Omaha daily bee., 1909-09-02
NONPART1sAN NULIIFICAT1ON.

Fremont Tribune. Now comes Mr.. Sui
Ivan with frank acknowledgment that II
is his purpose to assist in the attack upon
the law. lie says he win Join In behalt
Of another corporation he represents and
that he will do his best to upset the law
is to be admitted, II he is credited with
common honesty and loyalty to his client,
While we have hitherto stated MIR. sulli-
van can not be said to be a corporation
batter and is not much Of a progressive
In that sense, but rather leans toward
corporation practice in the law, It must
be admitted he has shown cour-
age for a candidate in freely admitting
that ne has been caught with corporation
goods on his person.
Geneva Signal. Now comes Judge J. ].
Sullivan, formerly Of Columbus but now Of
corporation ridden Omaha, and brings suit
in the Lancaster county district court to
have declared unconstitutional the state
occupation tax law on corporations passed
by the legislature last winter. That legis-
lature must have been a mongrel body in
deed. Nearly all of its acts of Importance
have already been declared illegal by some
court, but Judge Sullivan, the particular
pride Of democracy and its one hope on the
state ticket, was not expected to join in
the general raid on the work Of the only
democratic legislature the state ever had.
Let us pray to be delivered from its
repetition. Its s o'clock closing law seems
to be the only one Of Importance that is
likely to hold water, not TO mention any
thing stronger.
Fremont Herald (dem.); Last week we
were told by Lincoln newspapers that
Judge John j. Sullivan would attack the
King corporation law, as passed by the
last legislature, Now It is stated that
the case has been commenced in the dis
trict court of Lancaster county, and that
Judge Sullivan does not appear for the
plaintiff In The action. The statement
that he was hired by a Corporation was
so qualified as to leave little room for
doubt that he was to lead in an attack
on the law passed by the democratic leg
i~slature. Dependency can usually be placed
on the Lincoln newspapers for truth tell
Ing, but this was apparently a political
trick tending to discredit Judge Sullivan
in the eyes Of the people. We are very
glad that Judge Sullivan's skirts are
cleated, and that he had no Intention of
fighting the law which his party had
so faithfully worked for enactment. The
Lincoln newspapers owe an apology to
Judge Sullivan and the democratic press.
Newman Grove Reporter: 1t is hard
luck 10 worry out an editorial this hot
weather and then nave to sidetrack 1t.
But it happened. The editorial WAS headed
"A Non partisan Judiciary" 1t said OF
Judge Sullivan that, in legal ability and
other qualifications for a place on the SUI
preme bench of the state, he stood head
and shoulders above any other of the
nominees. 1t went on to intimate that we
wanted a non-partisan ticket and that Sui
livan was the best name to put at the
head of the list. Then the news came that
Judge sullivan had been retained to at
tack the constitutionality of the law,
passed last winter, putting a tax on cor
porations. Nice thing to spring at such a
time, isn't ii. OF course no outsider can
master the science of legal ethics. They
may be able to show that it is perfectly
right for a great lawyer, who is a candi-
date for supreme judge. to accept a Ie-
tanning fee to try TO prove to the supreme
court, to which he hopes soon to belong,
an important law is not valid. But
how about the other side, the men or the
corporations who paid the fee; what were
they after? They set a trap and sprung
1t. Wen, how about it? Judge Sullivan
may extricate himself. The nights are
growing longer and there is plenty of time
to think. But an article on a non-partisan
judiciary viii be filed away on the hook,
for future reference.