Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1910-10-29
DEMOCRATS SANGU|NE
Believe Judge Morris's Decision
Will Be Reversed In Higher
Courts
MAYOR STRANGE'S OPINION
Counselor Melvin COgfident That Defen.
dants' Position In These Cases Will
Be Ultimately Sustained

Apparently believing frmy that
the decision would be reversed in
one of the higher courts to which it
will be taken, Democrats and city
officials in Annapolis today are to all
outward appearances not worrying
about Judge Morris decision in the
Annapolis registration law cases.
The case was only discussed in a
casual way about the streets, and in
places where men gathered, hut
among city officials and Democratic
political circles it's disposal in the
United States court az Baltimore had
all the time been looked upon as
merely one step in the final DISPOSE
tion of the question whichever way
it was decided there.
The expected appeal will be
taken as soon as the necessary for
malities can be complied with and
the next argument will be before
the United States District Court of
Appeals at Richmond, Va, and
from there it will almost surely go
to the Supreme Court at Washington.
With all this routine to be gone
through. it is evident that two and
and possibly three years may elapse
before a final disposition is had of
the case, so that those interested
are not really considering Judge
Morris decision as in any settling
the matter just yet awhile
a Democrats profess to be perfectly
confident of a reversal of Judge
Morris decision and claim that
they are not worrying in the least.
Mayor James F. Strange this morn
ing seemed to feel just this way
about it, while City Counselor r.
P. Melvin seemed little disappoint-
ed that some of the points most en-
phasized by the defense in the case
had apparently been overlooked in the
court of first resort.
Former Mayor John dep. Douw
was possibly the boldest of the Demo
Gratis seen. He unhesitatingly said
that Judge Morris decision was
marked straight through by a strong
taint of "old time carpetbag ideals. I"
When asked if he did not think such
a stand might be in contempt of
court, he declined to worry about such
a possibility and continued: And
this is the opinion of former North
erner whose forebears were mostly
in the Union Army"
The counsel from Annapolis who
represented the registration officials
was Mr.. Ridgely P. Melvin, who,
with Messrs. William L. Marbury
and William L. Rawls, of Baltimore,
argued the cases before Judge Nor
ris.
Mr.. Melvin stated this morning
that be is still confident that the de-
PENDANTS position in these cases will
be ultimately sustained and that, in
all probability, an appeal will be i'm
mediately taken to the United States
Circuit Court of Appeals at Rich
mond, and thence, if necessary, to
the Supreme Court of the United
States.
Mr.. Melvin stated that if Judge
Morris decision is upheld, it would
probably be difficult to get respon-
sible registration officials to serve,
for, under this decision, they would
be personally liable in damages if the
law under which they were serving
should happen to be subsequently de-
clared unconstitutional In other
words they would have to take all
the risk Of the constitutionality of
any suffrage law and assume the func-
tions of constitutional lawyers, and
if the court decided differently they
would have to pay damages for their
mistake.
The defendants contend that mas
much as they were simply acting in
the honest exercise of their duty, in
good faith, in carrying out this
State law, they are not personally
liable in damages for thus doing their
duty, but that any action that might
be taken should be against them as
State officials, as such, to enjoin the
enforcement of the law, or by some
such appropriate State action. They
also contend that the Fifteenth
Amendment to the Federal Constitu-
tion does not pertain to purely mu-
nicipal elections, as municipal cor
porations are created and regulated
by the State legislature and are gov.
erened exclusively by that body in
so far as voting at a municipal elec.
tion is concerned.
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