The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-10-14
OLDER JUSTICES
Do THE WORK
United States Supreme Court
Resumes Lab0rS With
Some AbSenteeS.
By Ernest G.. Walker.
mail Special to the Advertiser

(Mail Special to the Advertiser.)
WASHINGTON, September 30.-The
most conservative and sedate of all
the government institutions at the sea-
of government is the first to go into
action this autumn. That is the Su-
preme Court Of the United States. 1t
begins its sessions next Monday for
the winter and faces decisions in a lot
of era-making litigation. Since the
Inauguration of new policies and the
enactment of sweeping laws, as well
as the enforcement of others that had
been dead letters upon the statute
book, the tasks Of the Supreme Court
have grown in number and magnitude.
1t is now become a court of very
old justices, nearly all Of whom, how
ever, appear to be in fairly good
health. Of the nine men making the
COURT Chief Justice Fuller is in his
seventy year. He gives care
ful and conscientious attention to the
work, but is growing infrm. Justice
Harlan, the senior associate of the
court, is also in his seventy-seventh
year. Both men could have retired
on full salary seven years ago. But
there is a tradition that chief justices
all die in office and Chief Justice Full
Ter is a stickler for the traditions of
his high place. He has now served
twenty-one years as chief justice and
Is the only Democrat at the head of
any one of the three coordinate de-
partments of the government. Justice
Harlan has served in his present Office
fhirty-two years. He likes the active
work, which keeps the court in Wash
ington only from October to June, and
prefers it to the idle life that would
follow retirement.
Associate Justice Brewer, probably
the most popular member of the court,
is seventy-two years old, and is just
rounding out twenty years of service
there He could have retired on full
pay two years ago but, like Justice
Harlan, prefers the active life.
Justice White is sixty-four; Justice
Peckham, sixty-nine, within one year
of retirement age; Justice McKenna,
IIixty six; Justice Holmes, sixty-eight;
Mustiee Day, sixty; Justice Moody,
IIHfty-six. MeKenna is not in good
altb. Moody, the youngest man on
court who seemed to have long
sTA promising career ahead of him, is
n i'll with rheumatism. He is at
D. home in Haverhill, Mass, wasted
o. BY TO a mere skeleton. His recov-
still problematical. It is not
n " that he will return to work, at
7 VI for many months and perhaps
at all during the court year.
ne burden of the court s response
~ falls upon the senior justices as
suR1ters stand now. Harlan, Brewer,
lite, Fuller, and Peckham constitute
strength of the tribunal. In the
FOby nature of things, none of these ex
.3t Justice White can have many
ed IRIS more of active service. 1t is gen.
= ally understood that Justice Peck
q. am will retire as soon as he is eligible,
s did justices Brown and Shiras, the
I only two living retired members of the
7 court.
According to present prospects sew
eral members of the court must be ap-
pointed within the next three years, and
it is within the probabilities that by
1912 majority of the justices will be
comparatively new men. So it is that
one of the very important matters
which President Taft may have to con-
slider during his term of Office is the
selection of men, who will compose a