Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1917-03-19
EIGHT HOUR DAY AC1
HELD CONSTITUTIONAL
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the statute was not within the power
of congress to enact and in restraining
its enforcement and its decree there
fore must be and it is reversed and
the cause remanded with directions to .
iismiss the bill and it is so ordered I
CONSIDERED SEPARATELY.
I'VE will consider these subjects I'M
der distinct propositions separately: I
First Is the entire want of constl- |
tutional power to deal with the sub
jects embraced by the statute.
There must be knowledge Of the
power exerted before determining
whether as exercised it was consti-
tutional and we must hence settle the
dispute on that question before going
further. Only an eight hour standard
for work and wages are provided, is
the contention on the one side, and In
substance only a scale of wages was
provided, is the argument on the
other.
Both provisions arc equally man
datory. If it be said that the second
the depriv.ng of all power to change
the wages during the fixed period, is
but ancillary to the first command, the
SldilIctlu vi Glib llOuIS, llldI "Oulu IlOl
make the prohibition as to any change
of wages any the less fixing OF
wages. 1t certainly would not change
the question of power unless it could
be assumed that the legislative power
to fix one thing the standard of hours,
could be enforced by exerting the
power to do another, fix the wages, al
though there was no legislative author
l&., ~
1.-THE doing OF one thing which is au-
| thorized cannot be made the source Of
an authority to do another thing which
there is no power to do.
FIXING OF WAGES.
IF to deprive employer and employee
of the right to contract for wages and
to provide that particular rate of
wages shall be paid for a specified time
is not a fixing of wages. it is difficult
to see what would be.
However, there is this very broad
difference between the two powers eX-
erted. The first, the eight-hour stand
ard. is permanently fixed. The second,
the fixing of the wage standard re-
sulting from the prohibition against
paying lower wages is expressly limit
ed to the time specified In section two.
| 1t is, therefore, not permanent, but
temporary, leaving the employers and
employees free as to the subject of
wages to govern their relations by
their own agreements after the speci-
| fled time.
"Concretely stated, therefore, the
question is this; Did congress have
power under the circumstances stated.
that is, in dealing with the dispute be-
tween the employers and employees as
| to wages, to provide a permanent
| eight hour standard and to create by
| legislative action a standard of wages
to be operative upon the employers and
| employees for such reasonable time as
| it is deemed necessary to afford an
opportunity for the meeting of the
minds of employers and employees on
| the subject of wages. or in other
words, did it have the power in order
to prevent the interruption Of inter
state commence to exert its will to
supply the absence of wage scale re-
sulting from the disagreement as to
wages between the employers and en-
ployes and to make it's viii on that
subject controlling for the limited per-
iod provided for?
| Coming to the general consideration
by which both subjects must be con-
| trolled, to simplify the analysis for
the purpose of considering the ques-
| tion of inherent power, we put the
question as to the eight hour standard
entirely out Of view on the ground that
the authority to permanently establish
il is so clearly sustained as to render
the subject not disputable.
This must be unless It can be said
that the right to so regulate as to save
and protect the public interest did not
apply to case where the destruction
of the public right was imminent as
the result of a dispute between the
parties and their consequent failure TO
establish by private agreement the
standard of wages which was essen
| tial: in other words. that the existence
of the public right and the public pow
er to establish a standard by agree
ment"
Chief Justice White announced the
Adamson case just when 1t was
thought all hope for a decision today
was gone. Justice Vandeventer had
just finished lengthy opinion in an
unimportant case when White an
nounced No. 797.
| Occasionally pointing at various at
torneys and darling sudden glances
about the court room, White fairly shot
out his views of the 45as?son law.
The first impression while White re-
viewed the history of the Adamson
law was that the opinion seemed to be
adverse. But suddenly he began to
talk of the supremacy of the public in
terest and the failure of the men and
railroads to exercise their inherent
right to fix wages and terms of EN-
ployment.
When the opinion was somewhat
over half way through there was lit
tie doubt that the law would be declar-
ed valid. But the tension did not
break until he mentioned reversed"
Then the court settled back to an
hour of opinions concurring and dis
senting-while court attaches and
spectators tried to find out just where
the justices stood.