Evening star., 1922-11-15
Invalidation of Minimum Woman
Wage Law Generally Disapproved.


Coincident with the renewed ac-
tivities of the National women S
Party to secure the repeal OF all leg
| islative discrimination against wom-
en- comes the decision OF the court
of Appeals of the District of Colum-
| bIa. invalidating the District MIMI
mum wage law, which, as one writer
expresses it, gives point to the pro-
tests" against this effort of the ultra
feminist group. In the decision the
! court "argues. in effect. to quote the
New York Times, that since women
are politically equal with men they
must be treated as physically anu
| economically equal" thus. the Phlia-
delphia Bulletin points out, denying
classification for preferential eco
nomic legislation for women.
While the decision challenges. az
well the essential fairness and JUS
tice of the minimum wage laws IL
is its political aspect that receives
most attention in editorial dlScussioh
although the economic theories put
forth by the court are also attacked
and. in a few papers, supported.
saws the Boston Traveller. sounds
more like an attorneys brief for one
side of a case than an opinion of the
| bench" for, the Pittsburgh Leader
adds, when the highest court OF re-
view picks out such phrases as 'indis,
criminate legislation and oudiciai
iuEglery' the man on the curbstone
may be pardoned for absorbing the
impression that exalted judges. after
all, are not essentially diferent from
the citizen of common clay. Inc de-
parture from judicial calm and poise
is too pronounced to he ignored.
AS editors all point out. minimum
wage legislation has been declared
constitutional heretofore in every
case where the issue has been raised.
and the New York Globe notes that
the decision of the District Court OF
Appeals ''is the first announcement
that any high American court consid-
cred the minimum wage law lmpos-
sible under the Constitution" If TINS
decision is sustained by the United
states Supreme Court, to which the
matter will now go. the Boston
Transcript points out that it will de.
stroy all minimum wage legislation,
and that on the contention that men
and women are now on an equaitS
before the law"
The theory that because women
have been accorded equality in polit-
ical and commercial fields they no
longer need special protection" is. the
New York Globe says. "a doctrine
preached with equal vehemence by ir-
reconciliable feminists and die-hard
tories" but in the opinion of the
Newark News at is somewhat to be
doubted whether the entry OF women
into industry has been carried tar
enough to disassociate theml from
their old relationships and changed
the more or less casual nature OF
their employment to such an extent
that it can be argued that the welfare
of women Is adequately guarded by
the fact that they have been given
political rights" The Manchester
Union regards the decision as being
I'm the very spirit of eighteenth
century individualism. with it's in.
sistence upon the unqualified right of
Individual contract, and woman Is re-
garded as being on precisely the same
plane economically as man because she
is on the same plane politically. ihe
Boston Globe to satire. Perhaps" it
SAYS. "the nineteenth amendment gave
women commercial equality with
men in the District of Columbia. But
in other important industrial and
commercial districts of the nation she
has not vet discovered the equality
Her victory in winning the vote con-
Germs merely her political activities.
II it has overcome these other handi-
caps supposed still, among unlearned
folk, to confront nef IN her stFuE-
gle for equality in commercial life. it
is interesting to know that fact, and
the court has advanced popular know
ledge considerably. 1t will be news
to most women in business, the pro-
fessions and industry"
Quite as remarkable. however. In
the opinion of the New York World.
"is the economic dictum on which the
whole judgment is made to turn: No
greater calamity could befall the
wage earners of this country than to
have the legislative power to fix
wages upheld" Is it. the World
asks, "a province of the courts to
set up economic theories of their own
and decide cases accordingly?" The
calamity Of minimum wage has
fallen upon the woman wage earn
ers of a number of states, the New
York Times reminds US, "aDd the
courts have sustained the law with
out shuddering." while "as to the con-
stitutional reservation Of human
rights to tho whole people and not
to any favored class series of acts
for the protection of minors. factory
workers, railway workers and so on
testified that what can't be done Is