Griffin Smith

“ That case was decided when the Constitution of 1868 was in effect, its provision being that “. . . no person, after having been once acquitted by a jury, forthe same offense shall be again put in jeopardy of life or liberty.” The Constitution of 1874 is: “. . . and no person, for the same offense, shall be twice put in jeopardy of life or liberty.” Effect of the case is that dismissal of a valid indictment against one who insists upon trial before a jury then sworn amounted to an acquittal, and a plea of former jeopardy was good against a second indictment for the same offense. ”

“ Truth is apprehended in the mind of the individual. Its progress is slow and fraught with difficulties; and only by free expression can it hope to gain acceptance by the majority in the community. The history of human thought is one continuous process of the triumph of ideas which upon their first expression were condemned as error by the learned and the powerful. Progress is dependent upon the advance of truth; and this in turn is dependent upon the right of men to give free expression to any view they may entertain. ”

“ There is no actual sale or delivery of gas until such time as the consumer through his own appliances turns the gas to his own burner tips. No gas is sold or delivered to corporations owning and operating distribution plants until the consumers thereof, by means of their own appliances, turn gas to their burner tips. The respondent will serve any prospective pipe line customer who is financially able to pay for the service. The respondent bases its charges for gas delivered to the pipe line customers largely upon the cost of competitive fuels, irrespective of the cost of service. ”

“ Quoting from the Gurein case, the State emphasizes that part of the opinion that says " . . . if a conspiracy exists to do an unlawful act, any and all acts of any one of the conspirators in furtherance of the conspiracy is admissible against all person shown to be parties to the conspiracy". It is then said in the State's brief: "The facts in that case appear to us to be identical to those in the case at bar".
If it be assumed that, in practical effect, facts here and in the Gurein case were similar, still we havd not disposed of differences between the information and the indictment. ”

“ An excerpt from "Democracy in Government," by John J. Parker, senior United States circuit judge, Fourth district, is well worth repeated consideration. "From the standpoint of the happiness of the individual, as well as from that of the development of the life of society," says Judge Parker, "no rights of the individual are more important than those relating to the free expression of personality, by which I mean freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of assembly, all guaranteed by the first amendment to, the constitution of the United States. ”

“ Appellee's witness Hamilton testified that there are eleven compressor stations along the pipe line system, the functions of which are to keep the gas in a constant and steady flow; that the gas never comes to rest in the line, but movements are constant until it is delivered to the customer's meters, or to the distributing plants: "From the time the gas is taken into the line in Louisiana at any given time or in any one day, it is in transit until delivered to the customer. The pipe line is merely the vehicle through which the gas is transmitted." ”

“ In spite of my own lack of sympathy with appellant's attitude, irrespective of an entrenched belief that a country would not endure if peopled by men entertaining the ideas appellant expounded as interpreted by the state, the fact remains that we are engaged not only in a war of men, machines, and materials, but in a contest wherein liberty may be lost if we succumb to the ideologies of those who enforce obedience through fear, and who would write loyalty with a bayonet. ”

“ This motion was denied because the Court thought (as it said in refusing to give defendants' requested Instructon No. 11) , "a threat is an element of violence".
So, it will be seen, the trial was conducted upon the assumption that, although the indictment did not allege threats were made, evidence of threats was admissible to prove the use of force and violence—because, as the Judge stated, "a threat is an element of violence". Certainly a threat of bodily harm or material damage or serious inconvenence may, in certain circumstances, become an element of violence ”

“ He is merely required to take gas in sufficient quantities to supply the individual requirements of his distribution plant or industrial plant, as the case may be. If any customer's plant happens to be shut down and is not operating, no gas is delivered to him. These contracts further provide that domestic customers, hospitals, schools and such customers as involve the element of human comfort shall be given preference to respondent's gas supply. ”

“ To the objection that free speech may lead to the propagation of error, the answer is that truth is able to take care of itself in a contest, and that, in an atmosphere of freedom, error will be detected and exposed and the truth will eventually prevail. ”

“ Irrespective of the pressure at which gas is metered and delivered to the city gateway or consumers, it is billed at a base pressure of 8 ounces above a standard of 14.4 pounds atmospheric pressure. The many rural domestic customers served directly from the pipe line are served under schedules and at the rates prevailing for the same class of consumers served by the nearest city or town distribution plant, and ordinarily the city or town distribution plant employees read the meters and make and collect the bills for the gas consumed by these rural customers. ”

“ It has often been said that the raw, rough, and ready language of an uncouth pick wielder, in conversation with an associate, might mean one thing to the man at a desk and quite a different thing to a menial of equal classification and having similar habits. What would insult or frighten a particular individual might not cause a ripple of apprehension in the man who understood the mental attitude of a person inured to physical adversity. ”

“ The noble utterances of President Wilson at the beginning of our war with Germany are clearly recalled:—"An unwillingness even to discuss these matters produces only dissatisfaction and gives comfort to the extreme elements in our country which endeavor to stir up disturbances in order to provoke governments to embark upon a course of retaliation and repression. The seed of revolution is repression." ”

“ The general rule is that as long as an article imported remains in the hands of the importer in the original and unbroken package in which it was imported, it is protected by the commerce clause of the Constitution from interference of state laws, and it is only when the original package has been sold by the importer or has been broken by him, or has otherwise become mixed with the common mass of property in the state, that it becomes subject to state legislation. ”

“ I think that under the "responsibility" provision of § 6 the general assembly was authorized to prohibit a citizen from engaging in conduct which shows public contempt for the flag, but I do not believe that in the circumstances of this case it was appellant's intention to do so.
December 10, 1941, Attorney General Francis Biddle said: "The United States is now at war. Every American will share in the task of defending our country. It is essential at such a time that we keep our heads, keep our tempers—above all, that we keep clearly in mind what we are. ”

“ A grand jury, upon investigation, determined that the facts reflected justifiable homicide, and declined to indict Williams. Acting upon the theory that acts of violence intended to prevent non-strikers from working bad been engaged in, and that Roy Cole, Louis Jones, and Jesse Bean (colored) had been participants, indictments were returned against them, essence of which is, that "by the use of force and violence", they prevented Williams from working for the Cotton Oil Company. ”

“ Gas in large quantities is turned into the transportation system in Louisiana. There are 1,000 miles of these mains in Arkansas. More than fifty per cent. of the gas supplied goes to customers served under individual contracts. An initial force of from 75 to 170 pounds per square inch must be exerted to set in motion and maintain the primary supply. This pressure cannot be exerted in a practical manner at the initial point of entry in Louisiana, and "booster" stations have been built along the route to keep the pressure constant, or high enough to meet delivery specifications. ”

“ It is made unlawful for any person, "acting in concert with one or more other persons, to assemble at or near any place where a 'labor dispute' exists and by force or violence prevent or attempt to prevent any person from engaging in any lawful vocation, [and it shall be unlawful] for any person acting either by himself, or as a member of any group or organization or acting in concert with one or more other persons, to promote, encourage, or aid in any such unlawful assemblage". ”

“ By § 6, art. 2, those who framed the state constitution of 1874 wrote that liberty of the press should forever remain inviolate, and "The free communication of thoughts and opinions is one of the invaluable rights of man; and all persons may freely write and publish their sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of such right." ”

“ In the instant case we are dealing with a statute that invokes punishment as for a felony where the same conduct, if committed in a non-labor dispute, would be a misdemeanor—an offense as to which the guilty party might be discharged upon payment of a small fine, as compared with a possible two-year prison term. ”

“ They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes they have, but they see not. They have ears, but they hear not, noses have they, but they smell not. They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not. . . ."
Interpreting the psalm and other biblical authority, appellant thought he was commanded to bow to God and to God only:—"That was my sincere belief. The Bible says not to even salute your friend, but to call him only by name. It says, 'Claim thy friend by name.'
"It was my conviction that to salute the flag or any other like emblem would be contrary to the Bible. ”

“ The gas corporation owned and operated an interstate transmission line extending from the gas fields of Northern Louisiana to Atlanta, and Columbus, in Georgia. Gas purchased by the corporation in Louisiana and Mississippi was transported through its line into Alabama, where supplies were withdrawn from the interstate line and delivered to customers, there having been four such customers in Alabama. Three of these customers were doing an exclusive intrastate business in supplying public utilities. The fourth customer was the Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railway Company. ”

“ It must be borne in mind that the workers engaged on both sides—those who struck and those who refused to do so—included men whose manners in expressing their likes and dislikes, whose ordinary conversations, and whose so-called "threats" are not necessarily on a parity with workers whose opportunity for higher standards has been exercised. ”

“ The rules of physics and of common sense tell us that the quantity thus ascertained and started on its journey is not necessarily the same gas appellee will bill to a designated customer under a specific contract, nor is there any process known to science by which its identity can be known. ”

“ An impulsive declaration by one suddenly confused or confounded that the flag means nothing to him (assuming, for the purpose of this discussion, that appellant made such comment) is at most a method of emphasizing ignorance. If to the remark is coupled the further assertion that appellant characterized Old Glory as a rag, still consideration must be given the undisputed evidence that in thus designating the object of controversy appellant modified his meaning with the explanation that because the flag was something inanimate he could not how down and worship it. ”

“ In these circumstances, transportation of gas theoretically "scheduled" to reach a point in Southern Arkansas one, two, three or four hours after entering the main, would be delayed indefinitely. According to acknowledged principles this hypothetical supply first pumped into the mains in anticipation of continued demands in Little Rock might never reach its destination, but on the contrary would remain in the storage facilities to be gradually consumed along the line.
Decisions of state and federal courts are called to our attention, and they Are urged as authority for a desired construction. ”

“ Some related to appellant's patriotism, or "loyalty," as she expressed it; others had to do with a suspicion that Johnson was dividing donated groceries with Jehovah's Witnesses. When asked whether she bad instructions from any superior officer ". . . not to let Jehovah's Witnesses have commodities unless they saluted the flag," Mrs. Cooper replied: "No cult was named. They were sworn by affidavits that you wouldn't receive any unless they were a loyal American citizen." ”

“ Many of the newcomers are disorderly, many seem essentially violent minded. Yet our debates are richer for their presence. Not all of us are as near to the sufferings of the working classes as they are. ”