New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-01-21
AN IMPORTANT MEMORIAL
r, ns ssaais s.S Assesky

AN IMPORIAN1 MEANSsf
To IA ssash s.I AssesAy; yu fs,, II |
TIE up6srsisDed members o! the bH Id NC |i'J oi I
Ths, ~ have ,aen With regret notice Of q hDl
introduced into the Assembly, AND iaTofsoy re pted
by .be Judiciary Committee, 70 repeal ths at sF"pg
parties u be witnesses
Your remonstrants can conceive OF no reason, why
measure Of such vast Importance shoud b. abandon
ed after trjsl of only twenty mouths, even the
result of such trial had been pnsAiss cory, TOT the
STABILITY of kgislstion is itself mater VI great COT
cer7 snd law eff cting many ID eresp, upon the
faith Of which many transactions must OF necessity %
had daily and entering 90 deeply into the
ton Of justice ought 10 be neither hastily passed hof
hastily repealed. .
Rot your remopssrsuts believe, and 90 represeut,
that the result Of the trial has bsen not only not un-
satisfactory but highly satisfactory and oenenclsl.
Their osn observation and experience are enluey
favor able to the sdu sibly OF parties as witnesses
in their own behalf sOd they beg leave to refer 70 tne
represebtstiors hereto annexed which they have 70
qassed the Judges TO give, TO chow tha' sucn a1o
their opinion. . :. Ill,
own behalf in Connecticut in 1SI8 and the opinion OF
the people Of that State s altogether IN iavor Oh tis
ADMISSION. smlIa' Law was passed 10 boga ~
1851 with the moot complete sncoess ohce toep 1ne
s,sIss az Vermont Massachusetts and ono have
enacted similar lsws, and general approval mas TO-
lowed the enactment. . ,.:
The argument Of those who OBJECT 70 the ADMISSION
of the parties TO testify the Temptation 70 Perlnfy
II this argument be good for aoythiDg, u Is good
sosDst ali testimony; f,r whenever g may tes-
t}y at all there may be created temptation TO tes,
tfy falsely. All ostbs OF Once all am LAVE, oil oil
oaibs Of m por and receivers Of puohe moneys al
EXAMINATIONS in courts Of witnesses, are temptations
of peIiury. Every one who has an interest IN the
CONTROVERSY and every father sCn ,s d'n oSdsId'
for coDss'eIcys sake, be excluded.
Such is indeed the rule n SOME countries. But In
this country and Eogand the tendency mas been Tor
many wears in the opposite direction. Dsquailuca-
a.. into of has been long abOnsno1;
parties have for several years been permitted % call
their adversares t. the withess stsnd and there 10
sound reason Why one who happens to De tne party
oud not se 70 the Judge ana jury what he himself
knows about the matter 10 be decided by them Inc
true rule in respect 10 testD oDy Is to admit al VINO
can by any NEAR throw light upon the TRANSACTION.
Whatever evil there may be IN the temptation 70
perurypossibly too strorg for parties IN lew cases
ia entirely oveIbssBced by the obvious advantages
Of having all the information which can be derived
from any quarter to eniebten the Court and Jury IN
the trial OF a question of fact.
| No citizen of New-York thinks that witnesses here
are worse or Courts and Juries less able to discrim
rate than in other States or coItrar @lse and 1eie
can be NO good reason W9y toat winch mas pee. 'Cu
10 work 90 benehcialy elsewhere fnouu Oe
| with us.
10 demonstrate against the repeal OF the act allowing
part es to be witnesses for themselves on the other
hand, they would with the act to be extended and
freed from tie restriction which requires notice TO be
given previous TO the examination.
All which is respectfully submitted
william Mtehti, s. j. TfdeD David daley Field, Chss.
Bray fS .aiy T Clinton W. %si Roe
yslt O. Hsninston Ds.I.Oa J'%e' s c.Ion X
S R,s Tho; .a a' Roe. R John
sca,Insys = B. CSttlns. Roberts W% r BssSs WI q
a cat saiss d SSs .s G G. Mcneil Wise TAI
%% ssss %% Alien as L.
RsT ssdsSti.. s's5S i. mot,
W VIZ w assy Geo e 'si'2 Steven. snsd Vail.
RVssi 1gs s% john S' Cha. sTa s.Hd
| John s. Apologize, R. =. Andrews, W. Balm.
TIE Judges Of the Sapreme Court 10 the l't Dis
trct have no hesitation in expressing their opinion
entirely in favor of the admssib,y of parties as wit
nesses in their behalf and they conceive that
repeal Of the law which permits it would be high
ly injurious to the interests Of suitors and the public
,TSESE1ED H HHSs Y f pAVtks
To the Senate and A"smbty of he state 81 Ne,e York
The Undersigned Judges in the City Of New-York'
| respectfully represent 4
| in their own behalf, actions have been tired before
them in which the parties the only Witnesses In
some of which the result unsatisfactory, on ac-
count Of the great doubt in respect to the merits az
disclosed by sach testimony. Bot the result was no
| more unsatisfactory than has occasionally occurred
| when neither party was witness.
In most cases. according to our experience, the re-
suit WAS in the highest degree satisfactory, and no
doubt was left as 70 the truth Of the case and the
merits Of the controversy. In many cases, Is tney
believe the whole truth has been ELECTED, when such
result if no suoh law existed, would have been i'm
| possible.
So far as their experience extends, they do not be-
Ieye that as a general rule any injustice mas been
done by reason OF any ten ptahon TO perjury wmcn
the law, as it stands may be supposed TO favor. On
the contrary they persuaded that, as the general
rule parties have been true TO their consciences and
10 their convictions of the truth of the case, and that
correct resut is reached with less delay and less
e1per Sc to sutors than they would necessarily encoun
| ter If such law should be repealed.
Under such an experience of the operation of this
law the undersigned respectfully suggest that it is
highly inexpediept TO repeal it. impair the efficiency
of s existing provisions until longer trial of 1t shall
demonstrate that its evils exceed ts benefits aud that
R ,s results RSD sSs require It to be repealed.
| January IL, 1883 1850, -. 1900,
| j. 5 BOsWoRTH JOHN SLOssON
| FDN'D PIERREPONT, JAMES MONCRlEF,
| L. Il. WOODRUFF. CHARLES r DALI,
! HENRY HILTON