Melville Fuller

“ By clause 5, appeals or writs of error from the district and circuit courts direct to the Supreme Court might be taken in cases involving the construction or application of the Constitution of the United States, or where the constitutionality of any law of the United States or the validity or construction of any treaty made under its authority was drawn in question, and in cases in which the constitution or law of a state was claimed to be in contravention of the Constitution of the United States. ”

“ But the distinction between preventing excesses of jurisdiction and the mere correction of error is a fundamental one, and the rule remains that appeal and writ of error, being the proper forms of procedure provided for the mere correction of error, the appellate jurisdiction of this court for that purpose is limited to the cases in which express provision is made for appeals or writs of error, and that certiorari cannot be independently used to supply the place of a writ of error for the mere correction of error. ”

“ Dickinson
Argued: January 4, 5, 1909. --- Decided: April 5, 1909
Dickinson and one Foster were jointly indicted under § 5209 of the Revised Statute of the United States (U.S.C.omp. Stat. 1901, p. 3497) , which is a part of the national bank act. ”