The Elk Mountain pilot., 1922-08-17
list Of decisions equally arbitrary and equally indefensibe

list of decisions equally arbitrary equally inefensibe
from the standpoint of public welfare
You have only to recall the decisions arising out of
the employers liability statutes the arbitration act the
workmens compensation the income laws and the
shameful in which the and misap-
piled the antitrust act in the Standard Oil and Tobacco
Trust and other If perchance the memories of
you very short your
decision of the Coronado Coal Co.
The opinion in this by Chief Justice Taft sig
ncant because of what the questions
involved in the rather than because of
thing that is actually decided This is another
obiter dicta
sixne decision all that required to dis
of the its merits for the Supreme
reluctantly obliged to admit the that not
and evidence shoy that the defendants
conspred monopolze interstate commerce
That being of there not never was
against the United Mine Workers the Federal
court The court however went out of it's wav THROUGH
% of ober dicta and to
characterize them outlaws and murderers Chief
Justice Taft wound up his opinion by saving: Tbe cir
such awaken regret view
of the Federal jurisdiction cannot affirm the judg
ment"
nounce principle which will be laid hold of by the
era courts whenever to disrupt labor unions
and farmers organizations throughout the country
There is no need for laymen to comment upon these
decisions Let the dissenting members of the Supreme
Court themselves criticize the majority of
the court in these cases.
Sixteenth Amendment NullIRed
First of all, remind you of recent stock div-
dend decision, by which the sixteenth amendment
Constitution in large part nuifed by the Supreme
Court This amendment empowered Congress to lay
on incomes from whatever derived" But by
bare majority five to four the Supreme Court held that
this did not income in the form of stock dividends
Listen to what the minority, comprising the ablest
members of the court in dissenting said with
| this decision:
"If stock dividends representing profits are held ex-
empt from taxation under the sixteenth amendment the
owners of the business America will
the facts this illustrate able to escape tax
alton large part of what actually income"
1t was further declared by the minority: That
by the people of the United States
when adopting the sixteenth amendment
cite also the late decision of the Supreme Court
the Steel Trust This declared by bare
Tpcfsca pronI Md
nolds did not participate in the decision Justice Day
this delivered the dissenting opinion which crticizes
the decision of the majority in these burning
1 las understand the conclusions of the court
hey amount to this: That these combinations - al
though organized in plain violation and bold
the provisions of the Sherman Act nevertheless are i'm
mune from decree eectualy ending the combinations
and putting out of their power unlawful
SOUGHT because OF some reasons of public policy
requiring such conclusion know of public policy
which sanctions violation of the law any incon-
venience OF trade domestic foreign, which should
have been able to thus organize the greatest in
dustries OF the country in defiance of law, mpreg
nable position above the control of the forbddne
such combinations Such a conclusion does violence to
the policy which the law intended enforce runs
counter to the decisions of the and
suits in practical notification of the act itself"
II Judicial Legislation
Il Another set of decisions particularly affecting the
rights OF labor the socalled pcketing in one
Of which the court nulled the power state legsa
ure to define the conditions which pcketinp MIGHT
be carried and instead itself laid and alb
surd rules the subject This case we'll illustrates
the tendency of the courts only egsate by evad-
ing the acts of Congress- enter upon the field
OF prescribing minute rules and regulations conduct
upon any subject which it chooses.
i cannot leave these decisions limited my time is
without recalling to the criticism which Justice
Holmes by Justice Brande-delivered with
reference to the courr in the Abrams case
10 my mind this case involving the fundamental right of
OF speech best illustrates the length to-
which the court is prepared the influence Of
preudces and passions Justice Holmes did not mnce
words when he said in his dissenting opinion:
in this case sentences of 20 years imprisonment
have been imposed for the publishing of two Leaflets tb.
oeneve tne DEFENDANTS had as much right publish
the has to publish the Constitution of the
United States now vanly invoked by them Onjv-
tne emergency that makes it Immediately dangerous ~
leave the correction of evil to time
making any exception to the sweeping demand Congress
snail make no law abrdging freedom of speecb,
repret that 1 put into more imnress;va
WORDS my belief that in their conviction upon this in
under the Constitution of the United States" "'S
j (To be Continued)