Show Of OFa Ci lift a Hard ar Blow ow by Decision Against Gompers om ers Washington Nov Tho district court or of appeals toda today affirmed Ito tho decree of the supreme court of the tho I District or of Columbia adjudging Pres PresIdent Ident Samuel Samu l Gompers Secretary Frank Morrison an and d Vice Flee President l John Mitchell of tho American Fed Federation Federation or of Labor guilty of contempt of court In the Bucks Stove Range Hanga case Chief Justice Sheppard from rom the opinIon of the court on con grounds The court held that tho fundamental tal issue WitS whether the of government should be oho obeyed or defied The Tho mere mero fact that the defendants were the officers of or 01 organized labor labo In America Amelica said the lie court lent importance to the cause causo and added to the gravity of the tho sit tint lout hut but it should not hot he be permitted to influence the result I Ii If an organization of citizens ns how howl ever evel largo large the court held hehl may mar l I obey oher the mandates o of the court the saute same reasoning would rend render r thorn thom subject to Individual defiance Both are aro subject to the law and neither is above aboe it If a citizen though he may honest honestly I ly believe his rights have been lt in inadell adell may elect when and to Lo what extent he be will ohe obey the mandates of the court and the tho requirements of the law as interpreted by the court C Continued on Page Four II FREEDOM OF SPEECH Continued from Page One Instead of oC pursuing the orderly course courso of appeal not emily the courts but Itself would become pow powerless powerless erless anti and society would be reduced to a state stat of anarchy The fhe action of oC the supreme court of the District of Columbia In sentencIng sentencing Ing Mitchell and Morrison to io twelve nine and six months Im Imprisonment In iii jail respectively was time the result of the failure of these three defendants to obe obey the order of the court directing thorn thom to desist from Crom placing tIme tho Bucks Stove Range com company company pany of oC St Louis on their unfair list listIn listin In the prosecution of their boycott against the corporation While the o of the tho corporation was WilS removed from rom the unfair list of the Federation Gompers and Mitchell contin continued continued to keel alive the boycott by fre frequent frequent quent to It In the Feder official organ of the Feder Federation atlon Mitchell was Involved In the tho trou trouble eon ble b by reason of his hi membership Oil omi the executive board of the Federation antI and because It was lie he had made no effort to prevent the tho adoll tion or of a resolution at the of the tho United Workers of Am Sj orica In antagonism to the Range o company The Th result of the bo boycott cott it il was said was to cause causo a decline In the tho business of the lie stove and range mange com coin panr of fifty per cent The boycott placed h h lie tho Feder Federation Federation against the ho products or of the Sticks Bucks company grow out of a tight made by tue tho Metal Polishers union and supported by the Federation for foran an eight Instead of a day This WM was resisted ly by the company anti the the name of the Buck Stove Range company I under the caption of Wo e dont doat pat patronize The proceedings agaInst the tho I of the lie Fe Federation were begun August 10 1007 by the Stove StOG Range corn com compan pan pany After n comprehensive hoar Ing Justice Gould of the tho supreme court or of the District of Columbia is h issued sued a temporary Injunction restrain lug the defon defendants ants from prosecuting a boycott on the tho and pro pio ducts duct of the tho Ducks Bucks company Later this injunction wa made permanent On the appeal of the case to the tho court of appeals of the District of Columbia Alton B Parker of Now York Cl as a one OM of the counsel for the fM elation of Labor References to tho ho Bucks Stove Hango compall continued to in the anti and In speeches and writings of the defendants arid and the tho com bad ad Campers mind and Morrison cited to and show Cause why h thc they should not be lum iiii lot for contempt of court Mr rs had openly Intimated that he would not he be bound by the tho terms term of the injunction After the hearing In the contempt proceedings Justice Wright or tho supreme court of timo District found the defendants had been guilty of wilfully disobey lug illS th injunction and sentenced them to Imprisonment In tire tho d district jail In announcing the tho decision Justice declared list the tho rt defendants had intimated browbeaten and tho patrons of the Stove Bango company until It had suffered loss Pending an appeal the three tIe de defendants wore allowed to give ball bail for their reappearance Last March the tho court of appeals modified the decree granted by the supreme court of tho ho District of Co Coby Columbia lumbia by adding to the Injunction the words In furtherance of said boy colt The modification was looked upon by attorneys s for Cor the defendants as materially affecting the proceedIngs for contempt The They claimed that hind had those words appeared in the original Injunction the can contempt tempt proceedings never neer would have been decided against them When the decision was rendered neither the labor leaders nor their counsel were present As s forecasted by Gompers In a recent Issue of the tho an attempt will be made mado to appeal the case caso of the Unit United United ed States StateR supreme court The right of oC appeal however Is a matter maLLer of controversy Some nos nays hold that as this thia decision finds the contempt to been a L criminal offense the court of appeals would haO hae the last say in the matter as It has o of all criminal cases In the tho Dis triot Others however contend that as tho constitutional right or of free freo speech and liberty or of the press Is In oled the labor leaders may prose prosecute prosecute cute an appeal No o action will be taken towards the tho arrest of the tho mon men until the matter or of orthe the appeal has been determined Chief Justice Sheppard In his dis dissenting seating opinion held to the tho view that the decree should be reversed he be because cause ho Was convInced the tho lower COUlt was without authority to make tho only order ardor which the tho defendants could le he said to havo The Tho chief justice says sas As regards time the decision that this proceeding must be regarded as crim crimInal thai Inal solely and In consequence that the tho e evidence on which the conviction tion rests can be considered because not presented in a bill of exceptions reserved on hearing I will content m myself with sa saying in that I 1 am not clearly convinced that It must he be so 50 regarded 1 have 0 heretofore e pressed expressed the tho opinion that much of the Injunction order was wa and voids old because Opt op opposed posed to constitutional provision eon con concerning corning freedom of speech sp ech and o of the press reflection has con confirmed confirmed firmed this view Ie Ier r I concede that the court j of the thc matter or u the I controversy and of the parties but butI I cannot agree tat tIre the decree was rendered In accordance with sith the pow power er of the power limited by express of the tho constitution Frank Morrison lorrison the he only ono one or of the defendants nOW non In Washington while disappointed over oer the adverse decisIon decision Ion of the court declared he sound found much consolation In the tho dissenting opinion of oC the ch chief ef justice |