Evening star., 1935-08-18
Out of Bounds.

The Presidents position has Deen
compared with that of the quarterback
on a foot ball team. whose decisions
must be made quickly, with an eye
to his own advantages and the dlsad-
vantages of his opponents.
The analogy is somewhat striking in
connection with the Guffey bill. There
are times when a quarterback delib-
erately runs the ball out of bounds with
the idea of gaining tactical advantage.
The ball, after the whistle is blown, is
brought back to midfield, in prepara-
ton for a placement kick or forward
pass. That position increases the
chances for success in the ensuing play.
There seems little doubt that the
Guffey bill is being rushed toward
passage with the definite knowledge
on the part of the StrategiSts that when
the whistle is blown the ball will have
been declared out of bounds. In other
words. the fact that the bill is uncon-
stitutional is readily granted except by
the few who argue, with their tongues
IN their cheeks, that you never can tell
until the Supreme Court has actually
rendered its opinion. That was the
tenor of the Presidents now famous
letter to Representative Hill hope
your committee will not permit doubts
as to constitutionality, however reason
able. to block the suggested legislation"
What is behind the strategy remains
matter of opinion. No one can enter
tain serious beliefs that the Guffey
bills passage would cure the ills of the
chronically sick and ailing bituminous
coal industry. But it has been very
definitely indicated that its passage is
the price of calling of a strike. And the
deliberate intention of building an issue
against the Supreme Court, or in favor
of radical amendment of the Consti-
tuition, by means of such measures as
the Guffey bill, has been attributed to
the President by more than one critic.
Representative Treadway, in bitter
opposition to the bill, quoted during
House debate the Presidents oath that
II will support and defend the Consti-
tuition of the United States" as incon-
sistent with the spirit of his letter to
Mr. Hill. That might be answered by
the assertion that no living man, in
Guiding the President, can say with
absolute certainty that the bill will be
held unconstitutional by the Supreme
Court.
More fundamental, however, than the
question of the Guffey bills validity is
whether the legislation it represents,
granting the Federal Government price
fixing power and production control over
an industry by clothing it with a ma
tional public interest" is under any
conditions desirable AS Mr.. Treadway
pointed out, if the Federal Government
can regulate the production of coal it
can regulate the production of oil, gas,
electricity, food. clothing - almost
anything.
And that, rather than the hasty en-
actment of the Guffey bill as swap
for temporary labor peace in the coal
fields, should be the issue considered
by Congress. Chief Justice Taft, in his
opinion holding invalid the child labor
law, wrote that "the good sought in
unconstitutional legislation is an in-
sidious feature, because it leads citi-
zens and legislators Of good purpose
to promote it without thought of the
serious breach 1t will make in the ark
of our covenant, or the harm that will
come from breaking down recognized
standards. In the maintenance of local
government, on the one hand, and
the national power on the other, our
country has been able to endure and
prosper for near century and a half"
Perhaps the time has come to take
another route. But the decision, rest
ing with the people, should be made
with eyes open to the consequences.