The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1927-08-08
The One Issue

the Anti Saloon League, to the State Farm LOT
contempt Of the Supreme Court.
That is the question of free speech and the
right Of any citizen to comment on decisions
Of the court or the capacities Of judges OF that
court.
IF # he true that this court is above critl-
c;sm it's decision beyond comment, then the
dry leader should be IN JAIL
IF Il is not true and if its decisions are
omen to comment, then this court has lntro-
duced G new and very dangerous doctrine into
this State.
s The eagerness of sixty ministers to serve
each one day of his sentence suggests that
these men who should be leaders Of thought
have missed the whole point of the proceeding
They wish to take the place of dry leader,
prohibitionist They are not protesting
against an invasion of the sole and only right
which gives them their places in pulplts to
sneak as they please and teach whatever doc
trines they may wish.
That is a personal tribute to the power OF
aShumaker and the grip he has held upon GER
tain portions of the clergy and the lalty OF
this State.
But this is mater which is bigger than
.Shumaker, more important than prohibition
1t reaches right down to the foundations
of this government and the right OF citizens
to discuss, as they please, the actions OF gov
ornamental agencies, including the Supreme
Court of the State.
L ~, IN he Fact
that the dry leader has pleaded that the Bill OF
Rights, which includes freedom OF speech,
freedom of worship, the sanctity OF homes
from illegal search be sacrificed to the en-
forcemept of the arbitrary law he dictated and
is now, in the opinion Of the Times, victim
Of the sacrifice Of that Bill Of Rights.
Unfortunately the dissenting doctrine. OF
the minority judges is not placed on the high
level of protection of the right of free speech.
1t is more unfortunate that the ministers
who are now rushing and who will undoubted-
ly rush in increasing numbers to the side of
Shumaker have caught misleading phrase
from the dissent of Judge Clarence Martin.
constructive criticism is not to be stifed,
says that opinion which takes the whole ques-
/ ton back to one Of fact and not of principle.
+ Tt suggests that the criticisms of Shumaker
were constructive and therefore not con-
temptuous.
It would be difficult to establish in the pub
3 lie mind that the matter complained OF by the
Judges and for the utterance Of which Shu-
maker is being sent to prison, were in any de-
gree constructive.
He merely took decisions which he did not
like and misstated their meaning to his fol-
lowers He interpreted the judicial affirma-
I ton of the constitutional guarantee of the
/. sanctity of homes from illegal search and I'M
der warrants which do not comply with the
constitutional provisions as 'wet" and de-
structive of the law.
He may have done this through mistake
of the meaning of the decisions. He may
have done it deliberately and maliciously. He
had a right to say it from either motive un-
less the people are willing to give to the Su-
preme Court the arbitrary power to punish
those who may not understand their decisions
or who purposely distort their meaning.
The safety of this country depends upon
the right of all citizens to discuss in any man
ner they choose the decisions of courts. The
late President Roosevelt went so far as to de-
clare that the people should have right not
only to discuss decisions of the Supreme Court
bat to set them aside at the polls by direct
vote upon them. He called it the 'Recall of
Decisions"
The Supreme Court has created ques-
Al SC bo al cd
by the personality of Shumaker.
It is not question of "wet' or "dry,"
--or admiration for Shumaker as a martyr or
hatred of him as fanatic and bigot.
It is question of whether the Supreme
Court has the power to shackle discussions of
its decisions.
In the past the courts have limited their
inherent power to punish for contempt" to
discussions of cases which had not been de-
cided by them. They have never asserted that
they could control discussions of cases which