The Goldfield news. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1904-1911, 1910-07-09

country fully realizing the demise of the great iurht and paying 'ha'
ltributs which his life and work command
The sudden death of Chief Justice Melville W. Fuller OF the Unit
ed States supreme court closed the career of on VINO may be fairy
elassed as a great jurist. For twenty-five years he pres'oeu WIN
marked dignity and ability over what has come to be internationally
recognized and respected as one of the most important judicial bodies
in existence in the civilized world whose decisions carry "eis"'
wherever the old English common law is the foundation OF nationai
jurisprudence and the English language is spoken. 1t may be admitted
freely that Juriss of greater brilliancy than the late Chief Justice
have sat on the bench of the United States supreme court, but none
have written decisions that were sounder in principle o more grace
full in their diction.
Yet, when Melville W. Fuller of Chicago a appointed by Presi
dent Cleveland on the urgent recommendation of the two Repubhcan
senators from illinois to fill the vacancy o N the federal supreme court
bench created through the death of Chief Justice Waite, he was con
paratvely an obscure practitioner at the bar and was without pre-
vious judicial experience. SO little was he known to the country at
large that his nomination was a general surprise, and his confirmation
encountered the strongest opposition in the then Republican senate
that the senate judiciary committee reported back the nomination
." without recommendation Under ordinary circumstances such a
report would have defeated the confirmation of any nominee. And lii
long debate in the senate executive session which followed, his cor
frmation was opposed by such able and influential lawyers as Senators
Edmunds, Evarts and Stewart of Nevada, N the political ground that
he had been a "copperhead" during the civil war and was a lawyer
of inferior ability. He was confirmed, however, by a vote of II to 90
His appointment to the chief justiceship has since been amply justified.
for all of the opinions, of which he was the author. have been uni
versaIy recognized as absolutely sound in principle and have been
since fixed law. Among the decisions of which he was the author was
that declaring the unconstitutionalty of the levyinG Of an income tax
by congress without the consent of the state to the conference of tie
power Of the federal government to do so by a constitutional amend
ment the denial of the right of the telegraph companies to tax mes
saees other than those which were interstate; holding labor unions
amenahle to the Sherman antitrust law IN the famous Danbury hat
case; protecting the rights of widow and children in life insurance as
against creditors of the estate of the decedent; denying the right Of
railroads to exempt itself from liability through the negligence of It's
agents in the shipment of goods; holding women responsible for liabiia
ties, such Is grow out of the fraudulent sale of lands as wei as theil
legal rights, and denying the right of a state over original PACKAGE
of liquor in interstate commerce.
Chief Justice Fuller was elevated to the supreme bench when ne
was So years old. He died at the ripe old age of rs, long after he
was qualified to retire o a full salary pension. But the aged Ju1ist
had no desire to surrender his office white physically ard mentally
capable of performing its duties and he died IN the harness, the sole
survivor of the personnel of the court as it existed when he was ap
pointed, save in the single exception of Justice Harlan.