The Waterbury Democrat., 1939-02-03
. BRUCE CATION
 IN WASHINGTON
We'll, Who Won Supreme Court War, Anyhow?
BY BRUCE CATION Democrat Washington
 COrreSnOndent


 Peterkin remarked, it was a famous victory. The queer thing is that there is still lot of argument over who won it.
 Two years ago-on Feb. 5, 1887 to be exact - President Roosevelt called on Congress to enlarge and reorganize the Supreme Court.
 Congress argued, studied, and finally refused flatly to do any such thing. Today the famous court plan is dead Not even the most ardent New Dealer talks of reviving 1t.
 But-who won the war?
 BOTH SIDES
 CLAIM VICTORY
 Those who fought the plan say they did. The court is still the same size as 1t was before. IL has been shown that president who tries to alter or enlarge the court to get the kind of rulings he wants will get his fingers burned. The independence of the judiciary has been sustained.
 But the other side remarks that somehow the court has been pretty kind to New Deal legisla- ton since the fight began. Sem ator sherman Minton of Indiana suggests that r. D. R. lost the battle and won the war, and as- serts that the whole attitude of the court Is different now. Con- gressman Wright Patman says briefly: "He unfossilized 'em."
 Early In February two years ago the President made his pro- posal. In two nationally broad- cast speeches a month later he defended 1t. On March 10 the Senate Judiciary committee op- poned hearings on the proposal.
 Then - slightly more than n fortnight after the hearings opencd-the Supreme Court up- held the Washington state mini mum wage law. A couple of weeks later 1t upheld the Wagner Act. A month after that Justice Van Dcvanter announced his reslgna- tion--on the same day, incidental ly, that the Senate committee re- turned an adverse report on the bill. A week after that the court upheld unemployment insurance and old age benefits.
 A month or more of heated de- bate followed, Early polls had shown a majority of the senators In favor of the plan, now 1t was apparent that the tide was shift Ing, Senator Joe Robinson finally, on July 2, introduced a substitute proposal and debate got under way on that.
 Then came the turning point. On July IA, 1887, Joe Robinson died suddenly.
 PLAN DIED
 WITH ROBINSON
 Robinson had obtained pledges of support from Q number of sena- tors who at bottom did not care for the plan. Those senators looked on their pledges as personal matters between themselves and Senator Robinson, and on his death felt that they were released. President Roose- velt announced that the fight would go on. and go on 1t did: but the gimp had gone out of 1t and by the end of July vote to recommit the bill-which meant the death of it-- carried by Q vote of 70 to 20.
 There was scattered firing along the front for a while, but the plan stayed dead. Tn the spring of 1888 there was brief flare-up, touched off when Secretary of Agriculture Henry Wallace took exception to the courts April rul- ing in the Kansas City stockyards case. The decision was interpreted as e reflection on the secretary, and he responded by suggesting that the court had been less interested in do- Ing justice than in encouraging the lower courts to attack the govern ment's quasi-jud!cial agencies. But after Q brief interchange of compli- ments this fight died down, too.
 When the court plan was first proposed, the supreme bench con- tained these justices: Chief Jus ticc Hughes, and Justices Bran deis, Van Dcvanter, McReynolds Sutherland. Roberts. Butler. Stone and Cardozo.
 Today the line.up Is: Chief Jus. tlce Hughes, and Justices Bran deis. Black. McReynolds, Reed. Roberts, Butler, Stone and Frank furter. Three Of these justices were appointed by Roosevelt.
 The court Is different than it was two years ago ... in more ways than In the names of It's personnel.
 The courts new attitude to. ward legislation Is no temporary change, destined to Dc abandaned as soon as the active fight fol modicifation of the court died down This was shown only few days ago when the court threw out q public utility attack on the constitutionali' ty of Roosevclt's pet IVA. Aptly enough. this decision was handed down on tho very day on which Felix Frankfurter. third Roosevelt appointee to the bench, took the oath of office,