Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1850-03-09

DeTS. Inese are tne teAtS upol WHlSH tt'
greater part of his argument is founded.
! agree with him, sir, entirely in these posi-
tions.. Our Judges are, as he says, too irres-
ponsible and too numerous and | would re-
medy the first of these defects by passing
this amendment, making them responsible 10
the people, the only power TO which they
should be responsible, and thus, al the same
time, secure both their proper independence
and true responsibility; and I would say,
let the Legislature remedy the other defect
by re-districting the State, making smaller
number Of districts, and consequently fewer
Judges.
The author of the pamphlet turns 10 Eng
land, and institutes comparison between
the English judiciary and our own, for the
purpose of showing that we have too many
Judges for the labor they perform. We,
plain republicans, sir, always like 10 count
the cost, and perhaps it might have been as
well for the writer of the work to have given
us some idea of the expense of the system
which he holds up as model; it might have
been as well for him TO have informed US
that one incumbent alone, upon the English
Bench, 1.-THE Lord High Chancelor,) receives
nearly as much per Gnnum as the whole of
our "vast retinue of Judges.n
The annual salary of the Lord High Chan
cellor is Gll,o0O
Annual salary of three Vice Chan
cellors, $4,000
Annual salary of Master of the
Rolls, 1000
Annual salary OF Lord Chief Justice
of the Court Of Queens Bench, 10000
Annual salary of four Associates, $4,000
Do. of Lord Chief Justice
of Common Pleas, 5000
Do. of four Associates, $4,000
Do of Lord Chief Baron
of the Exchequer, 1000
Do. of four Barons, $4,000
Making total of $4,000
Which, reduced to our currency, makes the
imposing sum of s572, 200!
Our own system cost during the past year,
including all expenses, but about S94, 900 -
not one-sixth Of the expense of the English.
| trust, sir, that the Taxpayers of Pennsyi-
vania may never be cursed with such a
change.
The principle, Mr. Speaker, OF an elective
Judiciary is not with us an untried expert
ment. At least twenty of the States Of this
Union already elect their Judges, either by
their Legislatures, or directly by the people
and in all Of them the system has more than
realized the highest expectations Of its
friends. Why should Pennsylvania lag be-
hind! She has already taken one step, in
the election of her justices of the peace, who
are literally Judges, and by the very terms
of the Constitution form part of the judicial
power; and although we had many good
justices before 1899, yet taking them as a
class, no one doubts that the change has been
decided improvement.
We are asked by the opponents of this
amendment upon this floor, where we have
the evidence that the people desire this
change? would point them, sir, 10 the
proceedings Of the State Convention the
resolutions adopted at almost all the county
and township meetings of both parties, thai
have been held since the last session of the
Legislature would ask them TO look inlo
that truthful mirror of the public mind-the
PREss would request them 10 read the
instructions given 10, and pledges exaclet
previous 10 the election, from members oc
cupying seats upon this floor; and if these
evidences would not suffice, would beg
gentlemen 10 turn to the people themselves
and ask them what they desire. There vii
be no difficulty, sir, in discovering their sen
timents-they demand this change, and they
| will have it.