Semi-weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1852-1853, 1852-04-10
THE WITNESS BOX.

! THE WITNESS BOX.
Our courts of law have made one great and radical
change in the method of trying accused persons
that was never known in the days of old. Whether
the change is good and just one may best be DIS
covered from its nature. In olden time, however
defective or unjust their modes of trial may have
been in other particulars one thing the courts al
WAYS did-they tried the accused and not the wit
nesses. Our courts have reversed this. They have
changed the witness box into the criminal dock,
and they try the witness, while they leave the &C
cused to enjoy the pleasure of the change, and OF
hearing his lawyer conduct this transferred trial
with all the spice of insult and outrage to feeling
and right. When witness, at the present day,
goes on the stand he is left to the tender merry OF
the lawyer, who devours him if he can. In nine
cases out of ten, the LAWYER do this, for the wit
ness is either ignorant of his rights too tmid to
assert them, and in either case his trial goes on
He is made to tell every incident of his life, from
the cradle up to. manhood whether those incidents
have any thing to do with the case on hand or not
No matter how respectable the witness may be,
the lawyer in effect from the very start, gives the
Jury to understand that the Witness is lying, and
then, by refined process of dissecting the witness
| he endeavors to prove it. In such case the wit
ness ceases to be citizen with certain civil rights
and becomes mere legal subject for the lawyer to
cut up for the benefit of his client. Every thing
is resorted in the cutting up to render him odious
in the eyes of the jury, and he receives treatment
in the witness box that would disgrace any civilized
society in chrstendom. These remarks, be it I'M
lerstood, apply to witnesses against whom there is
no reproach, and whose outrageous treatment, in
the above manner, has become matter OF daily
occurrence and reproach in our courts of justice.
This treatment is not demanded by the furtherance
of justice it is perfectly wanton, and without the
shadow of an excuse.
The above disgraceful state of things with refer
ence to witnesses arises from the utter omission
the part of the Courts to protect them. The char
acter in which witness stands before the Court,
not in the latter days to enter often into the
thoughts of the Court. A witness is citizen and
not criminal, and he is presumed to be beneftting
the community and not injurng it, when he goes
on the stand to give his evidence in order that the
truth may be discovered. In such character he is
entitled to double protection-the protection of a
citizen unchanged with offence, and the protection
of servant of the public in the very act of per-
forming the service required of him. And the
Court should not wait for him to beg for protection
but should keep the shield held over him ready
to ward off all unjustfable attacks. That they do
not do this, is fact which every days experience
proves True, there is law that the witness shall
be protected that he need not criminate himself,
DC, but the law is made dead letter by lawyers
who are helped in the operation by the Court it.
self If the witness gets any protection in a ma
ority of cases, he will have to show bodness and
Oh GlldL VIII SUBJECT 10 very
great risk of being punished for contempt of Court
All this is wrong, and should be remedied. The
excuse offered is, that very wide latitude is to be
allowed to lawyers in order to draw out witness,
to discover whether he is swearing false or true,
and that witness Is not presumed to know himself
whether certain questions asked him, no matter
how insulting or foreign they may be, have any
thing to do with the case or not. We deny the
tenabilty of every part of this excuse. AS for the
latitude to be allowed to lawyers, it is time that
very large tuck should be taken in it, for it has
grown to be monstrous abuse. As for perjury, it
is easy for the most moderate degree of penetration
in Court to discover when the cloven foot is stick
ing out in witness, and when it is consequently
justifabe in leaving him to the hetcheng process
OF lawyers, and it is equally easy for the pen
etraton to discover whether lawyer is asking need
less and insulting questions of witness, which have
nothing to do with the case, and which he is not
bound to answer. What we complain Of is. that
there is no distinction made, and the most correct
rreproachabe witness is left to be decently or in
sultingly treated, according the lawyer may hap
pen to be gentleman or black guard
Because this is so, decent man, at the present
day; breads to 60 on the witness stand, and will
make use of every eXpedient to avoid doing so. 1t
is not necessary to remark that such a result, pro-
!ceeding from the action of our Courts, does not
tend much to secure the due administration of JUS
tice, while every one must admit that it is most
lamentable state of affairs, when decency and hon
esty hesitate to go into court of justice, simply
because there is protection for them in the
sacred halls presumed to have been created for the
protection of all. ". Y. Police Gazette
PHYSICAL BENEFIT OF THE SABBATH. The Sab
bath is Gods special present to the working man,
and one of its chief objects is to prolong his life,
and preserve efficient his working tone In the
vital system, it acts like compensation pond; it
replenshes the spirits, the elasticity and vgor, which
the last six days have drained away, and supplies
the force which is to fill the six days succeeding
and, in the economy of existence, it answers the
same purpose as, in the economy of income, is
swered by savings bank. The frugal man, who
puts aside pound to-day, and another next month,
and who in quiet way is always putting by his
stated pound from time to time, when he grows old
and fra, gets not only the same pounds back again,
but good many pounds beside. And the con-
scientious man, who husbands one day of existence
every week-who, instead of allowing the Sabbath
to be trampled and torn in the hurry and scramble
of le treasures it devouty up-the lord of the Sab
bath keeps it for him. and in the length of days and
hale old age gives it back with usury. The savings
bank of human existence is the weekly Sabbath.
HINTS TO MOTHERS IF YOU wish to cultivate