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Thursday, June 2,1955 THE CLINTON CHRONICLE / By SPECTATOR... COMMENTS * on MEN AND THINGS Senator Bricker has been try- inf for several years to have Congress subtoit a proposed amendment to the Constitution so as to clarify a very perplex ing state of kffairs. Let me ask you—What is the Supreme law of this nation? It is difficult to answer that un less you consider many legal de tails because of our State Sover eignty. Just off hand you would say that the Constitution of the United States is the Supreme law of the land. The Constitu tion itself says so. But says more; so let me quote the Con- stitutibn itself. “This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made,, under the authority of the United States, shall be the Supreme law of the land." Article 6. We hear much about States’ Rights or the reserved powers of the States, but the so-called rights of the States may be su- • pereeded by a treaty. I agree heartily with Senator Bricker, that we should clarify our Constitutional rights so that neither President nor treaty; neither Congress nor Court may transcend the Constitution. I quote with approval an edi torial in The Wall Street Jour nal: "On this page today we print a letter from one of our readers concerning proposals such as Senator Bricker’s to define the treaty power. Mr. Lichstein quotes that section of the Con stitution making treaties the Su preme law of the land and then asks this question: How can anyone suggest, in the light of these clear words, that a treaty might supersede the Cor-titu- tion?’ The Suggestion has been made a number of times by members of the United States Supreme Court. In Missouri vs Holland— the decision that said a treaty gave Congress power to pass laws the Constitution forbade Congress alone to enact — Mr. Justice Holmes said: ‘Acts of Congress are the su preme law of the land only when made in pursuance of the Consti tution, while treaties are de clared to be so when made un der the aythority of the United States. It is open to question whether the authority of the United States means more than the formal acts prescribed to make the convention.’ In 1929, Chief Justice Hughes told the American Society of In ternational Law: '. . . the power to make treaties ... is a power that has no explicit limitation attached to it, and so far there has been no disposition to find in anything relating to the external concern of the nation a limita tion to be implied.’ Chief Justice Hughes ' added: ‘I should not care to voice any opinion as to an implied limita tion on the treaty-making power. The Supreme Court has express ed a doubt whether there could be any such. That is, the doubt has been expressed in one of its opinions.’ In 1936 in the Curtiss-Wright case, Justice Sutherland spoke for the majority when he said that the powers to declare war, Mors power... faster pickups ... better gasoline mile age — they're all yours with Advmetd Caufess-ALafe Htnolimt. Rigid road tests prove h; you’ll prove it yourself with aafle after mile of carefree, trouble-free driving. So don’t put it off. Get the best motor oil your money can buy — Advmtetd HmvMm. It actually wear-proofs your engine jot tkt lift #/ year rer. STOP AT YOt/R TEXACO STATION H. D. Payne & Co. Your Texaco Distributor Laurens County Enjoy the modem, the Light refreshment The Light Refreshment No Finer at Any Price! PEPSI-COLA BOTTLING CO. GREENVILLE, S. C. to conclude peace, *10 make treaties’, belong to the ‘Federal Government as the necessary concomitants of nationality . . .’. Clearly Justice Sutherland was saying that toe treaty power did not stem from the Constitution and it is equally clear that Jus tice Sutherland suggests that that there is no limitation on the Government in its choice of mat ters that fall within the field of treaty law. In his dissenting opinion in the 1952 steel seizure case, the late Chief Justice Vinson was joined by Justices Reed and Minton in asserting that President Truman had the power to violate the pro- hibltion in the Constitution against seizure of private proper ty because the United States had ratified the United Nations Charter and was engaged in the police action in Korea. Certainly the suggestion here is that a treaty gave to the President toe right to supersede the Consti tution. In the face of these opinions, we think it is pretty plain that a number of present and past members of the highest court in the land have suggested that the treaty power isn’t as clearly lim ited as Mr. Lichtenstein suggests, or as it ought to be. n Let me call attention to the fine editorial stand of that great daily of business; it spoke out sensibly about segregation some weeks ago. I may remind you that, al though no one has thought much about a treaty undermining our State Sovereignty and our cher ished Constitutional rights until we became entangled with the organization known as the Unit ed Nations, some of our judges have suggested the idea for some time. Regardless of how clear the Constitution may seem to you and to me, it is a fact that some court may hand down a decision that will knock our ideas into a cocked hat. Said the Supreme Court in 1920 (in effect) “The treaty is the Supreme law of the land when made under the authority of the United States—that is, when negoiated by the President and approved by the Senate.” Missouri v. Holland, 252 U. S. 416. • » • Well, we hear a lot every day about “Automation.” Let’s hear what one of our greatest enter prises says of it: “AUTOMATION WILL HELP, U. S. WORK FORCE FILL A NEED FOR 40 PER CENT MORE GOODS.” In the next nine years, the de mand for goods and services will grow faster than the number of people available to produce them. In 1964, one of the great est shortages in the United States may be manpower. Our most conservative estimates indicate 184 million Americans will want 40 per cent more goods than we consume today, and they may demand 100 per cent more elec trical products; yet the work force available to produce the goods will increase less than 13 per cent. Automation is the most practi cal and desirable solution to this shortage of labor. If our stand ard of living is to keep rising the way it has been, machines will have to be put to work where none now exist—new, more ver satile machines will have to be built. For working men and women, automation creates new jobs re quiring more skill and judgment; it will give more human beings a chance to do creative work . . . work which machines cannot do. And, because automation prom ises more and better goods at lower cost, pay checks will buy more than ever befofe. Automation has proved to be an evolutionary, not a revolu tionary, process. It requires care ful study and adjustment, and there are always short-range problems to solve. But using more machines is our best hope to meet the coming shortage of working people, and allow toe available men nad women to do a higher order of productive work. As we see it, this is prog ress in the American way.” * * t The livest topic of ^the day is not the next presidential race, but Atomic power. Everywhere we hear of uranium and nuclear fission. Many enterprises have entered the field. “One company in more ways than one is typical of scores of small enterprises that owe their existence to the fast developing nuclear energy field. Many of them have only a dozen or so employees, though a few have grown to respectable ‘small busi ness’ size with 400 to 500 work ers. You’ll find these companies scattered all across the U. S.; they tend to be clustered close to big university cities or centers of scientific research. A buyer’s guide compiled by Nucleonics magazine lists some 1,200 such firms with a stake in the atomic energy business. Unlike such big corporations as DuPont, General Electric, Un ion Carbide and Westinghouse, that are managing huge atomic installations for the Government or constructing costly reactors to generate power, these smaller concerns are operating on the fringes of atomic science. The growing knowledge of the atom and and its radioactive by-prod ucts, and of the atomic particles called electrons has given phys icists and engineers many new ideas on how to put radiation to work in a variety of ways. Help ing measure and tune such ra diation has created many new businesses ’at toe edge of the atom.’ It’s a realm with more than a touch of glamour. The whole field is still new enough to make its participants seem like adven turers into the unknown. De spite enactment of a Federal law last year designed to encourage private participation in peace time atomic activities, there’s sufficient secrecy on some Gov ernment projects to cloak toe in dustry with «n aura of mystery. Growing competition also puts the lid on talk about many promising developments still in the laboratory stage. Says an official, ‘We’re getting cautious about discussing our activities. We have about 100 companies competing with us, and several really large outfits are consider ing entering the field. Why tip them about our operations?’ Apart from companies engag ed in uranium mining or pros pecting, whose activities have been pretty well publicized, there’s a broad group staking their futures on particular as pects of the atom business.” S. C. Families Get $5,000,000 In Death Benefits South Carolina families receiv ed $4,976,000 in life insurance death benefit payments under 8,063 policies during the first three months of this year, com pared with $4,472,000 under 7,006 policies in the corresponding period of last year, the Institute of Life Insurance reports. ‘The first quarter, total com pares with $2,720,000 under 6,675 policies in the corresponding peri od ten years ago,” the Institute commented. “The 83 percent rise in amount paid is a reflection of the widened and increased own ership of life insurance, however, and not an increase in mortality, as the death rate among policy holders is today considerably be low that of a decade ago. For the nation as a whole, the ten-year rise in death benefit payments has been 66 percent, while the death rate among policyholders is about 10 percent less than 10 years ago.” Of the aggregate first quarter payments in this state this y6ar $2,466,000 was under $46 ordinary policies; $653,000 was under 621 group life insurance certificates; and $1,637,000 was under 6,4$$ Industrial insurance policies'. For the nation as a whole, $561,- 216,000 was paid as death claims under 432,233 policies in the first quarter of 1955, compared with $633^18,000 under 417,687 poli cies in the corresponding period of last year. Of this year’s first A weekly column of questions and’answers regarding the new Social Security Amendments to quarter payments $346,1.10,000 was under 124,$11 ordinary poli cies; $146,031,000 was under 58,- 560 group policies; and $70,075,000 was under 247,759 industrial policies. Does He Have a College Fund? Wise parents, with an eye to the future, stare a college fund for their youngsters when they hrsc start off to school. You can start a college fund for your child with a convenient amount here, and let them grow together. Each saver’s funds are insured up to $10,000 by a gov agency, and earn a worth-while return. ederal Savings |and loan association A Clinton Institution Serving Clinton People Since 1909 Telephone Ne. t the Social Security Act. Any - ! questions you may have should be sent to this paper, and they will be answered in this column or by mail through E. G. Cope- state, Field Representative of the Greenwood Social Security Ad-; ministration, 19 Post Office Building. ; i 1. Q. If a person is already over 65 can he get Social Security coverage? A. Yes, the new law applies to workers regardless of their age 2. Q. What happens when the farmer reaches age 72? A. When he reaches age 72 he may receive the monthly pay ments regardless of the amount of his earnings. However, his earnings for the whole year in which he reaches 72 must bo used in figuring the number of payments due in that year. 3. Q. Is all income counted toward the $1,200 limit on earn ings? A. No, you may have any amount of income from invest ments, annuities, or eral estate and still get your social secur ity benefits. However, all wages from employment and all in come from self - employment must be counted, whether or not covered by the Social Security law. Subacribe To THE CHRONICLE PHONE 74 Every co n^oni»Y " ee ° S QfiOO «0 M£S ■jt. > w\ SsSSI Coed How»«f molt* good dtiiom. TMt com munity it otgocioNy fovortd in Sto numbor and vorioty ot dwalHngt avaUoblo to moo* of pooplo at oN anomic lovott. -ni i 6000 Ftiilf Out Sun • Yes, a good Family Drug Store is an essential community service. And we are proud of the fact that this fine pharmacy adequately meets this important need. We invite you to call on us— often. 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