The Washington times., 1921-06-07
LIBERAL LAWSARE
ENCOURAGED BY
COURT DECISION
Decree UNFOLDING Labor Wage
Act Is Welcomed by
Hapgood.
n, NORMAN HAPGOOD.

Ssv and helped to remove from the
Ldudiciary the charge OF stacking the
cards against progressive legislation.
II sustained the district minimum
wage law by vote OF two TO one,
This decision can be looked on as
putting an end to a long and bitter
controversy. When similar case
from Oregon went up TO the Supreme
Court of the United States, the
oregon law was sustained by the tie
vote OF four TO four. However, since
that time a number of things have
happened. 80.
In the first place, Justice Brandeis.
who was disc lalifed because he had
been of counsel In the oregon case, is
free to vote on new minimum wage
cases, and he has been an ardent and
most able upholder of the principle.
FATHER RYAN ACTIVE.
Indeed. the cause owes as much to
his legal ability as to any other as
sistance 1t has had in this country.
To Father John Ryan of the Catholic
University. it is also greatly indebted
and Father Ryan has been most
interested follower of the fight In the
district.
In the second place, Chief Justice
White is dead. and he was one OF the
justices opposed to these laws II Is
not at all probable that anybody who
is appointed to take his place viii
oppose this form of protection TO
women. -
Opinion along this line is develop
ing rapidly. Certainly, whoever 10
appointed to succeed Chief Justice
White will be a conservative, but the
conservative of today is not the con-
seryatiye of Yesterday.
BOTH ARE CONSERVATIVES.
Let me give coupic of examples.
Two men who have been mentioned
as possibilities for the Supreme Court
are George w. Pepper, of Philadel-
Lbia, and Henry l.. Stimson. OF New
York. Both are conservative Repub-
licans, and yet i could scarcely mag
inc either of them voting to take
away from the legislature power to
enact this kind OF social protection.
One development that undoubtedly
affected the outcome in this case was
the decision recently in the Supreme
Court of the United States that the
legislature had the power to fx rent
ing conditions when IL judged that
the emergency required such control,
Justice Holmes opinion in that case
lad tremendous influence every
where.
II the legislature has the power to
deal with housing conditions, how
can IL be denied the power to legis-
late that women snail not be en-
ployed at wages below certain
minimum standard?
DECIDED GREAT ISSUE.
The rent case decided huch more
than the SPECIFIC question. 1t showed
that the Supreme Court, even when
Chief Justice White was alive to vote
on the other side. had reached a point
where IL Would not undertake to kill
social legislation, on thin excuses
about due process OF law.
The argument against the constitu-
tionality of the law was along the
line that il we started on this line OF
public welfare legislation we would
find ourselves ultimately automobll'
ing down the slippery slope to Boil
sheyism. 1t was the same argument
used by Justice McKenna in the rent
case.
Chief Justice Smythe knocked that
argument out in two different ways.
His FIRST answer was like that OF Jus
tice Holmes in the rent case. II was
not the business of the court. he said,
to go arguing about what might hap
pen sometime, but to decide the case
in front OF It.
NEED OF ELASTICITY.
But he did not stop there. He let
loose mis- opinion also about the ra-
tionality of that kind of reasoning.
According to him Bolshevism is far
from being encouraged by showing
that our institutions as they now ex-
ist are capable of protecting the weak.
In his opinion the very best way TO
prevent the advent OF Bolshevism In
this country is to show that our insti-
tutions are elastic enough to allow us
to obtain the protection we need WITH
out any revolutionary measures.
IL looks so reasonable on the race
of il that IT seems as II IT ought not
10 be necessary even to say 1t. But
IL Is necessary. There are lot Oh
people in Washington some In Con
gress, some on the bench, /who thlnk
they can petrify the world. But they
can't.