The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-09
To ARGUE
TWO CASES BEFORE
US. SUPREME COURT
Attorney General Will Peti-
ton Tribunal to Set Date
for Hearing Ala
bama Cases

| Montgomery, November s.-(special }
Attorney General Robert C. Brickell left
! for Washington tonight to petition. the
United States supreme court to set a
! date for the hearing of two cases In
which the state of Alabama Is inter-
ested One case is the state against
Sudie Schmidt involving certain six
teenth section school lands, and the
other case is the Singer Sewing Ma
chine company against the state, in
volving the collection of certain taxes.
The Sudie Schmidt case tests the right
of the state to recover about quarter
of a million acres of land granted by
the United States government to Ala
bama at the time the state was ad-
mitted into the Union. The laSds iu
question are sixteenth section lands
ara We're granted to the state for the
use of schools, and the ultimate de-
cisiof of the case by the United States
supreme court is important both to the
state and to the holders of these lands
The case was decided by the Alabama
supreme court adversely to the state
early this year. the court holding that
the right of the state to recover from
the plaintiff the lands in question was
barred by the statute of Limitation. BY
the Alabama supreme courts decision,
about 100000 acres of land were taken
from the state.
In his motion to have the case nd
vanced on the docket of the United
States supreme court, Attorney Gem
eral Brickell will contend that the lands
were diverted from the purposes for
which granted, and that the Alabama
statute upon which the claim of ad-
verse possession Is founded Is in con-
fiict with the federal constitution.
Attorney General Brickell declares in
his printed motion:
'If the states suit is we'll founded,
the revenue from these lands should
not be withheld from the uses to which
the lands were dedicated, nor be in
parts lost If judgments for damages be
rendered against insolvent parties. II
the states suit Is not well founded, then
the thousands or more holders of these
lands should be relieved of the cloud
which this suit casts upon their title"
Singer Sewing Machine Case
The Singer Sewing Machine company
case is appealed from the United States
district court at Montgomery, and grew
out of an effort on the part of the
SOiiphHy ~ CiiJOih tHG tOilcttlOn Oh GER
tain taxes due the state and counties
in which the company operated. The
state won the case in. the lower courts,
and the company began to pay the
taxes assessed against 1t under pro-
test, thereby preventing the payment
of the taxes by the tax officers Of the
stat,, and depriving the state Of ap-
proximately $4,000 annually and the
counties of about $500 annually.
The Singer Sewing Machine company
claimed that the section under which
1t was assessed was vio1ative of the
fourteenth amendment of the federal
constitution, 'in that it is an effort
on tho part of the state of Alabama to
make or enforce law which shall
abridge the privileges or immunities Of
citizens OF the United States"
The argument In support of Mr.
Brickell's motion for the advance of the
cause on the docket says In part:
I'VE hardly deem 1t necessary to
stress upon the court the Importance
to the state and to the counties thereof.
of being able to promptly collect their
revenues, and the case at bar being one
of that character, which not only in
wolves the revenue derived from the com
plaintant. but which, II decided against
the contentious of the state will also
deprive them OF revenues from other
persons and corporations similarly sit
uate6"