Evening star., 1927-11-03
POWER CABINET
.i WILL Be TESTED
Silver Men Say Fight to Re.
I quire Purchase Will Define
/ MELONS Rights.
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

!. Andrew w. Mellon, Secretary Of the
( Treasury, is under fire in the Supreme
Court of the District of Columbia for
Z his refusal to purchase 14,500,0OO
3 ounces of silver from the American
4 Silver Producers Association, under
4 the provisions of the Pittman act,
,passed by Congress in the Spring OF
I 1918. Secretary Mellon contends that
4 the purchase is unnecessary, and the
3 sentailed expense to the taxpayers OF
! .roundly SIS, 100000 therefore unJus'
Z titled. The silver producers asked the
Z District Court in May last to man
4 ,iamus the Secretary of the Treasury
Esto carry out provisions of the PITT
man act; which they claim IS manda-
Z tory. Mr.. MELONS, answer to their
s ,r,etition was filed two weeks ago. IL
4 their contention is not sustained, the
silver people will carry their case 10
4 The United States Supreme Court
which, in the past, they assert mas
gone repeatedly on record In faVor Oh
3 their position.
bigger issues are involved. the silver
prodIcers declare, than the question
4 whether or not the Treasury and the
I Mint take off their hands the metal in
4 controversy. The paramount question
/ Is said to be the right of a cablnet
] officer to override the expressed VIII
i of Congress. The silver producers are
& bent unon determining whittier Such
an official. charged with the admins
4 tration of a mandatory statute, can
4 Substitute for it his judgment as 10
4 what the statute should have Deen
I and proceed to administer it according
] ly. If one cabinet officer can do this,
the silverites maintain, all of them can
do it: and if one statute may be thus
! is.ignored or perverted" all of them
4 could be thus treated at discretion.
III Cites Old Decisions.
4 4 Former Senator Charles S. Thomas
j of Colorado. has come to Washington
to represent the legal interests of the
.American Silver Producers Associa-
tion. He insists there are numerous
United States Supreme Court de-
cisions denying the prerogative which
Secretary Mellon has used. AS early
as 1901, in the celebrated Marbury VS..
Madison case. the Supreme Court ac-
scepted the common law principle that
the writ of mandamus would lie
against an executive officer to compel
the performance of a duty imposed
upon him by act of Congress.
II The earliest recorded decision subse-
Auent to Marbury VS.. Madison was
that of the weff known case of Ken
/ dali, Postmaster General, VS.. the
united States, wherein Kendall was
comma nded by the law there involved
to credit. certain petitioners with the
full amount OF some cash awards.
This Kendall declined to do, because
dissatisfied with the award. The Su-'
preme Court said the act of Congress
was "precise. definite and purely min
isterial,' and that the Postmaster
General had no discretion whatever
about it,
The silver producers also cite in
support of their position report from
1.-The Senate committee on, banking and
lcurrency, submitted by Senator
IPhipps, Republican, of Colorado. The
body of the report affecting the issue
in question was compiled by George
lWharton Pepper, then Senator from
Pennsylvania and one of the acknowl-
edged legal luminaries of Congress.
II Holds u. s. Would Profit.
4 Secretary Melons position said
isMr. Thomas to this writer, ''is that
the demand of the silver producers is
'stantamount TO dema nd for a SUBJ
;sidy or a bonus. AS matter of fact,