The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1910-12-01

Sun. enc Court Refuses ~
Chanae Sentsscs oil Prcm-
meat AIsbsmians-
Must serve Sentence In Prtson and
Par Zine on Charge Of reonAxc-
Cuars Can Ncs Review rowc~ Ct y
state 60 cerryman<ier Congrc~-
~sonal Districts

ssoaal Districts
wssainxscn. Nov. ss.-Cases arts-
Ing from nearly al sections OF the
United States were passed upon n
some IS decisions announced today
in the Supreme Court OF the United
States. One OF the decisions had
the effect Of sending 20 prison four
Alabama men for alleged peonage
practices
Others held that the court eouid
not review the power OF Legiala-
ture 10 "gerrymander" a State for
Congressional purposes. because the
question had been raised in connse-
ton with the election Of 1905. long
since past: that u State may regu-
late liability for the non-deliyery o.
telegraph messages In interstate COM
merce so long as Congress does not
regulate IL: and that no constitution
al rights OF widows in California had
been violated by the assessment Of
an inheritance tax On the wtfe's
share OF community" property own
ed by wife and husband before the
latter's death.
Sentences of Imprisonment impos-
ed upon W. S. Harlan, Robert Gal
lagher, c. c. Hilon and s. Z. Hug
gins, OF Alabama. on peonage con-
spiracy charges, were allowed to
stand as legal by the Supreme Court
today. These were the first convic-
tons under the recent crusade of the
Federal Government against peon-
age
w. s. Harlan, general manager
of the Jackson Lumber Company.
with mills near Lockhart, Ala, was
arrested In 1906, together with c. c.
Hilton and s. e. Higgins, employees
at the mills, on charges OF conspiracy
to commit the statutory offense of
"peonage-"
They were accused specifically of
having conspired to arrest and 10 re-
turn to the lumber camp of the COM
pany a Hungarian named Rudolf
Lanniger, to work out an indebted
ness alleged to be due by him to the
company.
Harlan was sentenced to sevre IS
months at hard labor in the Federal
penitentiary at Atlanta and to pay a
fine of $1,000; Hilton and Higgins,
each to serve thirteen months and to
pay fine of $1,000.
Declined to Review Trial.
The Supreme Court declined to re-
view the trial upon application of
the convicted men, but the cases
were brought to the court on an
appeal from the refusal of the cir
cult court of the United States for
the northern district Of Florida to
release them on writs of habeas cor
pus. They claimed their release on
the ground that the sentence includ-
ed hard labor and because the grand
jury was not organized in accord
ance with the law.
In a second case Robert Gala
CHER, logging superintendent Of the
Jackson Lumber Company, was con-
victed of similar charge and SEN
fenced to Is months in the peniten-
tiary and to pay a fine of 81 900. He,
too, vainly sought release on habeas
corpus.
Leaving to one side the question
as to whether or not the States may
'gerrymander" their territory for
congressional districting purposes,
Independent of limitations by Con-
gress, the Supreme Court today dis
M nf ted
appeal from an attack on an alleged
"gerrymander" in Kentucky.
The court held it was without ju-
risdiction because the case concerned
the Congressional election of 1908
and therefore the case now raised
only moot question. Judicial pro-
ceedings were begun by Republicans
in Kentucky in 1907 to test the al
legged 'gerrymander" of the State
for congressional election purposes
Charles Richardson's fourth congress
sional district filed a suit, asking
that the Secretary of State and his
successor be enjoined from printing
on the Official ballots of 1908. the
names OF certain candidates for Con-
gress.
It was claimed by him that the act
OF the Kentucky Legislature had
"gerrymandered" the eleventh, third,
and eighth districts In violation of
statutes of Congress and the consti-
tuition. Such discrepancies existed
in the apportionment, 1t was claim
ed, that a voter in the eighth dis
trict availed In voting more than-one
and four-ffths times as much az a
voter in the eleventh. At the cleo
ton in 1908. 1t was argued before
the Supreme Court, the Republicans
carried the eleventh by over $1,000
while the Democrats carried the
eighth by about 1,700 and the third
by about 500.
The Kentucky court OF appeals
held that It had no power under the
State constitution, to review the ac-
ton or the Legislature In district
ing the State for conversational 49,