Jasper County Democrat, Volume 10, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 March 1908 — Missionary Baptist Church. [ARTICLE]

Missionary Baptist Church.

The pastor’s morning subject at the First Baptist Church, “The living Word.” Subject for evening, “Passover feast,” 7:30, beginning with next Sunday. Sunday school 9:30. The public cordially welcomed.

WHAT ARE WE COMING TO? The Supreme Court of the U. S. affirmed two decisions last Tuesday, one from the Federal Court of North Carolina and the other from the District Federal Court of Minnesota, making permanent injunctions issued from these courts against State officials forbidding the enforcement of State laws regulating railroads—in the North Carolina case passenger tariffs and in the Minnesota case freight and passenger tariffs. The court held eight to one—Justice Harlan dissenting—that the federal or U. S. courts had jurisdiction, where stockholders of railroad corporations appealed to them, to hear and determine finally whether State laws were unconstitutional or confiscatory, but refused to decide the question whether States have the power to fix passenger or freight tariffs at all or otherwise regulate common carriers.

In the Minnesota case AttorneyGeneral Young (rep.) had at the instance of Gov. J. A. Johnson, brought suit against certain railroads to enforce certain regulations made by the railroad commission of Minnesota. Certain stockholders appealed to the Federal Court, and this court at their instance issued an injunction prohibiting Young from enforcing the law. Young proceeded to enforce the law anyway, and the court fined him for contempt from which fine he appealed to the Supreme Court with results as stated above. The Court held the laws unconstitutional —prima facie, on the ground that owing to the fines and jail and penitentiary sentences which the laws carried for these violations, that the railroads could not get operators to work, and could not therefore use their property. If this decision stands State regulation is at an end unless the personnel of the Supreme Court is so changed, as has been done many times, that a majority see this matter as Justice Harlan sees it—and undoubtedly he is right. If states cannot regulate matters wholly within themselves and pertaining to themselves only, then better abolish them, and save the expense Of state government. The Supreme Court Is treading on dangerous ground, and this decision will only hasten the curtailment of Federal authority. Remember this prediction.