Rocky Ford enterprise., 1909-10-29
SUPREME COURT
JUSTICE IS DEAD.
RUFUS W. PECkHAM, APPOINTED
BY CLEVELAND, SUCcUMBS
TO BRIGHT's DlsEASE.
WAS AN UPRIGHT JUDGE
HARD WORKER AND AUTHOR OF
MANY IMPORTANT RECENT
DECISIONS.

Albany, N. Y.-Rufus w. Peckham.
Justice of the United States Supreme
Court. died at his summer home at
\ltamont at Sis Sunday night.
Death was due to a complication of
iiseases-heart trouble, Bright's dis
base and hardening OF the arteries
contributing.
Justice Peckham has been in i'll
sealth for some time. but his condi-
don was not considered serious until
ecentiy. Following adjournment of
he May term of the United States
Supreme Court, he came on from
Washington with Mrs. Peckham to
pend the summer at Altamont. ex-
,ecting to return for the beginning OF
he October term.
A few days ago his condition be-
,ame such that his physicians said he
Sas likely to die at any time or might
niger for several months. Up to a
ew days ago Justice Peckham ex-
libited considerable strength and was
.ble to be about the house. The cir
'ulatory disturbance which con-
ributed to his death was first no
iced about six years ago.
Washington. - The announcement
I the death OF Justice Peckham,
While expected. came as a shock to
his associates on the bench and in Of
icial circles, and everywhere express
'ions of regret were heard.
Justice Peckham was a Democrat
and before taking a seat on the bench
gave considerable attention to poll.
lies In New York. He was born In
Albany. N. Y. Nov. 8. 1888. and had
been on the bench. state and federal.
for twenty-six years. He came from
state.
Mr.. Peckham's first office was that
Of district attorney OF Albany county.
He was elected to that position in
1865. He afterward became In sue
cession a corporation counsel for Al
bany, member of the Supreme Court
Of the state and associate Justice OF
the State Court Of Appeals. He was
the last of President Cleveland's Dem
ocratic annopintees to the federal Su.
preme Court. Chief Justice Fuller and
Justice White being the other two. He
took his seat in January, 1896.
His chief distinction was that Of
giving his time exclusively to the du-
ties Of the court. He accepted no out.
side appointments and undertook no
work not connected with the high
tribunal But he was In constant at.
tendance on the court and he gave
the most careful attention to all mat
ters before 1t. He was married but
went little into society. He accepted
no invitations to public functions and
made no public addresses after TAX
ing his seat as Justice.
Cases involving the rights Of corpo-
rations received special consideration
at Justice Peckham's hands and he
was the author OF some of the courts
most noteworthy opinions of recent
date along this line.
Among them may be mentioned the
Consolidated Gas Company of New
York. in which he held that while
rates fixed by the Legislature must al.
low a fair return on Investments, fed
eral courts could not interfere to de-
clare them invalid unless they were
so unreasonably low as to be confis-
catory. One result Of that decision
was to cause the return OF several
million dollars to consumers Of gas in
New York City.
Several OF Mr.. Peckham's corpora
ton decisions dealt with the Sher-
man antitrust law as applied by rail-
roads. These included the joint traf-
fic and transmissouri cases. In both
Of which he held the law to be appli-
cable.