Evening star., 1917-03-19
Supreme Court Rules Eight
Hour Law Is Valid in
All Respects.
WAGE INCREASES FIXED
BY CONGRESS LOCALIZED
Justices Day, Pitney, Van Devanter
and McReynolds File Dissent.
ing Opinions.

The Adamson eight-hour rail-
road law was held constitutional
and valid in all respects today by
the Supreme Court of the United
States.
The decision makes eight hours
the standard of a days work and
wages for men in operation of
trains and legalizes the wage in
creases which went into tentative.
effect on its passage.
The immediate temporary
wage increases won by the rail-
road employees affect 100000
trainmen as of January l, and are
estimated to total between $4O,-
100000 and $5O,0O0,O0O.
Federal Judge Hooks ruling in the
Missouri. Oklahoma and Gulf railroad
test case. enjoining enforcement of the
Adamson act and holding 1t "unconsti-
tutional. null and void" was reversed.
Decided by 5 to 4.
Justices Day. Pitney and Van Devanter
dissenting. Justice McReynolds an
nounced dissenting views, but said he
bowed to the will of the majority.
In dissenting Justice McReynolds held
that Congress did not have power to
enact the law. but that the majority
decision now gives 1t authority to fx
trainmen's maximum and minimum
wages. ito require compulsory arbitra-
tion Of labor disputes which may seri-
ously jeopardize movement of tramc
and to take measures enectively 20
against any combination. whether of
operatives, owners or strangers"
Justice McKenna concurred In the
majority opinion. but on slightly dlffer-
ent grounds. Justice Day read his own
dissenting opinion. and Justice Pitney
delivered the other dissenting opinion,
in which Justice Van Devanter Joined.
Justices Pitney and Van pevanter In
that the law should be held unconsti-
tutional and void 'because Congress-
confessedly not in possession
of information necessary for intel
troversy, arbitrarily imposed upon the
railroads the entire and enormous cost
of an experimental increase in wages"
Justice Day in his dissenting opinion
Of the railroads property
without due process OF law.
Within Power Of Congress.
In concurring in the majority opinion
Justice. McKenna differed in that he be-
lieved the law IAN hours of service"
statute and only secondarily a wage
fixing law, and thus within power OF
Congress.
Negotiations Reviewed.
In announcing the opinion the Chief
Justice reviewed the negotiations lead
ing to enactment OF the law. He did
not reed from a prepared opinion. Civ
ing it apparently from memory. He
told of the Presidents efforts to avert
the strike last September.
HE suggested arbitration. The en-
ployers accepted and the employees re-
fused" said the Chief Justice. "He
then suggested a basic eight-hogr-day
standard. The employers rejected that
and the employees accepted"
How tine President went to Congress
was then recited.
Congress passed the law that ID be-
fore us and the carriers refused to
recognize H." he continued. He said
the agreement to expedite the case was
very lauda3le.
In the ea.iy course of the opinion the
Chief Justie. said that law was both
an eight-hour act .and also wage-ux1nR
statute. He said IL strips the pArties
of power contract" as to wages. He
said the eight-hour provision was the
feature.
Regarding whether the law Is an
or wage-hxing law. the
Chief Justice said it was both. He said
the question of fixing hours of labor
by Congress was out Of the case as un-
questioned.
Dividing Line Marked.
THE dividing line is SO marked that
will not destroy the private
right" said the Chief Justice. THE
power to regulate rests upon both the
private and public interests involved"
He then inquired if it was relevant
for Congress to provide for the tenn
oorary wage increase. He said the right
If private parties to fix private wages
was an inherent right and to take IL
away would be unconstitutional But.
ended to do and the failure of the rail-
.oads and employees to reach an agree
nent. to say that the government au-
.hority did not have the power Ito NIL
he void would be to declare that the
private right had destroyed the public
light.
Not an "Emerse--y Power"
..e said Congress power was not an
power" He recited that
power to Ak rates, pro-
,ibitins rebates and a myriad of regu-,
ations" had been asserted to protect
he public interest"
The Chief Justice said that power
,ad been extendedsto employees, citing
he 'shours of service act and Others.
lie said there was authority of Con-
rress to act because of failure of the
ailroads and employees to reach an
lgreement. and the railroads could not
,bject to fixing a standard of wages
,ecause, in the deadlock, none was fx-
d. The court reserved an opinion as
O whether the penalties are excessive.
The Chief Justice said there was basis
or the attack that there was no .con.
ideration" for the passage of the act.
He told how the President appealed to