Evening star., 1943-09-13

This Is sub David Lawrence.
ject which is beginning to trouble
persons who fear the long range
effect of war policies and the dan
gerous trends which they repre-
sent. Vice President Wallace spends
a good deal of time and energy
worrying about the application of
the four freedoms to peoples abroad
but he and other radicals would find
plenty of food for thought in the
gradual curtailment of civil rights
during wartime.
The chief instrumentality of Gov
ernment responsible for the deteri-
oriation of democracy during the
present war is Congress-both the
Republican and Democratic parties
Neither the President nor his execu-
tives can be blamed for desiring a
free hand in wartime Nor can
the military be criticised for seeking
to exercise as much power as posi-
BILE without hindrance from the
civilian side.
Congress, however, is the repre-
sentative branch of the Government.
And If Congress is Indifferent or
neglectful or simply too preoccupied
IN minor matters to see the gradual
breakdown of the principles of con-
stitutional government, the people
alone can remedy the matter at the
polls at the next congressional cleo
tion by supporting candidates in the
primaries and before the conven-
tions of either party who will adhere
to the four freedoms inside the
United States.
Abuse of Power.
The paramount principle of Gov
eminent in a democracy which is
being violated and abused is that
which assures a citizen the protec-
ton of the Constitution against
unequal application of the laws or
the confiscation of his property
without due process of law.
Rent control, price control, alloca-
ton of war materials are all han
died by governmental agencies
which in large part are abandon
ing the principle of equal protection
of the laws. These agencies are
permitting determinations as be-
tween citizens and are refusing to
promulgate standards of regula-
tion 50 that citizens may know Just
what are the yardsticks by which
Government agencies apply a given
action as between persons in the
same line of business.
Normally, that is in peacetime,
court review while not always uti-
lized operates to act as a psychology
tcal preventive of arbitrary action by
governmental agencies. But Con-
gress has withdrawn from the Fed
eral courts of the United States,
located in the more than 100 judi
cial districts from coast to coast
jurisdiction over the acts of execu-
tive agencies in connection with
several important pieces of legisla-
ton.
The simple remedy of civil inj1nc-
ton has been practically eliminated
and the citizen can test the con-
stitutionality of law in most cases
only by risking criminal prosecution
for his attorneys will find it difficult
for him to get District Court review
otherwise. Last week Judge Charles
S. Briggle in the United States Dis
trict Court, sitting at Peoria, Ill,
joined with two other judges in a
unanimous opinion refusing a re-
straining order because he said Con-
eress had so stipulated. He said in
his remarks from the bench!
This is a elimination of a long
series of acts, depriving the courts
of jurisdiction. vesting decisions in
stead in the various boards through
out the country. The OPA act pro-
vides that no court, Federal or State
shall have power to consider the
validity of any regulation of the
OPA or any price schedule and this