The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1867-03-07

ro 5sl ana 4 pi,sssIs SnCersling ne
Recenf Act OF the I.ekisIa fssre
Relative thereto.
The passage by The. Legislature Of on act
entitled sAn act to provide for the holding
Of tie High Court Of Errors and Appeals Of
the State Of Mississippi, and for other pur-
poses, = approved Feb. 2i,' 1857, changes ma.
terialIy tie course Of proceeding in the
Court, and renders it necessary Tor as, before
we separate, to express our views Of the OPP
Grafton of the act, as well for the guidance
of the Clerk, as for the information Of coun :
sci and parties interested. .,,
The act alluded to divides the State into
four districts, and requires that term OF
this Court shall be held once in each year,
i'm each of these districts |; and it provides
that all cases In such districts, which may
be carried to the High Court of Errors and
Appeals, after the act shall take effect, from
any Of said districts, shall be directly trans
united TO, and heard and triedgin the Court
so, held forgthe district from 4Whence said
cause may come respectively, and tried and
determined as, now required by law. The
act takes effect from and after the first Mon
dav. of 5AnfiIl 1857 ao3 aziia s9ll 51stHstAta
The duty of the Court in the regulation Of
its practice, under the laws prescribed BY the
Legislature, makes it incumbent on us to
eonstrue this act. and to declare what bus
mess is 70 be transacted at the several terms
appointed by it.
The act assumes to regulate and provide
for the holding of this Gourt, and il reqnires
four terms to be held in each year at the
times and places named This ne sssarily sn-s
persedes and abolishes the present terms,
and the regulations now existing for the
dispatch of business, and it is remarkable
omission that it supplies no method what
ever of disposing of the business already de-
pending: There is nothing contained in the
act that positively forbids the Court to take
up, at any Of the new terms, cases not.
arising within the district in which the
Court may be sitting. But the Affirmative
language used. and its general scope and OBJ
ject seem TO indicate purpose to restrict
the Court to the trial of causes "carried' to
it from the particular district and hence
the inquiry arises, whether such purpose,
il it existed on the part of the Legislature,
can be carried into effect consistently with
the conditions Of the Constitution, which is
the paramount law; binding alike on the
Legislature and the Court. sf1xsgs1 8assI
Before the late amendment, the 9TH sec
ton of the 4th article of the Constitution,
was in these words: "The High Court Of
Errors and Appeals shall be held twice In
each year, at such place as the Legislature
may direct, until the year 1886, and after
wards y. sln at the seat of government sof the
This clause was always interpreted
as requiring taoo terms of the Court
dispatch of all the business pending
in the court, from all portions of the State.
1t was considered to be the constitutional
right of every sutton to have his cause called
at every term of the court, and tried and
determined, unless continued for good cause.
IUnderthis section. the legislature, for the
convenience of parties and counsel. appoin-
ted tile particular days in the October term,
on which the business coming from each of
the general districts should be taken up,
aud required the court to fix three days for
the April term, and to give public notice
thereof. But all the causes pending In the
court were required to be called at some
time during every term "a ,-lsg.ea5
The amendment adopted in 1865, strikes
ont the section above quoted, and substi-
tutes the following: "The High Court of
Errors and Appeals shall be held at least
once in each year at the seat of government,
and at such other place or places in the
State as the legislature may, direct" y - 10y ,I
This new provision still requires that at
least two terms of the court shall be held in
each year !; one of which, at least, shall be
at the seat OF government, or both if the
legislature shall see proper, and one of which
may be held elsewhere. And the legislature
is authorized to increase the number of terms
at discretion, and to direct at what place
they shall be held, provided one term shall
be retained at the seato government. On |
these points there can be no bOubt.
But the question we have to consider is
whether, when the terms are appointed, and |
the placed fixed at which they are TO be |
held, it is competent for the legislature to |
divide up the business, and parcel it out so |
that at each term only . portion, of the |
pending cases can be taken mp? IF the |
Affirmative of this proposition can be estab- |
lished, then itisclear that thefequirement |
of the constitution that there shall be at |
least two terms of the court in each year, |
can be successfully evaded. II e r.
ItWoulds hardly be contended, we suppose, |
that under the constitution as it stood, |
before this amendment, it would have been |
competent for the legislature to provide |
that, at one of the terms then required to |
be held, the business from one part Of the 1
State only should be taken up, and that the 4
cases from the other parts Of the State should
have been holding two terms in the sense Of 4
the constitution, but one term only. Such |
a law would therefore have been IlncOnsti- i
tutional, and it would have been the duty 1
of the court TO disregard the restriction, and i
to proceed at every term to dispatch all the
business before. 1t. 6fE@%sIIfI G'gv0gIu Il
This court, whenever it meets, is the High
Court Of Errors, and Appeals of the whole !,
State, for the, decision of all causes depend! II
ing therein. There must be at least two Of |
these termssin each year, and as many more |
as the legislature may think demandedby the |
public good. The more frequently the terms |
are held, the more the interest and conven T. |
8nce of the people is promoted But If the leg Il
isiature can so sub-divide the court as to con H
fine it's action at any term to the business of |
particular counties, all the advantages of
frequent terms would be.lests and we see.
nothing that could prevent them, by, multi, /
plying the number of these subdivisions I
beyond the number Of terms In q year, and
the cases in each to be taken up
IN rotation, from producing the result that
the business of particular districts might be
aeted upon only once ii a. number Of years +
The principle would be the same; and If a
sutton can be deprived of his right to be
heard at one of two. terms held in a single
year, he might, by q parity of reasoning, be
eft with only the right to be heard once in
several years. q as3a ss6 snigtRsE s1Tl9SYs +
The prompt and speedy administrations of
usSice. under the law, is cardinal object
# all government, This, principle is incor-
,orated in onr fundamental law, by the 14thl
ection of the Bill of Rights, which declares,
Thai all courts shall be open, and every
,erson for an injury done him in his lands,
,oods3 person or reputation. shall have RENEE
IL by due course of law, and right and JUS
ice administered without sale, denial or de-
ay. To secure these ends the government 4
cribed and adjusted by the constitution. ~
I,o1