The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-10-17

| nllned 10 DO indirectly what coulu not De
| done directly and to destroy the liti-
| giants by arresting their operatives In de-
| fiance of the orders of the court, through
| the puny device of branding the states
own law as unworthy of enforcement by
! its own officers, depriving all Its officers
of authority to execute them, and turning
over the whole power of the state to the
keeping of private citizens to that end.
1T was aptly said of the scheme: IT
you make 1t anybody's business to en-
| force the rate statutes, suit to prevent
| 1t is not suit against the state; If you
make it nobodys special business and
| anybody can enforce the law then suit
to stop it is a suit against the state
Such contention ignored the patent con-
sideration that the commands of the con-
stitutlon cannot be evaded by the in
genuity of n statute, and that the eonsti-
tutionality Of every enactment must be
determined by its reasonable and nat
ural and ordinary operation upon the
right at which 1t is directed. Because
the court whose Jurisdiction was thus
attempted to be evaded, enjoined passen-
gers and shippers through representatives
hof their class, and all other persons
from interfering with the carriers pend
ing final hearing the governor denounced
the inJunctions then issued as diabolical
and the most unusual proceeding ever in
situated, though the supreme court in
prior like cases had upheld them, and
its rules provide for just such injunctions
where the parties to be affected are very
numerous.
Who Was Worthier Son of Alabama.
I'm my first publication, in answer to
| the governors attacks, I concluded a
review of the governors conduct and the
| bitterness which resulted from 1t, In the
following paragraph: confidently leave
1t to my fellow men to determine which
| was the truer son of Alabama and most
| devoted to her interests and honor, the
| federal judge who stood for the constitu-
! ton and laws amid storms of detraction
and passion, directed by the chief magis-
/ trate of the state against the Judge and
| the court, or the governor, who in state
papers and public utterances inveighed
against the institutions of his country,
denounced citizens of this and other
! states as law-breakers and criminals for
exercising constitutional right, and CON-
stant1y fomented excitement and pas
sion, persuadlng the people that their
rights were being trampled under foot by
| the ordinary operation of the laws of the
! union, and melting citizens and state off,
cials to resist the orders Of court of
his country by force, at a time of great
| popular excitement, inviting riot and Sc
dition and consequent shame to the good
name of It's people.
Governor the Witness Against Himself
'"The governor is startled by the picture.
| He recoils from the contrast. He asks
| why, In proof of the statement that the
I governor had melted solicitors and juries
| to find true bills, and sheriffs to make
arrests. in violation Of the orders of the
| court did not the Judge refer to some
| Of the solicitors, judges or grand juries?
! The governor proves the charge and he
| has already testified that he melted every
| one of them Dare the governor deny
| that he gave out interviews to the press
|
In which he said. speaking of the rate
statutes: i know of no reason why every
! one OF them should not be enforced. I
| shall carry out my obligation to the con-
stitution and the people, The state, OF
| course, expects to enforce its laws both
civil and criminal. Every time ticket Is
| sold for more than two and a half cents
| per mile, the railroads violate the law,
and the person selling the ticket commits
/ misdemeanor. 1t is the duty of every
court to so charge the jury, and the duty
OF every solicitor to make out a case
"Wil he affirm that he did not declare
! in the public prints, Tt Is difficult to I'M
| derstand how any corporation, whether
domestic or foreign. can see 1t for their
| business interest to place themselves in
| defiance of the laws of the state and seek
| an injunction In the federal court?' And
did he not say he would simply add that
negro craps shooter would be arrested
and / shall charge every officer that any
| violation OF our criminal laws, whether
| by individuals or trusts, is a violation of
the law and must be so charged, and
alike made amenable?'
HAS he forgotten that he publicly said
about this time that the sovereign state
| of Alabama would dominate its own af-
| fairs and insisted that the federal court
was meddling with affairs which did not
concern 1t, by even entertaining the COM
plant of the litigants? Did he not de-
nounce the litigants ana liken them to
'scalawags?
He cannot deny that he repeatedly de-
clared in his public utterances that the
people of Alabama demand as q unit
that the state shall govern it's own ar
fairs, and that whenever any law, civil
or criminal is violated the offender must
pay the penalty Was he not saying
about this time that his oath of office
compelled him to take care that the laws
be faithfully executed and that he
would use the whole power of the state
to that end?' Could there have been a
more emphatic statement by the chief
executive of the duty of courts to indict
the officers and servants of the ltigants
in these cases, or a stronger Indictment to
solicitors that they ought to prosecute
them?
WAS he not writing and telegraphing
to some of the ltigants at the time of
| our h1SneSL eXClIe1nent. Wnen ne was
blazing with threats, Your road is vio-
lating these laws every day. and insist
ing that their officers come to his office
to discuss the necessity of the observ-
ance of the rate statutes?' The cases
were then In court. What necessity
made it so pressing to come to him at
that particular time, unless the necessity
was to eyentuate from his forcible inter-
ference?
'Many of the state officers, whose duty
was thus so emphatically laid down to
them by the chief executive Of the state,
in the utterances quoted, were subject |
to Impeachment on his order II they neg
lected their duty-which In these very
cases he repeatedly declared to be the
arrest and prosecution of the litigants
officers and servants as violators of the
state laws. He speaks of the litigants
constantly as placing themselves in de-
fance of the laws of the state What
possible meaning could these officials
attribute to his words. If they did not
which the chief executive would expect
them to perform, to arrest the operatives
and officers of the carriers who were de-
nounced as violators of the law and
carry them before the courts of the state, f!
notwithstanding the injunctions of tho |
United States court? Surely, the COVER
nor was not trying to trap sheriffs, So
licitors and constable into fragrant de- |
fiance of the orders of the court, and |
after having done that to leave them |
alone to reckon with the authority they
had thus defed!