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Show WEBB-KENYON LAW IS VALID Supreme Court Decides by Vote 7 to 2 West Virginia Measure Upheld. Washington. Jan. 8. The Webb Kenyon law designed to prevent liquor Shipments from "wet" to "dry" stales was todai declared constitutional by tin- supreme court by a vote of Van to two, which also upheld West Virginia's Vir-ginia's prohibition amendment, pro-biblting pro-biblting OltlsenS from receiving liquor for personal use, shipped b common carriers in nterslale commerce. I It wae announced that Justice Mfb- Re nolds concurred in the decision, but nol completely in the opinion. Justice Holmes and Vandeventer ! were the two dissenting justices. "The all reaching power of government govern-ment over liquor is settled." said the chief justice in announcing the deel sion. "There was no intention of congress con-gress to forbid individual use of liquor. The purpose of this act was to cut out by the roots this practice of permitting per-mitting the violation of state liquor laws We can have no doubt that congress has complete authority to prevent paralyzing of state authority. Congress exerted a power to co-ordinate the national with 'ihe state authority." au-thority." . Attorneys for national liquor organizations organi-zations who v i i in court said the decision de-cision upholds and applies the euu-Kenyon euu-Kenyon law "in Its broadest sense." Wayne E. B. Wheeler, counsel for the Anti-Saloon League of America, j who wltn Fred Blue, state prohibltion-1 prohibltion-1 commissioner of West Virginia, argued ar-gued the case before the court, made this statement on the court's decision "The suites may now prohibit the possession, receipt, sale and use of intoxicating liquor and not he hampered ham-pered by the agencies of Interstate commerce." Official Abstract of Decision. In an otficial abstract of the court's decision it was stated that the court holds. "1 Thai Ihe West Virginia law, beside be-side prohibiting the manufacture and sale of all intoxicants, except as to that which is permitted for medical, sacramental and manufacturing purposes, pur-poses, also forbids all transportation of liquor and all receipt and possession posses-sion of liquor transported in the state, whether originating in. or outside of the state and, although it does not prohibit personal use, it puts serious restrictions upon the power to obtain tor such use. "The court holds that in view of the well-established policy of the state regarding re-garding intoxicants there is no reason to think that this law was in any wise repugnant to the due process clause of the fourteenth amendment to the constitution of the Hnitcd States. It, however, decides that unless un-less the slate authority has an exceptional excep-tional application to shipments of interstate in-terstate commerce as Ihe result of the act of congress known as the W ebb Kenyon law, the provisions of Lhe state law restricting shipments of intoxicants in-toxicants from other states would be unconstitutional because interfering with the power of congress to regulate commerce among tue stales and con-BOQUentlj con-BOQUentlj would be a direct burden upon such commerce. "2 Considering the Webb Kenyon act, the court holds that there is no touudaiion for the contention that the act onlv applies to shipments from one Mate into another for a use prohibited pro-hibited by the stale to which the liquor Is shipped On the contrary it Is decided that the Webb-Kenyon act to use Lhe words of the act, applies lo shipments of liquor Intended to be received, puss. - d. sold or In any manner used,' in violation of the laws of the state. As this conclusion causes e erv prohibition of the West Virginia law to be embraced and come under the right conferred by congress by the Webb-Kenyon act It Is decided that the Wei 1 Virginia law was not in conflict with the commerce clause of the constitution and Ihe power of congress to regulate commerce, if congress con-gress had power to en.u t 'he Webb Kenyon law. "3 Disposing of that question, It Is d cided that congress had power under un-der the constitution to adopt thi We bb-Kenyon law whether considered from the point of view of original roa- IHLstf SE5 H ' BBBBBBBsl ; soning or in the light of the previous legislation by congress and the decisions deci-sions of the court holding that legislation legisla-tion valid. It is therefore decided H thai b virtue of the Webb-Kenyon ' law there is no power to ship intoxi-cants intoxi-cants from one state into another in violation of the prohibitions of the law or the state into which lhe liquor is shipped. In other words, it Is deeded de-eded that since the enactment of the j Webb-Kenyon law the channels of in- I ' I rotate commerce may not be used to L convey liquor into a state against the lr prohibitions of Its law, or to use inter- state commerce as the basis for a right to receive, possess, sell or in any manner use liquor contrary to the state prohibition " I |