The Detroit times., 1916-07-31

Manly. by quoting verbatim from
OF Hughes. lays bare the actuating
princip1es by which the mind OF
Chas. Il. Hughes operates.-Editor)
Charles +. Hughes believes In the
exaitation OF the judicial over the
legislative branch OF government;
In lawmaking by court decision; and
In the rule or reason" by which the
supreme court decided a monopoly
Is all right IL II doesn't 90 too far!
(The court 10 decide what is too
far.
This is shown by the fact that
Hughes, as Justice, concurred in the
Standard OIL and American Tobac-
co decisions, against the protest OF
Justice Harlan.
These two great corporations. con.
vicred by the courts. were dismissed
with complete immunity; the SUI
preme court deliberately reversed
the position It had maintained for
20 years by declaring that only "un-
reasonable" restraints OF trade were
illegal
The chief justice exalted himself
| above both congress and the presi-
dent by an act of judicial interpreta-
ton, and literally placed upon his
head the crown of supreme author
ity. And W. ]. Bryan has charged
that Hughes presented this crown
to the chief justice and urged him
TO wear II.
In the Commoner on Oct. IL, 1911,
Bryan asserted:
"In It's 1908 platform the Repub-
lican party promised TO amend the
| sherman antitrust law. During the
campaign OF 1908 Gov. Hughes, OF
New York, interpreted that promise
10 mean that the rule of human
reason must be accepted.
Later. Taft appointed Gov.
Hughes. as we'll as other men OF
his mold OF thought. to the United
States supreme court.
George W. Perkins. associated
with J. p Morgan in trust control,
delivered a speech recently In which
he complained that Republican con-
| gressmen had not tried 10 redeem
their platform promise. but that 1t
had been redeemed by the supreme
| court in the recent trust decision
wherein Coz. Hughes rule OF rea.
son was applied.
Here We have t. Gov. Hughes
was put forward 10 represent the
| Republican party; he assured the
| trusts that the rule OF reason for
which they had been waiting more
than 10 years would be adopted.
Congress refused to keep the prom.
Use. so Gov. Hughes was put on the
supreme bench and helped TO amend
the law in accordance with the Re.
publican promise. and now Presi.
dent Taft, In whose interest the
promise was made and who appoint
ed Gov Hughes. says that the anti.
trust law az amended by the court
must not De ulblurDeu.
The record seems to show that
| Hughes attitude toward the trusts
is more lenient than that OF Taft.
AS a Judge, Taft had declared IL
legal many contracts under the
Sherman act. chief among them be-
ing the Addyston pipe case, refusing
uniformly 10 consider the question
OF reasonableness. which the cor
porations we're urging as their de.
tense.
And as president. in his message
OF Jan. Z. 1910. Taft said:
1T has been proposed. however,
that the word reasonable be made
part OF the statute. and then that
II should be left to the court TO say
what is reasonable restraint OF
trade, what Is a reasonable suppress
sion OF competition. what In rea-
sonable monopoly. venture to think
that this Is 10 give the courts a
power approaching the arbitrary.
the abuse OF which might involve
our whole judicial system In disas.
ter"
Only four months after this state
ment. Taft, knowing Hughes ideas
favoring the rule OF reason" know.
ing the Standard Oil and American
Tobacco cases were the most i'm.
portsnt then before the supreme
court, knowing also that Chief JUS
tice White for 20 years had been
determined TO read the word "rea.
sonable" into the Sherman act, APP
pointed Hughes.
In the case OF Thompson VS..
Thompson, in October 1910. Hughes
had concurred In Harlan's dissent