The Portland daily press., 1863-03-09
Monday Morning, March 0, 1868.


The Vacant Judgeship.
An article in the Kennebec Journal claims
the appointment Of the new Judge for the
Middle District and for Augusta; because the
population in each of the three Districts is
nearly equal; and because there are now four
Judges in the Eastern District, two In the
Western District, and only one in the Middle
District, Let us see how it would look.
Augusta may be regarded as the political
center Of the State. More than half the pop
ulation and business Of the State lies west of
east of that river; only two west Of the river,
and one At Augusta. This writer is not will
ing that the larger fraction In population and
business west of the river should have three
Judges against four for the smaller fraction
east Of the river; but claims the eighth Judge
for Augusta
But let us look at the several Districts. The
Western District contains the largest popula-
tion, 224,525; the Middle District contains
213,22l; and the Eastern District contains on
ly 190,533.
Now look at the facts on the other side. BY
an act Of the Legislature in March 1855, an
eighth Judge was added to Bench and Hon.
Seth May was appointed. There were then
In the two smaller Districts, three Judges each,
namely, in the Middle District, ,Messrs. Tenney
Rice and May, In the Eastern District, Messrs.
Hathaway, Appleton and Cutting, and only
two in the Western District, namely Messrs.
Shepley and Howard. This proportion con-
tinued for one year, when Judge Davis was re-
moved from Office and the number of Judges
reduced to seven again. During that year
while each of the other Districts had three
Judges, the Western District had only one!
In the month Of February 1857, the num-
Der of Judges was again increased to eight,
and Judge Davis was re-appointed. For the
next five years the Middle District and the
Eastern District had three Judges each, while
the Western District had only two
When Judge Mays term expired, Hon. w.
S. Walton was appointed. Thus the most
populous OF the Districts, after having been
deprived of its proper share in the Judiciary
for seven years, was restored to its just and
equal right last May, when Judge Walton
was appointed. We supposed all were salts
fed that it was right.
1t seems not, and that Augusta desires to
deprive us Of our just and equal right SO soon.
If Governor Washburn committed an error
in the appointment of Judge Dickinson in the
Eastern District, say SO; or get him to move
into the Middle District, If you can but do
not so soon again undertake to deprive us in
the Western District of our just share in the
Judiciary.
But District lines are of no Importance.
Each Judge has Jurisdiction in the whole
State. The center has an able Judge at Au-
gusta. That is as much as can be afforded for
that place. The smaller fraction of the State
in population and business east of the river,
has four Judges now; and we in the west have
only two. We claim the new Judge for the
west and for Portland.
No doubt 1t would be some convenience to
Augusta to have Judge there all the time.
So 1t would be to Biddeford, to Bath or to
Rockland. 1t is still more important to Port
land. There are, in place so large as Port
land, SO many applications for Habeas Corpus
so many applications for injunction, SO. many
applications to take papers from the files of
the court, and in fine so many interlocutory
matters coming up daily, that we ought, If we
could, to have Judge in Portland every day
In the year.
We suppose Judge Davis and Judge Rice
are away from home about one hundred days
In the year. Certainly it might be convenient
to the people Of Augusta to have another
Judge there when Judge Rice is absent. But
in spite Of the growth of Augusta, and in spite
of her wants, we think we make out strong
er case for the Western District and for Port
land, and we make our claim accordingly.