Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1849-08-10
virginia Legislature.
EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENTS.
FAuouIER SpRlNos, THURSDAY, August I'd i0a''
SENATE.

fpr
HnEsI NJGER had proposed al amendment, loi
:, ,..,se as he avowed, Of making the pro.
~. .;,;on more Objectionable, Tor ex.enu'ns W.
p..;@d;c,;cn 10 sums oil $50 %hlch iatef PioPo-
y.;,ion was yo.ed down this morning. e.,
s'' NJ WITCHER had prepared statements ,oa
,hs nnrpose OF showing the difference 10 'ie cos's
of collecting claims tried before sinsle Iush hs
ami those tried by the Courts and ron Will u; Is;
went on and made quite iorcioie a'su"
favor OF his proposition. .,h ;s remarks
Mr. BARBEE did not expect tnal his ,.n,a ~ =
would affect The decision OF The SeEa,e ~"
question then pending. II might Or n1 p;, ,mr
mia was already sealed doomed, and feao. naI
mioht be-hu. il so, he still looked LOT osuei
and brighter day He looked with cohaIence "
. morpipe of resurrection, when that @nich "'sn'
be buried 10 day would rise again. rms e2'eh1
SION ot jurisdiction might be delayed, out IL coaiu
moi he n,eyenied. Come it must IL was seen d.
eyery Successive meeting Of the Legislature ','".
The people we're aroused upon this question-'hd'
,hey demanded The enactment OF THIS law d. oui
hands. Success. he believed, mus; ultimately
follow. True. the advocates OF this measure hdu
hsen defea,ed-lhe Senate itself had prouuceu
lhs defeat. lie was sorry tina, such had oeen
The case. and he had never been able 10 account
for The defeat, un!ess was owing 10 me s'fa"se
coincidence between The votes OF senators ahu
lbeir protest. ,ns-( alluding TO la~lers.) In ins
States wuere the jurisdiction OF Jusiices eAceeusu
$40 il worked we'll He had heard OF no CON.
nlainls. Al all events, in his readings VI .he
proceedings OF the Legislatures q ,hose o'aes'
duce The Jurisdiction; they We're satisfied WIN
Inc law, and ,be people approved ii.
But all important changes meet win Oppose
ton. Many years ago single justices couia not
decide upon claims in lhis State over len aoi'
ARK. and when the proposition TO exlend Tue
jurisdiction TO twenty dollars was brought up,
II was violently assailcd, as much 90 as the pro-
nos;,,ou now 10 extend from twenty dollars 10
thirty dollars. But the people would have ihe'r
wav-,he extension 10 twenty dollars was
Granted. and whcro was the Senator upon lne
soor VINO would now dare propose TO repeal the
nre.ent law, and 90 back 10 the old law, CAV
Inc q jurisdiction limited 10 !en2-(hr. Shackle'
ford ,oid he would DO willing 10 repeal and go
hack Mr.. BARBEE. Thea The people oil
your district would soon repcQi you -Mr.
hid no, think that Senator could be found
Whether success or defeat attended tho motion
now peud,ng be was glad that it had been SUD-
mi,,ed His reasons were three fold. One was,
thai il showed on The part Of the Senator from
pit,syyapia Twhose private opinions IL was
thouehl BY some were against The measure]
di.nosition to respec, one Of the great princi'
r,as of Democratic Goyernment-thatw was, that
,ha servant should not be above his master
Thai the representative should respect and obey
The will Of the body comforting the representa-.
tive oower Another reas N was, that II would
enable him once again to record his vote 10 Ia
vor of measure which he thought eminenlly
INST and proper And another was, that he
1oorld once more shake hands with the Senator
from Pltts,vania upon common platform
aiming for the attainmeat OF common END.
Wr. Is. went on 10 argue that some OF the
counties of tho State were very large, lllSe his
own. mountainous, rough, and without roads;
and that parties, litigant, had sometimes to
travel thirty or forty miles 10 their Court
Houses. for the purpose of attending to the
prosecution OF suits involving comparatively
small amounts; aud thai thus, including the labor
and fatigue Of travelling, the loss OF time at
home and neglect Of business, they were sub
iec,ed 10 losses, equal ard sometimes greater
than The amount for the recovery of which suit
was instituted. 10 this both plaintiff and de-
fe, d int were losers-parliculaTly IN llligated
cases requiring the attendance oil witnesses =,
But it is argued that the proposition wli'
lover the dignity Of the bar. In answer nc
would say, that the General Assembly was mol
set apart Tor The purpose OF protecting inc ols'
nifty of professions, and that IN his opinion Tue
dignity OF man was not regulated BY act OF As,
sembly. He had more conti ence IN the legal
profession than 10 suppose Trey looked 20 the
Legislature for enactments upon this subject
il was also said that it would reduce The sala'
rcs Of judges That proposition was not EN-
braced in the motion before the Senate-if II
were il would be defeated; for tina! had already
been tried during The present session The Sc
nator from Wood says that 1t will INTRODUCE
cultivate and encourage, system oil HtIc
dirty, fl by pleading" Ho would not speak
thus Of lawyers. lie believed no such hing
There would very rarely, il ever, DC any
pleadpgs at all before those justices the world
would 60 on Just as it does now--trials would
be had aud ended just as they are now.
II was also said by that Senator mat appears
would be taken from The decision ol lnose Jusii'
ces. Very wel-it either party thought HIM
self agsrieved by the decision oil The magistrate
appeals were right and ought TO be granted; -inal
is The present law. But Mr. 3. lhOugh' tna' p
peals would be very few. In his county he
knew that they were very seldom Iesoried 10, and
Senator upon This floor tells you thai he has
been Justice Tor 80 years, and that the hist ap
peal from decision Of his has YET to be made
The Senator from Wood speaks very lightly
of fifteen shilling iees-hc says. (ior he Is no"
an CID mani that he has been rrsclicins al The
bar tor many years and he has never ycl 10 MI
life taken a legal fee-ihat he always lakes
great deal more. Then | lake II Tor granted
lhal he never, in any case, taxes Ice oil les
than fiye dollars q know j; is SO in Richmond
and il plain bond Of llc over twen col
| lars falls mo his hands, he gels al once - iie
cent upon the amount oi il. This IS cer'Alnll
| an overwhelming argument IN iavor ii 'akiLs
| these claims Out OF his hands.
The Senator from CulpeprI says that This pro
position is tor The teneft OF creditors, add il viii
benefit nobody else. Sach is not The iaci-butl
debor and creditor were deeply interested in III,
massage of The law. The main object was L
Essen the costs OF litigation, aud he thought tina
The debtor part, 1oio had hs costs t. pay, wer'
particularly interested, aud were greatly 10 Ds
benefi led. The Senator from Londuun VA
among The creditor class OF the community
From his occupation, and extensive business, J
was unavoidable. lie had many debts due him
which were scattered about all through his coun
Try, and YET he was standing up mere and lighting
Ggaint The extension ui this jurisdiclion-thi:
lalies badly with The argument OF the Senator
IRON Culpeper.
Ii is SAID that We do not make provision for The
stay OF executions, 10 prevent oppression upon
the d. btur classes. That provision could BE-
made in periecting the chapter, and he would &C
for it.
The Senator from Loudoun had spoken OF a
Convention which would probably BE- called in
a few years. which could regulate this mater
| The same people who were asking for that Con.
vcnlion, were now asking for This law; and he
prayed Senators, in Wow OF The coming OF thai
Convention, tor come il mast, 10 meet The friends
OF this measure in a spirit Of concession and
compromise. The peopc the west entertain
ed The kindest and best feelings towards ,heiI
brethren Of The east, and The millions OF dollars
which they had vcled then, testified 10 the fact
One VOID to the Senator from Richmond
Last winter Mr.. B. had voted TO extend the juTis.
diclion of the Mayors Cur OF Richmond, mol
because he thought that The city OF Richmond was
entitled TO any special legislation on thai subject
ba, because he believed in the sener al prtadP't
involved. So lar as this principle was concerned
he thought he was aching precisely in harmony
with the views OF that Senator; bull from the init,
NATIONS which he threw out yesterday, he was