Evening star., 1935-11-01
ONLY 63U. s. LAWS
ARE HELD INVALID
Few Declared Unconstitu.
tionaI, Although Congress
Passes 10000 Acts.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

From all parts of the country have
come inquiries as to what extent the
Constitution has been violated by the
Democrats and the Republicans dur
ing the last LAG years of American
history.
This correspondent has just COM
pleted a study of all the Federal laws
which have been declared invalid from
time to time by the Supreme Court
of the United States, and the most
interesting fact discovered is that
while there were more than 10000
laws passed and only So declared
unconstitutional, there were 46 of the
invalid statues which could hardly
be classed as political at all, since
they dealt with questions neither
social nor economic, but highly tech
nical matters of the law in no way
related to political parties or their
traditional principles.
Two Enacted Before Civil War.
This means that II statues in the
social and economic category, or which
could be classed as political either
directly or indirectly or by implication,
were invalidated by the Supreme
Court. Two of these occurred prior
to the Civil War, before the present
Republican and Democratic parties
were formed.
OF the remaining IS the Democrats
were responsible for 9 and the Re-
publicans 6.
OF these same IS, President RooSe-
welt signed S. President Wilson 3,
President Harding 2, and there were
one each for Presidents Lincoln,
Cleveland, Mckinley, Taft and Theo-
dore Roosevelt.
The score, so to speak. before the
present Roosevelt Administration be-
gan, was six chargeable to the Re-
publicans and four to the Democrats.
but when the New Deal began, Mr..
Roosevelt in less than two years re-
versed the tally by adding five invalid
acts to the Democratic total. which
was more than the Democratic Party
had been charged with IN all the time
it had previously been in power.
In fairness to the Republicans. It
should be stated that they have been
in control of Congress much more
since the Civil War than the Demo-
Gratis, so their opportunities to pass
legislation that could be declared in
valid by the Supreme Court were
relatively much greater than those of
their political opponents.
Calculations Differ.
According to some calculations
there were 70 and not So cases Of
unconstitutionality The difference is
due to the fact that in 10 instances
the laws themselves were declared
valid but the application of the law
by some Federal department or bu-
reau was in some particular deemed
by the Supreme Court to have gone
beyond the Constitution.
In dividing up the 46 non-political
cases and the 10 which involved the
application of statute valid in itself,
the total of Sc cases involving un-
constitutionality that did not touch
party principles are to be grouped
as follows:
Thirteen acts pertaining to such
matters as the original and appellate
jurisdiction and procedure Of Federal
courts and to taxes on salaries of
Federal judges.
Twelve acts Of an incidental and
not general nature depriving persons
of property or rights related to Grim
inal law. these statutes being held
invalid on such grounds as unrea-
sonable search and seizure. denial Of
jury trial. denial of right to be con-
fronted by witnesses or levying tax
penalties.
Seven acts growing out of the Civil
War amendments to the Constitution
and directed principally against in
dividuals.
Conflicts Of Power.
Six acts involving conflicts Of an
incidental nature between Federal and
State power, such as laws concerning
taxes on salaries of State judges, mere
police regulations. registration of in
trastate trade marks. and other purely
internal affairs of State.
Three acts relative to executive
power held invalid because they in
terfered with the pardoning or ap-
pointing powers of the Executive.
Eleven acts of which at least 10 did
not involve the validity of the statute
itself, but were related to such matters
as attempts to tax exports, determine
tion of what constitutes income within
the income tax amendment and the
application of estate and gift taxes in
particular cases.
Four statutes that were Of miscel-
laneous character pertaining to In
dians, immigration and war risk in
surance
In examining the II cases that may
be classed as political, there were two
before the Civil War. One related to
the issuing of writs of mandamus to
courts and officers, and the other was
the Dred Scott case, involving the issue
Of slavery.
Since the Civil War the IS cases re-
lated to legal tender, taxation of in
comes, which was cured by the income
tax amendment; employers liability.
discrimination against labor union
membership, two cases involving at
tempts to prohibit child labor, efforts
to control expenditures in primary
elections, two cases involving attempts
to control sale of grain futures, minl-
mum wages in the District of Colum-
bia for women and children and the
New Deal cases which embrace unlaw-
full delegation of legislative power to
the Executive, abrogation of Govern
ment contract contained in bonds,
railroad pension legislation, the ma
tional industrial recovery act, involv-
ing codes, and the Frazier-Lemke
farm mortgage moratorium case.
Roper Contradicted.
The foregoing survey of cases is in
teresting in view of the speech made
by Secretary Roper on Constitution
day and the revelation this week that
the National Emergency Council is dis
tributing under Government "franked"