrupt crea"
lures who introduce Matchmaking
schemes to strike" corporations. and
selves to be the worst enemies OF the
all who demand extreme, and unde-
sirable radical. measures, show tho
very public whose loud.mouthed cham
pions they profess to be. A very strik-
ing illustration of the consequences OF
carclessness In the preparation OF "a
statute was the employers liability
law of 1906. In the cases arising und-
er that law, four out of six courts OF
first instance held It unconstitutional;
six out of nine justices of the Supreme
Court held that its subject.matter was
within the province of congressional
action: and four OF the nine Justices
held 1t valid. II was, however, adj
Judged unconstitutional by n bare ma
jority of the court-five or four. It.
was surely very slovenly piece Of
work to frame the legislation In such
shape as to leave the question open ut
all.
No Law BY Lawsuits.
Real damage has been done by the
and conflicting intcrprcta-
lions Of the interstate commerce law.
Control over the great corporations do
Ing interstate business can be effective
only N II Is vested with full power In
nm administrative department Il
branch of the Federal executive, car.
rying out Federal law: II can never
be effective II divided responsibility
Is left In both the States and the Ma
lion; Il can never be effective II left
IN the hands of the courts to be dc.
cided by lawsuits.
The courts hold a place of peculiar
and deserved sanctity under our form
of government. Respect for tho law
Is essential to the permanence Of our
institutions: and respect for the law
is largely conditioned upon respect for
the courts. II Is an ofIensc against
the Republic to say anything which
can weaken this respect. save for the
gravest reason and In the most care.
fully guarded manner. Our judges
should be held In peculiar honor: and
the duty OF respectful and truthful
comment and criticism. which should
be binding when we speak of anybody,
should he especially binding when we
speak Of them. On an average they
stand above any other servants of the
community, and the greatest judges
Fave reached the high level held by
those few greatest patriots whom the
whole country delights to honor. But
unwlse Judges.
we must face the fact that there arc
wise and unwise judges. just as there
are wise and unwise executives and
legislators. When u president or
governor behaves improperly or I'M
wisely, the remedy is easy for his
term is short; the same Is true with
the legislators, although not to the
same degree. for he Is one of many
who belong to some given legislative
body, and It is therefore less easy to
fix his personal responsibility and hold
him accountable therefor. with
judge, who, being human, Is also like.
~ to err, but whose tenure Is for life,
there Is no similar way of holding him
to responsibility. Under ordinary con.
ditions the only forms of pressure to
which he Is In any way amenaBle are,
public opinion, and the action Ut his
fellow judges. II is the last which
is most Immediately effective aud to
which we should look for the reform
OF abuses. Any remedy applied fem
without Is fraught with risk. It is far
better, from every standpoint, that The
remedy should come from within In
no other nation In the world do !ha
courts WELD such vast and farSrcach-
Ing power as In the United States All