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Show Good Law and Poor Legislation We Americans will legislate at the drop of a hat. Let an unkempt and insolent itinerant peddler try to palm off an imitation Oriental on the missus, and' we condemn all direct-selling. Municipalities are just like that. Because a few companies or some salesmen have employed questionable question-able methods, cities and towns in various parts of the United States have rushed to adopt the so-called "Green River" ordinance, a measure which forbids any person to approach your home with a sales message unless you have given him a specific invitation. Now the community-mad is wearing off and many of the original proponents are admitting admit-ting the measure has its drawbacks, not to mention its constitutional weaknesses. Within the past few days, there have been several important im-portant court decisions bearing on this ordinance. The United States Supreme Court, in an unanimous decision in the Griffin, Georgia, handbill case, declared that no city could forbid the house-to-house distribution of printed matter mat-ter since that was guaranteed under "freedom of press". While not directed at his ordinance, it successfully, draws the teeth of the measure by striking out the necessity neces-sity for an invitation, in order to call. At the same time, the Supreme Court of Florida, following on the heels of the high courts of Maryland and South Carolina, declared the measure unconstitutional, thus invalidating it in every municipality in Florida. Important, too, is the finding of Judge K. W. Higgmsj of the Circuit Court of Pittsburgh county, Oklahoma. In declaring the "Green River" ordinance "unreasonable, un- constitutional and void", he points out that "such a law, does not differentiate between salesmen who conduct them- ; selves properly and those who do not, but simply and bold- , ly declares a lawful occupation to be a nuisance." In keep- ' ing with this sentiment comes the announcement from a 't group of long-established and well-known direct-selling', companies that a national survey is in progress to determ- ' ine how best to "purge" the industry of disreputable tac- , tics for their" own good and for the protection of the amiyj i of men and women who look to them for livelihood. Such ! action alone will go far toward ridding tjiis country of( '. half-baked, freakish and unconstitutional peddler legisla- tion. j |