The Sentinel=record., 1911-05-16
NOT
 IN CONTEMPT
GoMPERs, MITCHELL AND MoR- BISON ARE FREED FROM CON-
 TEMPT OF COURT CHARGE
Right to Reopen Case in the Lower Court, it Is Believed
 the Trial is Ended

Washington May 5.--Samue Com pers, John Mitchell and Frank Morri- son president, vice president and sec retary of the American Federation of Labor, respectively, stepped from without the shadow of the jail today when the Supreme Court of the United States set aside their sen tences of imprisonment for contempt growing out of the litigation between the Buck Stove and Range Company and the federation.
 The highest tribunal in the land has left with the lower court, how ever, the right to reopen the con tempt proceedings. This grant of power probably will not be accepted, and the case practically is ended with today's decision.
 The basis of the courts opinion was that the proceeding brought against the labor officers was for civil contempt which could be pun ished only by the imposition of fine. The senthence of the lower court to imprisonment was the penalty for criminal contempt and in the prem. ises therefore, it was not a legal punishment.
 The case, which grew out of the so o-called boycott of the stove corpo- ration by the American Federation of Labor three years ago is one of the greatest importance. alike to the em- Iployers of union labor.
 The Supreme Court holds that the published or spoken utterance of or ganized labor can De cnjoiaea CT st {. rtacked legally because labor is a combination and as such relinqushes the rights of an individual. It also establishes the fact that legal prose cution can be levelled not only at the union itself, but at it's officers as we'll.
 In handing down it's unanimous opinion, read by Justice Lamar the court reviewed the suit brought by the Buck Stove and Range Company against Gompers, Mitchell and Nor rison seeking to enjoin them from placing the company on it's 'unfair' and We don't patronize' lists, pub lished regularly in the American red erationist, the official publication of the federation. This publication the company contended, constituted a boycott.
 The Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, after a hearing granted a temporary injunction December 1S, 1907 making it permanent three months later. The courts order pro. hibited the defendants from attack ing the manufacturing company in their publication or in other unlaw- ful ways.
 Shortly after the order was enter ed the manufacturing company ap- |peared in court charging contempt against the three labor officials. They were found guilty and sen- fenced Gompers to twelve months in jail, Mitchell to nine months and Morrison to six months. The sen tences were appealed to the District Court of Appeals without avail, and the matter then was laid before the Supreme Court.
 Before the Supreme Court had an Opportunity to hear the testimony the Buck Stove and Range Company had settled all it's differences with the de- fendants and all that remained for the court of last resort to do was to rule in the contempt feature of the long fought litigation.
 Justice Lamar devoted considerable space to technical discussion cl lciyIl as differentiated from criminal lcontempt. In the former only fine was permissible, he pointed out, while in criminal contempt jail sen tences could be imposed. The case under consideration he said had been brought by a corporation in coniunc' ton with suit in equity and fine ! to be paid to the corporation alone could be imposed.
 Had the court whose injunction had been disobeyed felt aggrieved it could have brought criminal contempt pro lceedings in the premises and have Inflicted Jail sentence. It did not ds
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