The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-01-12
|CODIFICATION OF PENAL LAW Republicans Called to
 Be Present. MEASURE AN IMPORTANT ONE Amendment by Smith Instead Of
 Booker. This Amendment Onfers . slediaeation --strenuous Oposition to This As Well As Hughes Amend
 meat.

ton aOI the Dlll tO COutly LAie PCA0a laws of the United States.
 At the close of yesterdays session, the pending business was an amend ment to Section 1s providing that in the matter of civil rights, the code shall not embrace agreements made by labor or trade unions to peaceably declare strikes and boycotts, and 1t was the first point to receive attention today. It was regarded as of sufficient im- portance to cause call for all repub- licans to be present at today's session. The amendment was suggested by Mir. Smith of Missouri and not by Booher as had been enormously stated and at the beginning of the days ses- sion, the former offered modification of his own provision so as to make 1t read:
 Nothing in this section shall em- brace any agreements made by labor or trade unions that shall result in or ef- feet the declaration of strike or boy cott or any efforts in the exercise of free speech made by such labor or trades unions after such a strike or boycott shall have been declared, pro- vided further, that they are made for the purpose of inducing non-union per- sons to act with them and against the company or corporation against which the strike or boycott has been declared, even though such company or corpora tion be injured thereby in It's property rights"
 Unfair Court Process. In speaking to his amendment, Mir. Smith said he believed labor unions had the lawful right to make contracts declaring strikes, but it had been the experience that whenever they did so, they were barred by some court of equity or some legislative enactment for fear they might cause some incon- venience and annoyance to the public. Therefore the efforts of the strikers were suppressed by some court process. Tho power of capital he said, was so great as to minimize and impair every effort made by labor in that direction. Upon the supposition that the Smith amendment would be held to be uncon- stitutionai, Mir. Hughes of New Jersey, while remarking that he was in sym pathy with it, offered the following substitute which he thought should stand the test of judicial construction:
 Provided, however, that 1t shall not be unlawful for two or more persons to enter into an agreement to leave or refuse to enter the employ of any per- son, co-partnership or corporation or to advise. persuade or induce others to do so."
 Strenuous opposition to both the Smith amendment and the Hughes sub stitute came from MT. Sherley of Ken lucky, who declared amid Republican applause that any right guaranteed un- der the Constitution or any law which is violated by conspiracy or otherwise should be punished. What we need in America" he said, ''is to teach the people to obey the law and not to dis regard It."
 The laboring man. he said, was en- titled to his rights. but" he added, amid loud applause, "the time has not come in this country when any class of men are entitled to special rights over any other class"
 He was willing to defend laboring men and had done so, but he was not willing to be demagogic about 1t, or to make the amendment the instrument of legislation that was crude and had not been considered by committee.
 4 Brief COllOqHy.
 Mir. Sheriey became involved in a brief colloquy with his colleague. Mir. James, who said that District Judges had frequently decided against labor unions.
 And Circuit Judges of Appeals have reversed the district judges" respond ed Mir. Sherley. And laboring men are kept in jail until those courts are reversed" said MT. James, amid Dem ocratic applause.
 Derisive laughter came from the Re- publican side when Mry Sims. of Ten nessee, inquired of MrdSherley, how it happened that he was talking on tho Democratic side and getting applause on the Republican side. MT. Sherley repudiated the suggestion that he was antagonistfc to the majority of his own side of the house. He declared that an investigation would disclose that he was in accord with the Democratic Party, upon those measures that re- late to the real rights of the laboring man."
 MT. Mccall, of Massachusetts. favored striking out the whole section, while Messrs. Hackney, of Missouri, and Cochran, of New York. declared in fa- vor of specific legislation on the tub ject.
 MT. Moon. of Pennsylvania, protested against any amendments to organic law as covered by the bill and moved to shut off debate in ten minutes. This aroused the opposition of the Demo- crats, who forced a division of the House and then a vote by the tellers. which resulted favorably to Mir. Moons motion, 127 to 96. Further amendment was then offered by Mir. Clark, of Mis- souri, striking out Section lS, the clause making ineligible to office un- der the government, all persons found guilty of conspiracy to deprive any one of his constitutional rights.
 MT. Williams. of Mississippi. remark ed that the law was the last relic of reconstruction times. Further debate on the subject was cut off by a state ment by Mir. Sherley that the commit tee would not oppose the Clark amend mcnt The amendment was consequent ly agreed to.
 Embarrassed ReIatiOns.
 An amendment by Mir. Bartlett, of Georgia. to strike out the whole section was lost The reading of the bill was then continued and Mir. Cochran. of New York. supported the Hughes amendment. arguing that the section as 1t stood further embarrassed the rela- tions of labor and capital. Both amend ments were lost. the former by 101 to ll9 and the latter 7e to 116.
 An amendment was offered by Mir DeArmond of Missouri to strike out Section 2e because. he said, it con ferred Jurisdiction of Federal Courts