Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-10-02
COMPULSORY WORK
ACT ARGUED TODAY
l.. Irving Handy Attacked Con
stitutionality Before
the Court.

Is the compulsory work clause Of the
act ,reating the State Council Of Defense
under which n mum er Of work shirkers
or hroni' loafers ave cen sent to lail
constitutional?
This is the question former Congress
man l.. Irving Handy wants settled, and
is willing and ready To take II ms high rs
he United States Su RENE Court lie
/ licvrs the clause is against he iunda-
men al law of the land and has started TO
ri IT out IN the asc of Charles /. Me
Clurc, ON of the men indicted by the
grand Jury early his month for violation
of the Stat Council order assigning hun
To definite job. As the first phase OF the
matter some days ago Mr. Handy moved
III General Sessions for the quashng Of
TIA indictment ON the ground OF uu-
constitutionaltv of the law. and today
the motion " rs argue ne Rice
and llclscl MIR Handy appearing IN
court armed with IL bate of law
ooks against the law and tho will to
conquer Similarly accoutred was Deputy
Attorney-6 General Percy War; Green,
IN dcionc of the STATE Council act
and the Constitution. And from the time
the two lawyers began their argument to
is con lusion Court Room No L. where
. was held. was ANYTHING but quiet
sector of the local legal front
Mr. Handy unllmbcrcd his artillery of
attack Nv reading the indictment against
NcC lure md sections 4 and Of the
State Council act under which the IN
,lIctmrnt was found. and then read tho
Thirteenth Amendment 10 the Federal
Constitution. prohibiting slavery or in
voluntary scrvitude within the United
| States ~ IT. dependencies, which article
| Mr. Handy declares the State Council
act violates lie then began reading
| citations at eases IN other jurisdictions IN
support at his contention Tho first was
/ a Missouri decision III the case of a man
whose services for five months were about
| 20 be sold TO the highest bidder as a
| punishment for vagrancy the court find
| ing that the act was unconstitutional and
| ordering the man discharged
lie then proceeded to enlarge upon the
| significance of he decision with relation
/ 10 the Thirteenth Amendment. during
/ which Judge licscl interrupted with the
1 query as 10 whether Mr. Handy thought
/ The trainers of the amendment had any
thor thought ~ mind than the SIMPLE
! abolition ut slavery
! MIR Handy replied that he did. that he
/ thought the amendment was also planned
/ to abolish All forms ot Involuntary scrvi-
/ tudc except ia So far rs II might he the
/ punishment toT cTimo after proper con
4 vlction MI Handy quoted number 81
/ cases where mon N Jail awaiting trial
could not 10 compelled To- work even for
/ their board. for tho reason that they had
| not been duly found guilty 81 ,rIme.
CASH or CHINESE SAILOR
Mr. Handy followed this M with thu
eases of some Chinese sailors hired IN
/ Hong Kong for a voyage on 4 steamer
/ known as the Victoria to Tacoma. " ash
! ngton, or elsewhere. for a period of SIX
months, the Victoria beng used IN the
/ | nttcd States transport service. the
/ government being III war hen n now,
| the incident occurring during he Spanish
| American War and IT, Philippine after
I math In this case Il was held IN Federal
/ court that under the circumstances Of the
case tho men were held IN involuntary
scrvitudc contrary To the Constitution.
/ Next. rs ! specific support Of his con-
tentlon Mr. HANDY quoted another
Federal case, reading parts oi a Supreme
Court decision and a dissenting opinion
/ showing hoN the court mind worked
over til, matter of involuntary >ervitudc
MIR Hanll held that the mental attitude
shown therein would not upheld a law
like Re State Council of Defence act
he was attacking further, MIR. Handy
argued that even prior to the passage oi
the Thirteenth amendment there wer,
court decisions against involuntary servi
tude, quoting case in Indiana IN 1916
The phrase. il Was hown, originated witt
Thomas jefferson
Mr. Handy occupied the court time
IN 10 the recess hour Mr. Green vii
reply this afternoon