List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 249
# List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 249

This is a list of cases reported in volume 249 of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1919.

## Justices of the Supreme Court at the time of volume 249 U.S.

The Supreme Court is established by Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court . . .". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six (one chief justice and five associate justices). Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices (always including one chief justice).

When the cases in volume 249 were decided the Court comprised the following nine members:

| Justice | Office | Home State | Succeeded | Date confirmed by the Senate (Vote) | Tenure on Supreme Court |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Edward Douglass White | Chief Justice | Louisiana | Melville Fuller | December 12, 1910 (Acclamation) | December 19, 1910 – May 19, 1921 (Died) |
| Joseph McKenna | Associate Justice | California | Stephen Johnson Field | January 21, 1898 (Acclamation) | January 26, 1898 – January 5, 1925 (Retired) |
| Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | Horace Gray | December 4, 1902 (Acclamation) | December 8, 1902 – January 12, 1932 (Retired) |
| William R. Day | Associate Justice | Ohio | George Shiras Jr. | February 23, 1903 (Acclamation) | March 2, 1903 – November 13, 1922 (Retired) |
| Willis Van Devanter | Associate Justice | Wyoming | Edward Douglass White (as Associate Justice) | December 15, 1910 (Acclamation) | January 3, 1911 – June 2, 1937 (Retired) |
| Mahlon Pitney | Associate Justice | New Jersey | John Marshall Harlan | March 13, 1912 (50–26) | March 18, 1912 – December 31, 1922 (Resigned) |
| James Clark McReynolds | Associate Justice | Tennessee | Horace Harmon Lurton | August 29, 1914 (44–6) | October 12, 1914 – January 31, 1941 (Retired) |
| Louis Brandeis | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | Joseph Rucker Lamar | June 1, 1916 (47–22) | June 5, 1916 – February 13, 1939 (Retired) |
| John Hessin Clarke | Associate Justice | Ohio | Charles Evans Hughes | July 24, 1916 (Acclamation) | October 9, 1916 – September 18, 1922 (Retired) |

## Notable Cases in 249 U.S.

### First Amendment Cases

In 1919 the Supreme Court decided several cases upholding criminal convictions under the Espionage Act of 1917 as against claims of free speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. Those decisions published in volume 249 are Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919); Frohwerk v. United States, 249 U.S. 204 (1919); and Debs v. United States, 249 U.S. 211 (1919). The cases involved protest against conscription, published criticism of the government, and verbal criticism of the government, respectively. On appeal, the Supreme Court upheld each appellant's conviction of violating the 1917 Espionage Act.

## Citation style

Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i.e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region.

The Judiciary Act of 1891 created the United States Courts of Appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the district and circuit courts to these appellate courts. The Act created nine new courts that were originally known as the "United States Circuit Courts of Appeals." The new courts had jurisdiction over most appeals of lower court decisions. The Supreme Court could review either legal issues that a court of appeals certified or decisions of court of appeals by writ of certiorari. On January 1, 1912, the effective date of the Judicial Code of 1911, the old Circuit Courts were abolished, with their remaining trial court jurisdiction transferred to the U.S. District Courts.

Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions.

* "# Cir." = United States Court of Appeals
   * e.g., "3d Cir." = United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
* "D." = United States District Court for the District of . . .
   * e.g.,"D. Mass." = United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
* "E." = Eastern; "M." = Middle; "N." = Northern; "S." = Southern; "W." = Western
   * e.g.,"M.D. Ala." = United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama
* "Ct. Cl." = United States Court of Claims
* The abbreviation of a state's name alone indicates the highest appellate court in that state's judiciary at the time.
   * e.g.,"Pa." = Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
   * e.g.,"Me." = Supreme Judicial Court of Maine

## List of cases in volume 249 U.S.

| Case Name | Page and year | Opinion of the Court | Concurring opinion(s) | Dissenting opinion(s) | Lower Court | Disposition |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Harriman National Bank of New York v. Seldomridge | 1 (1919) | White | none | none | 2d Cir. | reversed |
| Butte and Superior Copper Company v. Clark-Montana Realty Company | 12 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | 9th Cir. | affirmed |
| G.S. Nicholas & Co. v. United States | 34 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | Ct. Cust. App. | affirmed |
| Panama Railroad Company v. Bosse | 41 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | 5th Cir. | affirmed |
| Schenck v. United States | 47 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | E.D. Pa. | affirmed |
| Alaska Pacific Fisheries v. Alaska | 53 (1919) | Day | none | none | 9th Cir. | dismissed |
| Alaska Salmon Company v. Alaska | 62 (1919) | Day | none | none | 9th Cir. | dismissed |
| Withnell v. Ruecking Construction Company | 63 (1919) | Day | none | none | Mo. | affirmed |
| Compania General de Tabacos de Filipinas v. Alhambra Cigar and Cigarette Manufacturing Company | 72 (1919) | Day | none | none | Phil. | dismissed |
| Whitehead v. Galloway | 79 (1919) | Day | none | none | Okla. | affirmed |
| United States v. Doremus | 86 (1919) | Day | none | White | W.D. Tex. | reversed |
| Webb v. United States | 96 (1919) | Day | none | none | 6th Cir. | certification |
| L.A. Westermann Company v. Dispatch Printing Company | 100 (1919) | VanDevanter | none | none | 6th Cir. | reversed |
| Lane v. Pueblo of Santa Rosa | 110 (1919) | VanDevanter | none | none | D.C. Cir. | reversed |
| Ex parte Whitney Steamboat Corporation | 115 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | E.D.N.Y. | prohibition denied |
| North Pacific Steamship Company v. Hall Brothers Marine Railway and Shipbuilding Company | 119 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | N.D. Cal. | affirmed |
| Werk v. Parker | 130 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | 3d Cir. | affirmed |
| Arkadelphia Milling Company v. St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company | 134 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | E.D. Ark. | multiple |
| Middleton v. Texas Power and Light Company | 152 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | Tex. Civ. App. | affirmed |
| Chicago Great Western Railway Company v. Basham | 164 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | Iowa | dismissed |
| New York Central Railroad Company v. Porter | 168 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | N.Y. Sup. Ct. | reversed |
| Missouri and Arkansas Lumber and Mining Company v. Sebastian County | 170 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | W.D. Ark. | affirmed |
| City of Richmond v. Bird | 174 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | 4th Cir. | affirmed |
| Gilcrease v. McCullough | 178 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Okla. | affirmed |
| Sugarman v. United States | 182 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | D. Minn. | dismissed |
| Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad Company v. Collins Produce Company | 186 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | 7th Cir. | affirmed |
| Seufert Brothers Company v. United States | 194 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | D. Or. | affirmed |
| Shaffer v. Howard | 200 (1919) | White | none | none | E.D. Okla. | reversed |
| New York v. New Jersey | 202 (1919) | per curiam | none | none | original | testimony ordered |
| Frohwerk v. United States | 204 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | W.D. Mo. | affirmed |
| Debs v. United States | 211 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | N.D. Ohio | affirmed |
| Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company v. Leach | 217 (1919) | McReynolds | none | Clarke | Ky. | reversed |
| South Dakota v. Collins | 220 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | original | judgment for S.D. |
| Crocker v. Malley | 223 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | 1st Cir. | reversed |
| Public Utilities Commission for the State of Kansas v. Landon | 236 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | D. Kan. | reversed |
| Gratiot County State Bank v. Johnson | 246 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Mich. | reversed |
| Postal Telegraph-Cable Company v. City of Richmond | 252 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | E.D. Va. | affirmed |
| Board of Public Utility Commissioners of the Philippines v. Manila Electric Railroad and Light Company | 262 (1919) | White | none | none | Phil. | dismissed |
| Dominion Hotel, Inc. v. Arizona | 265 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | Ariz. | affirmed |
| St. Louis Poster Advertising Company v. City of St. Louis | 269 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | multiple | affirmed |
| Union Tank Line Company v. Wright | 275 (1919) | McReynolds | none | Pitney | Ga. | reversed |
| United States v. Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal | 296 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | 2d Cir. | reversed |
| Miller v. McClain | 308 (1919) | White | none | none | Kan. | affirmed |
| United States v. Purcell Envelope Company | 313 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| O'Pry v. United States | 323 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Lane v. Darlington | 331 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | D.C. Cir. | reversed |
| Capitol Transportation Company v. Cambria Steel Company | 334 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | 6th Cir. | affirmed |
| Union Oil Company of California v. Smith | 337 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | Cal. | affirmed |
| United States v. Union Pacific Railroad Company | 354 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Wise v. United States | 361 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| United States ex rel. Arant v. Lane | 367 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | D.C. Cir. | affirmed |
| United States v. Gudger | 373 (1919) | White | none | none | W.D. Va. | affirmed |
| Matters v. Ryan | 375 (1919) | White | none | none | N.D. Ill. | reversed |
| Ex parte Hudgings | 378 (1919) | White | none | none | E.D.N.Y. | habeas corpus granted |
| Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Company v. United States | 385 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Standard Oil Company v. Graves | 389 (1919) | Day | none | none | Wash. | reversed |
| McKinley v. United States | 397 (1919) | Day | none | none | S.D. Ga. | affirmed |
| Columbus Railway, Power and Light Company v. City of Columbus | 399 (1919) | Day | none | none | S.D. Ohio | affirmed |
| Burr v. City of Columbus | 415 (1919) | Day | none | none | S.D. Ohio | affirmed |
| Chicago and Northwestern Railway Company v. Ochs | 416 (1919) | VanDevanter | none | none | Minn. | affirmed |
| Lake Erie and Western Railroad Company v. State Public Utilities Commission of Illinois ex rel. Cameron | 422 (1919) | VanDevanter | none | none | Ill. | affirmed |
| Board of Public Commissioners of the Philippines v. Compania General de Filipinas | 425 (1919) | VanDevanter | none | none | Phil. | reversed |
| Corn Products Refining Company v. Eddy | 427 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | Kan. | affirmed |
| United States v. Laughlin | 440 (1919) | Pitney | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Citizens Bank of Michigan City v. Opperman | 448 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | Ind. | dismissed |
| United States v. Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company | 451 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | Ct. Cl. | reversed |
| Barbour v. Georgia | 454 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Ga. | affirmed |
| J.E. Hathaway and Company v. United States | 460 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Ex parte Wagner | 465 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | 6th Cir. | mandamus denied |
| Southern Pacific Railroad Company v. Arizona | 472 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | Ariz. | affirmed |
| Houston v. St. Louis Independent Packing Company | 479 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | 8th Cir. | reversed |
| Moore v. United States | 487 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Hartford Life Insurance Company v. Johnson | 490 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | Mo. | dismissed |
| Brougham v. Blanton Manufacturing Company | 495 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | 8th Cir. | reversed |
| Rand v. United States | 503 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Perley v. North Carolina | 510 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | N.C. | affirmed |
| Gillis v. New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Company | 515 (1919) | McKenna | none | none | Mass. Super. Ct. | affirmed |
| United Railroads of San Francisco v. City and County of San Francisco | 517 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | N.D. Cal. | affirmed |
| Chalker v. Birmingham and Northwestern Railway Company | 522 (1919) | McReynolds | none | none | Tenn. | reversed |
| New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad Company v. Scarlet | 528 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Miss. | reversed |
| Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad Company v. Mullins | 531 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | Miss. | reversed |
| Louisville and Jeffersonville Bridge Company v. United States | 534 (1919) | Clarke | none | none | 6th Cir. | certification |
| Darling v. City of Newport News | 540 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | Va. | affirmed |
| Collett v. Adams | 545 (1919) | VanDevanter | none | none | S.D. Tex. | reversed |
| Ex parte Tracy | 551 (1919) | per curiam | none | none | D. Colo. | habeas corpus denied |
| Raton Water Works Company v. City of Raton | 552 (1919) | White | none | none | 8th Cir. | certification |
| Beaumont v. Prieto | 554 (1919) | Holmes | none | none | Phil. | affirmed |
| Skinner and Eddy Corporation v. United States | 557 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | D. Or. | affirmed |
| Standard Computing Scale Company, Ltd. v. Farrell | 571 (1919) | Brandeis | none | none | S.D.N.Y. | affirmed |
