The Washington herald., 1909-05-09
Legal and Criminal.


Dividing attention for the moment with
the Senate and SIS highly instructive ef-
forts 10 solve the riddle OF tariff taxation.
another branch OF the Federal govern
ment has taken q hand IN the game Of
trust regulation.
The United States Supreme Court In
A decision rendered Monday ruled that
the commodities clause Of the Hepburn
rate bill is valid. but that Il Is Ineffective
for the purpose intended by the trainers.
namely. that OF forcing railroads 20 d.
vest themselves Of coal or other proper
ties, the products Of which form part OF
the freight they haul and Of confning
them strictly TO the business OF trans
portstion. The suit had been brought
BY the government 10 enJoin the six
anthracite roads from violating the law.
and the lower court, that OF the East
srn Pennsylvania circuit, had decided
that the lavs was Unconstitutional because
il deprived the carriers Of property with
out due process OF law. Justice White
delivered the opinion OF the highest court
orally. and gave out a written memoran-
dun OF the fun opinion OF the court The
chief point wherein the railroads score
Is that ownership OF stock IN 8 holding
company does not give the owner a legal
interest IN the commodity produced by
the said company. This FITS precisely the
condition OF affairs among the anthracite
railroads which DO not own directly the
mines. but which d. control them through
holding companies And curiousiy. this
point was not raised by any Of the l0w-
yers for the railroads. Even where the
holding companies are conducted By the
same officers as those who manage the
railroads = does rot involve the legal
interest contemplated in the law Jus
tice White pointed out that the govern
meuts construction OF the law would
mean that Congress had the power 70
virtually prohibit certain production OF
commodities which might become The sub
5ect % interstate commerce. The imrne-
date effect OF the decision IS TO compel
the two coal roads which co own mines
directly 10 form holding companies, name
ly. the Delaware and Hudson and the
LacEaTanna
Attorney General Wfckersham fl a brief
statement to the public said that the
decision did not sustain the full Conten-
finds much satisfaction. however. m the
courts recognition that Congress has the
power % extend the prohibition OF trans
portatIon 20 commodities produced by
companies IN which the railroads have
a stock interest. He thinks the decision
does sustain the principle contended for
BY the government that Congress has
the power 20 prohibit a carrier from car
Tyrng in competition with other shippers
commodities which the carrier owns or
in which Il Is interested He also be
Hsves Il operates 70 prevent the trans
poTtatiOn OF a commodity owned by the
carrier al the time OF shipment.
Justice White distinctly said that the
statute IN question did require. IN the
opinion OF the court, that carriers directly
or indirectly interested IN the cOmmOdi-
ties before the act OF transportation
must IN good faith dissociste themselves
from the property. 50 that the duty OF
the carrier may not conflict with their
duty"
Justice Harlan dissented from some OF
the views held by the rest OF the court.
insisting that the clause did operate
against those carriers who had stock
interesting IN holding companies
The ruling OF Secretary os Agriculture
~
violation Of the pure food law has now
been sustained by Justice Stafford o.
the Supreme Court OF the District OF Co.
lUmbla, IN the case brought By the Alsop
Process Company. Of St. Louis, naanufac-
turers Of bleaching apparatus, who tried
to have the court compel the Secretary
20 revoke his decision that the use OF
nitrogen peroxide in bleaching -four Is
deieteriOus
In the record time OF one hour or
Thursday at Mercer, Pa. James Boyle,
the man who kidnapped little Willie
Whitla from his school IN Sharon, was
found guilty. the chief witness being the
boy himself The trial OF his alleged
wife and conspirator followed on Friday.
The jury on the rTsJ ballot found her
guilty on Saturday morning, and both
viii be sentenced this week. The nys-
tery surrounding the whole case has not
been cleared
Most OF the week In the trial OF Capt
Peter Hams Al New York for the murder
OF " z Annis was occupied IN closing
the Gefepse. An insanity expert swore
that the captain was a victim Of impul-
sive insanity at the time u the shooting.
and this theory was bolstered by the tes-
timOny Of the aged mother OF the ac-
cused. who told OF his ihaving injured his
head when a boy. The state began By
calling several army officers who saw
Hams near the time Of the shooting and
who saw nothing about him to suggest an
unbalanced mind.