William E. Fortune v. Joseph P. Mulherrin, Joseph A. Cournoyer v. Town of Lincoln

These two cases, arising in different courts, and with very different facts, have one aspect in common, the mistaken belief that by some form of action or other the federal courts are the ultimate resolvers of all wrongs. This belief persists regardless of the number of times it is said that the state courts are competent to decide federal questions, including constitutional questions. E. g., Robb v. Connolly, 1884, 111 U.S. 624, 637, 4 S.Ct. 544, 551, 28 L.Ed. 542, 546; Grubb v. Public Utilities Comm’n, 1930, 281 U.S. 470, 475-76, 50 S.Ct. 374, 376-77, 74 L.Ed. 972, 977; Lovely v. Laliberte,…