Pueblo chieftain., 1921-02-12
REPUBLICAN LEADERS
VIEWING WITH ALARM"
Continued from Page one)

connection with both the attorney
partment
Then for time, the inner group
said that Sutherland was to be saved
for the supreme court.
There is much nonsense about this.
For months it has been said that
Harding will have four vacancies on
the supreme court to fill. Ex-President
Taft started it in an article he wrote
during the campaign in which he
asked whether the public would pre-
fer that Harding should fin these va
cancies or that Cox should do 1t.
Cox promptly took the argument up
reversed it. and made frequent use
of it during the campaign.
There is little or nothing in It, Hard
ing may as likely have no Supreme
court vacancies at all to fill as have
four The terms OF Justices OF the Su-
prene court do not come to an end
automatically, at any fixed time.
1t is true that four OF the Justices
fulfil the conditions under which they
can retire II they wish to do so, These
conditions are that they shall have
reached the age OF seventy and shall
have served ten years. The four are
White, Holmes, Day and NcKenra.
, But all four are in normal health and
are not oppressed by their work. The
oldest OF the court is Holmes. and, in
an intellectual sense, he might also be
called the youngest All this specula-
ton about candidates for appointment
to the Supreme court is wide OF the
mark, is in bad taste certainly. and OF
doubtful public usefulness as well
The latest suggestion about Suth-
erland is that II omitted from the cab
met, he should be put in the ONCE that
is essentially the most important pure
ly legal office in the administration
namely. Solicitor General The duty
of this official Is to act as counsel for
the government IN lawsuits. He is the
governments active lawyer.
During the next administration tho
government will be a party to lawsuits
aSgrcgating literally many billions OF
dollars. hTere are billions involved in
contested war claims AID more billions
involved in disputed taxes. II is not
too much to say that during the next
few years the difference between the
government being represented by first
class lawyer and less efficient one
Will mean not less than a billion dol
lars to the Treasury.
Sutherland is universally recognized
as man OF perfect equipment, both as
to character and legal ability. But
there might well be in this case. as In
50 many others, the difficulty o, got
ting successful lawyer OF cabinet
honor and deficient in remuneration.
In the cabinet slat. as II now stands
practically the only name that carries
widespread conviction based on pub
lie knowledge on a national scale Is
that of Hughes. This note denying
that several of the others are very able
men. but there is diffrcncc between
ability which the public IS familiar
with and that which must await pub
lie acquaintance. 1t is on the former
obviously. that Harding must rely for
the initial public impression OF his cab
met.
General Woods name has never real
ly figured seriously on the cabinet
states. The present likelihood is that
he will be Offered post he /. eminent
ly fitted for AS Governor General OF the
Philippines.
Also. whilc for weeks At n time. both
in the beginning and later. the public
and the newspapers discussed Root in
the role OF Secretary OF State. the fact
is there was never any real likelihood
OF Harding making this selection.
Copyright 1921. by tho New York
Evening Post. Inc-)