Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1921-03-03

Washington, Feb. 28.-The supreme
court today held unconstitutional the
sections of the Lever act under which
strike of 1919 and subsequently
launched its campaign to reduce the
cost of living by prosecuting alleged
h0arders of and prOhtce.s in food
stuffs and other necessities.
The courts opinion was rende ed
specifically in an app>al by the gov
ernment from decree in lower
courts quashing an indictment against
an alleged profiteer in sugar, but it
was sweeping in tis terms and will
have the effect of enling all prose-
cutions instituted by the Department.
of Justice in its cost of living cam
paign.
Coal Case Not Before the Court.
The action of the government in OBJ
tanning injuactions to stop the strike
of bituminous miners in November,
1919, was not before the court, but
Department of Justict officials said
that it was under section four, which
was held invalid, that the government
Lid proceeded against the miners.
The opinion of the court was based
largely on the indefiniteness of the
sections under review. Chief Justice
White, departing from his prepared
opinion, remarked that the scope of
the sections apparently was "as broad
as human imagination" and that the
degree of criminality was left to ever
changing standards.
Associate Justices Brandies and Pit
ney dissented as to the reasoning by
which the courts opinion was reached
but concurred in the result.
Conviction of the l.. Cohen Grocery
Company of ST. Louis in having
charged an unreasonable profit on
sales of sugar was set aside by the
court.
In taking this action the court sus-
tanned DEGREES of lower courts, which
had sustained a demurrer to the IN
dictment of the grocery concern. Inc
specific charge was that the defend
ant charged 5000 for so pounds OF
sugar, or at a rate of more than
20 cents pound.
Hundreds of cases growing out of
the government campaign to reduce
the cost of living are affected by the
opinion. A number of these cases
have reached the supreme court, while
many others are pending in lower
courts.
Dissent From Reasoning.
Justices Brandeis and Pitney con-
CURED in the opinion, but dissenting
from '.the reasoning by which it was
reached"
Conviction in Georgia of the Ogel-
shy Grocery Company on charges OF
overcharging for foodstuffs was re-
versed. The company had been sem
fenced to fine of $4,000.
The conviction of the firm of Weeds
inc, of Bing'nampton, N. T., also was
set aside Chief Justice White SAID
the statute was "as broad as human
imagination"
Practically all of the attacks
against the act were based on the
ground that it violates the fifth
amendment to the constitution, in that
it deprived the defendants of their
property without due process of law.
Other arguments were dismissed on
the allegation that enactment of the
law on Oct. %, 1919, after hostilities
had ceased, was not proper exercise
by Congress of its war power. 1t also
was argued that the sales were entire
ly intrastate, and therefore outside OF
federal jurisdiction.
In the case brought by merchants
of Jackson, Miss, the court reversed
the decree of lower courts refusing to
issue al injunction restraining the at
torney from prosecuting under the
Lever act.