The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-05-15

The action of the sheriff of Jeffer- son county and his deputies on Sunday last, in putting under arrest all vio- lators of the state laws relative to the observance of the Sunday, and which laws have been upon the statute books of Alabama ever since Christo- pher Columbus and his brother Nieo- demus sailed across the ocean in an open rowboat, bringing to these shores the ordinances of Constantine, which were adopted in aid of the ordinances of God which were badly in need Of assistance at the time, must be con- vincing to all that the recent expcn- sive. exciting, excruciating election touching Sunday movies was gra- tuitous sacrilege.
 The right honorable high sheriff 'rf Jefferson county, Alabama (may his tribe increase), has taught the advo- cates, adversaries and agitators of that needless cause of discomfort trick worth all that were devised during that agitation which was so full of sound and fury. signifying nothing.
 Under the constitution of the state of Alabama, no municipal corporation has the power to pass any laws incon- sistent with the general laws of the state. nor has the legislature the power to authorize any municipal cor poration to pass such laws. and had the result of the election been other than it turned out to be. the afore- mentioned right honorable high sheriff of Jefferson county. would have had it in his power to go on cutting bread and butter" in the same manner in which he did it so neatly last Sunday, as vote in favor of the Sunday movies would have amounted to no more than
 it did amount to. to-wit: dragging through the mire and muck of politics the reverend remains of the afore- mentioned ordinances of Constantine, late of such blessed hope and now of such happy memory. The absurdity resulted as the perfectly natural con- sequence of a departure from another ancient institution. proper reverence for which saved the state the degrada- tion of purely political Sabbath tier the adoption of this new and unheard of expression is not more of bar barism than Christian Sabbath"). for over 100 years--that time e-honored in- stitution known as the grand jury.
 We have quite destroyed it's useful ness by detracting from its dignity. The English at the time of Blackstone had an old statute on their books which had been adopted during the reign of Edward III, under which no indictment had ever been returned. al though the violations of the statute were numerous. but the English pre-
 ferred tne maintenance of the grand jury and it's functions as the grand forgiving arm of the law, to the yin- dication of an absurd statute, and Ao maintained the dignity of the grand jury.
 The proper test of all criminal laws is to pass them up to the grand juries of the country for digestion, and if the grand iuries will not return in- dictments. then let the statutes re- main upon the books in perpetual memory of the folly of adopting silly or oppressive laws. We, having aban- doned this ancient and useful part If the machinery of our system of laws by putting it in the power of mere executive officer to inaugurate and prosecute to trial. Judgment and execu : ! tion violations of criminals laws with which the people at large may not be i in sympathy, have brought upon our 1 selves the curses which must needs attend the removal of the landmark | the arch removers of landmarks be- | ing nnovating legislators.
 I Previous to the liberation of the black, I in Alabama, no citizen could be brought
 for trial except upon indictment by g grand jury. and that grand forgivins
 arm of the law exercised the divine func
 tion of passing by many offenses: but thu
 blessed privilege of prosecuting the fres negro for petty offenses which were char. acteristic of him. before justices of thu peace and their minions. tempted us tc play Esau with a birthright. and thu
 blessings of our great wisdom are about
 to extend to all classes of citizens and | for all manner of offenses,
 During 115 years. the state of Alabama was saved the humiliation of poiitica
 Sabbath; but our grand juries were con