The United States Supreme Court in dismissing the petition of Mr. Albert Levitt for permission to challenge Mr. Justice Black's eligibility to serve on its bench was entirely to be expected. Mr. Levitt took the line that because last spring Mr. Black, then a senator, approved an increase in the emoluments to the judges, in an act which made the retirement of Mr. Justice Van Devanter possible, he was no longer qualified to take the seat to which he had been nominated by President Roosevelt. Had it been possible to prove that when Mr. Black so acted he was aware of the possibility of his being appointed to the Supreme Court, there might have been some substance in the petition, though even then slight. It is, however, a matter of common knowledge that at that time it was not thought that Senator Black would receive the nomination, Senator Robinson being generally accepted as the first possibility for the post, an opinion which was held until, unfortunately, he died. There is consequently no suggestion that Senator Black, with a nomination for the Supreme Court in his pocket voted for an increase of salary for its members, and the decision of the Court to reject Mr. Levitt's petition seems to be in full accord with the facts and the law. How the Supreme Court will behave with Mr. Black amongst its members remains to be seen, but it would appear on the face of things that the anti-administration bloc of five to four, has now been transformed into a minority of four io five, It is, of course, maintained that the Supreme Court judges know nothing about politics once they assume office, though the scoptically inclined freely express their scepticism
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.