Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-18
FOR RIGHT OF APPEAL
Bonaparte Seeks Privileges
Before Supreme Court.
ANNUAL REPORT is MADE
Complaints Against Corporations
Rigidly Investigated.
STATUTES BEING INTERPRETED
Convenient Form of Prosecution Of
Cases in Restraint of Trade
Is Advised.
STATUTES BEING INTERPRETED

Is AQV1SeQ.
That the United States should have
the right of appeal to the Supreme
Court of the United States as mat
ter of right whenever a conviction is
reversed on appeal by the defendant to
a circuit court of appeals. is the opin
ion expressed by Attorney General
Bonaparte in his annual report for the
fiscal year ending June 30, 1908, sub
mtted to Congress today
In this connection he cites the case
of the reversal of the fine of more than
S29.OOO,O0O, in which application for the
allowance of a writ of certiorari has
been made to the Supreme Court
He holds that an amendment of the
present statute would be appropriate in
the case of all criminal proceedings, but
suggests that it would be especially so
in connection with prosecutions where
the wealth of the defendant usually
renders an appeal on his or it's part
from any adverse judgment matter
of course. The Attorney Generals
opinion is that in such cases there is
| no question OF double jeopardy. as the
appeal of the defendant from the orig
inal conviction is recognized by the I'M
doubted weight of well considered jul
dicial' authority a waiver of his
rights in this respect, and as in the
absence of some such provisions of law
as the Attorney General recommends.
punishment underSthe law as finally
determined by the court of last re-
sort.
Prosecution of Corporations.
He declares that the consistent pol
| icy of the Department of Justice dur
| ing the year. in enforcing the statutes
| foreign commerce of the country from
evils arising through combinations in
restraint of trade and attempts to Gre
ate monopoly, well as diScrlmlna-
lions and other Illegal practices on the
part of common carriers engaged In
such commerce, has been careful to IN
vestigate all complaints submitted to
it, whether by public authorities or by
responsible private citizens. and to au-
thorize proceedings, whether civil or
criminal only. when this investigation
has ,shown the complaints to be- Serl-
GUS and swell founded; and that success
might be reasonably expected.
He reports that this policy was attend
ed during the year by fair measure or
success in the proceedings authorized, ana
that, as a consequence of decisions ALREADY
obtained or expected soon, the statutes
dealing with such cases will soon be inter-
preted so authoritatively that those seek
ing to comply with the law will be re-
1eVe0 from all uncertainty dS " "hae
the law really is. He says that serious
obstacles have been encountered In en-
forcing the statutes and that these may
be with advantage readily removed by
further legislation.
"The United States has had occasion
of late years. and will probably have &C.
casion in the future" he declared. ito
prosecute criminally many corporations
or other artificial persons. AS such OF
tenders cannot be physically arrested, II
@I,,;1 Il hot G. mi u
convenient form of process shall be pre-
scribed by law. to have the legal effect of
an actual arrest and removal to the trial
district in the case of a natural person.
Charges of Freight Discrimination.
He reports that many communications
have been received asking the govern
ment to take action to procure tempo
rary injunctions against the collection OF
| increased rates on freight by various
railroads, claiming that such rates. al
| though duly filed with the interstate
commerce commission, had been adopted,
in fact, through agreements between
competing railroads i'll violation of the
Sherman antitrust law. He reports that,
as applications had already been made in
a majority of these cases to the inter-
state commerce commission, he deemed
| 1t inappropriate to institute proceedings
| looking to the procurement of temporary
| injunctions the principal purpose OF
which would be to keep the old rates i'll
| force pending the decision of the inter-
| state commerce commission.
| Two classes of cases which have en-
gagged a large part of the attention of the
department, the Attorney General re-
ports, have been prosecutions for peonage
| and civil and criminal proceedings aris-
| ing out Of alleged frauds and 1rre-.-:e-.
ties in the acquisition of title by private
parties to the public lands.
"Jn both cases" he says II am happy
! to report that the energetic prosecution
tOf offenders has undoubtedly rendered
the crimes less frequent. and also less
profitable. 1t is VIGOROUSLY difficult 10
secure. convictions in peonage cases, ow-
| ing to the antecedents and surroundings
of the victims and witnesses and the
| frequent existence of strong local sympa-
| thy for the defendants
| He reports. however. that through the
determination of the department the
| frequency of these offenses has dimin-
ished materially, although they are still
| by no means unknown.
| THE land fraud cases." he says, "have
| fOrcibly illustrated the unfortunate con-
sequences of administrative laxity and
| federation of abuses in the enforcement
of any laws during considerable length
of time"