Evening star., 1940-05-09

Perhaps hereafter the Department
of State will find itself embarrassed
when it asks oil producers to refrain
from sending abroad gasoline for
the use of Russian or Japanese air
planes. The so-called moral en-
barge" which has no sanction in
law has been adhered to by oil
producers throughout the United
States on the ground that 1t was
helpful to Americas foreign policy.
But now it turns out that any uni
form action taken by American
producers which indirectly or mad
vertently affects prices OF commodi-
ties can send those producers into
the courts with the risk Of jail
sentences.
The oil companies and their exec
utives sought just after N. R. A.
days to find a way to relieve the
industry of "distress" gasoline and
were encouraged in its first instance
by governmental officials. The Su-
preme Court; through Justice Dou-
glas, now says it doesn't matter
whether the purpose was benevolent
or whether it was intended to affect
prices. The result - the effect on
priests what the court held to
be the basic justification for court
convictions.
May Depress Price.
The oil producers who agree here
after to withhold gasoline from ex-
port to certain countries may there
by cause a glut and depress the price
Of gasoline. The fluctuations of price
may be narrow. They may be in
consequential. But the Supreme
Court says the collaboration of any
competitors on anything at all that
ultimately affects prices is violation
of law no matter by whom en-
couraged.
Thus Is American business put on
notice that the Sherman law is here
after to be regarded as straight
jacket. Yet in the same term OF the
Supreme Court decision is rendered
which says that Government itself
can do anything 1t pleases and no
business can question its arbitrary
rulings. This arose In connection
with the law that empowers the
Secretary of Labor to fix wage levels
in localities" where public contracts
are awarded. The arbitrary way the
word locality" was construed by the
Government caused the small steel
manufacturers to take the case to
court. But Justice Frankfurter exco-
rates the lower court for letting the
businessmen avail themselves of the
right to protest. He insists that the
Governments power to do as it
pleases in constituting law must not
be impeded by the courts. In other
words "big government is now going
to possess powers that ''big business
has always been accused of welding
The Supreme Court majority instead
Of being the protector of the rights
of all-businessmen as well as gov
ernmental officials-thus becomes
the partisan of arbitrary minded
government.
The New Philosophy.
The present term OF the Supreme
Court is replete with cases which
shows that the new philosophy of
the majority of the Supreme Court
leans strongly in the direction of
upholding what has been termed
administrative absolulism" The re-
action against such an extreme point
Of view is setting in throughout the
country. The Frankfurter decision
in the street contracts case is the
best piece of ammunition that could
be made available to those in Con-
gress who are fighting to bring about
the passage of the Walter-Logan
bill. Delays before the administra-
tive tribunals and the lower courts
become more than ever necessary as