Evening star., 1937-02-21

the Senators for the proposal to add
members to the Supreme Court, some
of them are taking that position reluc-
family.
The drive by labor organizations in
support of the Presidents plan is 60
ing forward vigorously. There Is
reason to believe, however, according
to some of the Senators, that by no
means all of the rank and file OF
labor is favorable to the plan. They
have had letters from some Of the
lesser labor leaders denying that o.
ganized labor is anything like unit
! back of the bill.
The President will have a group OF
American Farm Bureau Federation
leaders with him at the White House
! tomorrow to talk over the court plan.
This is in line with the effort to ar
ray the farmers of the country side
by side with labor in this battle for
the enactment of the judiciary bill
into law The National Grange how
ever, has taken position in oppo-
sition to the bill so far as 1t relates
to the Supreme Court.
Senator Reynolds, Democrat, of
North Carolina, speaking at meet
ing of the Democratic League of the
District of Columbia at the Grafton
Hotel yesterday, declared himself 100
per cent" in favor of the Presidents
plan.
Copeland Gives Views.
Senator Copeland, in his statement
declaring he could not support the
President. argued that if laws not now
permitted within the provisions of the
Constitution are desirable, constitu-
tional amendment should be submitted
to the people.
The New York Senator said that
| after an earnest study OF the views
expressed by George Washington,
| James Madison, father of our Con-
stitution," and Thomas jefferson,
father Of the Bill of Rights" he
was more than ever impressed that "a
great fundamental principle is in
volved in the Presidents proposals"
! He quoted Madison and Jefferson as
saying that the power OF the judiciary
must not be usurped by the legislative
and executive branches of the Gov
| ernment.
Il applaud the great social objec-
tives of the administration, Cope
land asserted, but added that the
courts are the key to liberty and
must be 'unresponsive to the pres
| sure of popular clamor.'
/ AS I see it, there is but one way
to settle the vital questions in
volved: it must be done by proposing
and submitting constitutional amend
ments.
There are great social movements
| going forward in this Nation for the
! improvement of mankind's lot in life
But they cannot achieve their goals
in any single presidential term. 1t
| Is common knowledge that when
! Congress has enacted haphazard rem
edieS in the past, it has passed legis-
latlon based upon unsound principles
and created far more havoc than
good. We must be warned by ex-
! perience.
/ Key of Liberties"
ITO my lay mind one of Americas
chief problems is the problem of
the courts. 1t is a trite saying, but
/ true as gospel, that the courts are
the key of our liberties FL lowest
to highest, the judges must be above
reproach, beyond the reach of politi-
! CAL social, or personal influence. and
unreSponslve to the pressure of popu-
! lar Clamor.
/ There are as likely to be bad men
| in group so large as the sum total
! OF the Judiciary in the United States.
! as in any other cultured group of
| equal size. This fact has be i rec
ognlzed by constitutional and Statu-
tory provisions for impeachment or
removal
But unless and until the honesty
integrity, mental and physical ca
| pacity, or moral sense of an individual
| judge, has been lied in question and
dealt with according to law, there
can be no excuse for seeking to in
validate or neutralize his judicial ac-
tivities by some sensational and novel
method"
Senator Bailey carried on the fight
against the Presidents court plan in
a radio address yesterday afternoon.
He quoted Woodrow Wilson, saying
that the late President had described
as 'outrages upon constitutional
morality" attempts to increase the
size Of the court. Bailey said that
all pretense of need for an increase
in the Supreme Court on the ground
of crowded docket had been cast
aside by the proponents of the ju-
dietary bill.
THE real reason is now frankly
avowed," he said. land that reason
is that it is desired to bring about
the appointment of six additional JUS
tices of the Supreme Court for the
plain purpose of validating legisla-
ton which its authors admit would
be held unconstitutional by the court
as now constituted. There is a right
way to change the Constitution and
that is by amendment submitted to
the State Legislatures or to the
people"
Substitutes for Neeiy.
Senator McKellar substituted for
Senator Nicely, Democrat, of West Vir-
ginia, in his speech supporting the
court plan. A spokesman for the COM
pany which broadcast the address said
the change was made without ex-
PLANTATION.
McKellar declared the real issue"
was not fight between the President
and the courts, but a fight between
outworn and outlived reactionary poll
| cies of government and the modern
policies of real democracy and real
freedom"
He said President Roosevelt was
the real leader of the modern ideal
and the modern policy" while the
Supreme Court "is the last bulwark
Of an outlived reactionaryism."
McKellar contended President Roose-
welt, after being reelected by the
| eporpso,,e iaritv mn nm