Omaha daily bee., 1915-10-29

chinery OF the custom house. is lacking
somewhat In economy Particularly II
all OF II together does not produce the
results OF the old machineH
But, bless youi not even the custom
house and It's machinery. the income tax
and it's machinery, the war tax and It's
machinery, the corporation tax and its
machinery-not ossa piled on Pelion-
meets the situation: and we are now
warned to look out for bond issue to
make up an appalling deficit. And here
tho administration IL on solid ground.
The United States can always borrow
enough to tide over few years Of ex-
perimentaI follyi
Faults All Your own.
ut is concerning this phase of the
business situation that wish to ask you
few questions. which. as Americans.
you may answer TO yourselves to suit
yourselves.
Has there ever been any peouniary
failure. misadventure or disappointment
in your business career. which. on an
alysls, you cannot trace TO some short
coming in yourself, either moral. mental
I or temperamental2
IT so be, can you point out TO your
self, or TO others. Just wherein the laws
and institutions of your country were
at faultH
IF you can, have such laws at any
time, or from time to time, been RENEE
died to your satisfaction
do you think that the law merchant
as now ossified and straight-jacketed in
codes and statutes, is 80 superior TO the
elasticity OF the common law TO meet
individual cases that you know hence
forth just what you and all others may
legally do or not do. and that your handi-
caps 10 success have been lowered or
altogether removed7
you know. or possibly some Of you
do not know. Just what the common law
is, and how the law merchant was grad
ually developed according to its princl-
pies? Permit me to explain this briefly.
Here is what Mr.. Justice Holmes has
said in his lectures on the common law;
The life OF the law has not been logic;
Il has been experience And again he
says Of It: Law, being a practical thing
must found Itself on actual forces, SUCH
for example, as the instinct for possess
sion and self-advancement. And he adds
I philosophy may find a hundred reasons
to Justify the instinct but II would be
totally immaterial II It should condemn
IL and bid us surrender without MUIR
( MUIR. As long as the instinct remains
/ II will be more comfortable for the law
! to satisfy II in an orderly manner than
/ TO leave people to themselves. II II should
! do otherwise, II would become a matter
/ for pedogogues-wholly devoid Of reality
! "Sir Edward Coke was fond OF saying
that reason is the life Of the law nay
! the common law itself IS nothing nut
! reason And in the old case Of Cogga
against Bernard II was said: Let VS. con
slider the reason of the case; for nothing
is law that is not reason.
! Common Law aud Common sense.
william Murray. when he came to
the bench as Lord Mansfield, said to
! himself: These merchants of ours are
good men-honest, honorable, great men
the best In the kingdom. Their laws
and customs must be just anu reasonable
or they would not have won the friend
ship OF those with whom they DEAL nor
would they themselves have acquiesced
In them 20 long with so little friction.
II common law is only another name
| for common sense and the perfection OF
reason, then every custom OF these mer-
chants must find it's analogue. It's war
rant. and It's protection in the law OF
the realm. II shall be my mission TO
articulate this law merchant with the
body OF the law or destroy IL utterly
II found TO conflict with fair and hon
orable dealing
Wherefore. his lordship began to con-
sort with merchants. visiting their guilds,
summoning them on special juries, every
where probing into their business habits.
their course Of dealing. and their rea-
sons for their customs, winch seemed
TO be common to all nations. with the
result that there emerged from tho
courts a new law maxim Lex herca-
toria est lex teTrae'-'the law merchant
IL the law Of the land That Is 20 say,
the common law adopted mercantile
ethics and it's own standard OF right and
J justice and the measure Of legality.
And this maxim embodied the Law
Of our country when the so-called sher-
. man act first came before the supreme
court Of the United States for judicial
Interpretation. -Four OF the justices OF
that court. among them Justice White
declared that the act should be inter
preted with reference 10 the common
lsw-that is 20 say. In the light OF
reason in which case the facts ad-