Imperial Valley press., 1917-03-19

(By United Press)
Washington, March 19.-The
United States Supreme Court to-
day declared the Adamson eight
hour law to be valid. Chief JUS
tice White read the decision.
The decision by six of the nine
judges, besides declaring the Adamson
law constitutional, held that Congress
has right to legislate regarding wa
gers. "The court sees no reason why
standard facts by act were made ap-
plicable with candid effort made to
follow it out why the result should
not be easily accomplished"
The decision held that in view of
the appalling situation which the
president pointed out that to say the
government had not the right to fill
the void would be to declare that pri-
vate right had destroyed the public
right. Justices Day, Vandeventer and
Pitney dissented to the decision.
Railroads attacked the Adamson
measure as mot a regulation of COM
merce," not the result of legislative
judgment, but an "experiment" whose
success would be determined by fu-
tlre investigation, and as depriving
the railroad of its liberty to make con-
tracts and it's property without due
process of law. They held it to be
a wage measure, which Congress chad
no right to enact" under the Consti-
tuition.
The government contended the law
was not a wave law, but an hours-of
service act; and that, even if it was.
a wage measure, Congress had the
right to pass it under the commerce
clause of the Constitution.
The case had it's inception when
Congress passed : law, late last Au-
gust, when railroad brotherhoods
threatened to tie up the nations rail-
roads, declaring eight hours to be
standard days work and providing
that pro rata overtime should be paid
for work done after the first eight
hours. This section formed the real
basis of attack for the railroads.
| On March 20, 1916, the four rail-
road brotherhoods-t Brotherhood
Of Locomotive Engineers, the Order
O" Railway Conductors, the Brother
hood of Locomotive Firemen and the
brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen-
demanded of the railroads of the
country an eight-hour day with time
and-ahalf overtime, overtime to be
computed on the minute basis and
regular time to begin when rail-
road man was required to report for
duty. This was to replace the old
mileage basis, by which the men were
paid for a trip-10O miles constituting
a days run, usually of ten hours.
Faced by possibility of paralysis of
commerce, President Wilson prepared
a message to Congress, asking imme-
date passage of an eight-hour law.
Adamson introduced his bill in the
House on August 81. The House
passed it next day. The Senate passed
it September 2. The president ap-
proved it September 3.
The strike was called off. The bill
provided a commission to investigate
the working of the law-which was
effective January /, 1917-within six
or nine months, and report thirty days
after that to the president and Con-
gress. The country settled back.
Then came rumors the railroads would
fight the law, and on November 20
Alexander New and Henry C. Ferris,
receivers for the Missouri, Oklahoma
& Gulf railroad, filed complaint in
the federal court at Kansas City, at
tcc cking the constitutionality of the
law.
Judge William c. Hook of Kansas
City considered the case November %
and decreed the act unconstitutional,
null and void" and the Judgment OF
the court is, the law cannot be sus-
tanned"
That brought it before the Supreme
court on appeal.