Show I I OLD o MAJORITY OF HIGH COURT HAS REVERSAl Positions Taken by Hughes and Roberts Change Cha Former Alignment W WASHINGTON June Juno 2 P R Members Mem Members bers of the old od supreme court majority majority major major- ity target of many a bitter er senate assault found themselves a dL dissenting dissent dissent- nt- nt lug ing minority In several te outstanding cases o at ot the session just closed through the positions taken by Chief Justice Hughes and Associate Justic Justice Jus Jus- Uc tic tice Roberts When the late Chief Justice Taft Tan and Sanford were members of the bench the phrase Holmes Bren- Bren deis deLs and Stone dissenting became famous in the annals of ot the nations nation's highest tribunal l. l Now however these three often are included in the majority while Justices Sutherland and Butler generally render dissenting opinions In the determined senate senat battle which preceded his hIs' confirmation Hughes was denounced by his foes as the personification of ot the spirit of ot big business and as one who favored the exaltation of property rights above all rights The opinions of the new chief chIet Justice were scrutinized from the start starL TREND IS CLEARED It was w not until recently however that the trend became clearly de defined defined de- de fined notably hi in the cases of the Indiana chain st store re tax the Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minne Minne- sota press suppression statute the California red flag law and the Mac Mac- intosh-Bland intosh naturalization c cases In the first two of these a live five four decision ruled with Hughes Roberts Stone and Holmes forming the majority In the third the dissenters were Justice and Butler In the naturalization cases Justice Roberts sided with the old majority and its view prevailed by another four five deci deci- sion slon The Indiana case presented the Issue is issue issue is- is sue of ot a a. special t tax tat on chain stores not applied to other merchants The new alignment upheld it The red flag nag law which prohibit prohibit- ed edthe the display of any emblem in Cal Cal- lornia as a symbol of ot opposition to organized government to anarchistic action or as an aid t to propaganda of a seditious nature was set aside Chief Justice Hughes prepared prepared prepared pre pre- pared the opinion asserting that the maintenance of an opportunity fo for free political discussion t to the end that government go may be responsive to the will of ot the people is a fundamental principle of ot our constitutional system PRESS FREEDOM UPHELD The Minnesota law gave the courts power t to suppress suppress' publications of ot a malicious scandalous or defamatory character Again Chief Justice Hughes prepared the majority lion lon ion setting the law aside He took tooka a broad view of the freedom of the press and said the libel laws provided provided provided pro pro- vided a a. remedy for those attacked by bj such periodicals In the naturalization cases two Canadians seeking citizenship re reused refused refused re- re fused used to take an unqualified oath to support the United States by bearing arms in any war in which the nation might become Involved Naturalization tion ion was denied by the court but bu L' L Chief Justice Hughes again siding with Holmes and Stone prepared and read the d dissenting entIng opinion |