The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1868-03-03
Communicated

exceedingly duAlOuS W stC luC SuOhy
so hurry up Bolivar.
Communicated.
Birds, Rabbits, Dogs, Fish aud Creeping
things, ."
rs.
Courts, Ldw, Justice aud SUitors, ct. al.
III ChdRoeTy.
That the ambitious State of West
Virginia supports the most defective
system of Courts of,any other State in
the United States, is a fact patent to
all save the ambitious Legislature of
that State
Tbatth aforesaid ambitious Legisla-
ture, in its extensive pursuit of ecOno-
MY, persistently passes by the most in.
viting field for "retrenchment and re-
form" that is offered in the whole range
of legislation is mystery as inexplica-
bleas it is provoking.
That the people of this State are be-
ginning to prefer, as rule, to acqui-
esce in injustice rather than seek JUS
tice through the medium of our Courts
is a startling truth that is comprehend
ed in its Importance only by those who
have proper conception of the sacred
character of the judicial institutions of
this county, and who realize that upon
these institutions we depend for the
purity, perpetuity, supremacy and ben
efts of our laws, aud for security to our
lives, liberty, property and all that an
American holds dear.
Now, we do not propose to enter
lU
show all the defects with which
our judicial system is chargeable,
for we are-nOt competent for the task
but we intend simply to present the
first, foremost and most palpable, about
which everybody complains, and We
are already anticipated before we write.
Delay.
There is, perhaps, not Court docket
in this State that inclHdes less than
t,rO hundred cases regular old stand-by's,
fixtures in which the accumulated cost
is the principle matter of con-
troversy. At each term of Court the
witnesses In about One-third of these
cases are summoned and brought into
Court at the expense of ten cents per
mile and one dollar per diem, where they
loaf during the entire term, at which
one, two or three cases are disposed of,
and are then sent home to await the
same ordeal at the next session. This
ordeal is continued until freQuent-'
ly the entire fortune of a suitor
becomes involved by way of costs in n
suit where the real matter Of cOntrO-
versy does not exceed one hundred dol
lars. What prudent man, therefore,
will not prefer to sacrifice one hundred
dollars to fraud rather than risk five
hundred or more by seeking redress in
our courtsi Yet this is not the worst
feature of it. In some of the counties
business is almost entirely suspended
during n session of court by the multi
tude Of witnesses and jurymen made nee
essary by the multiplicity Of CASES
pending upon the dockets. For in
stance, we learn that in the Second Ju-
dicial Circuit of this State, by some
shifting aud shirking of the Constitu-
tion which gives to each county four
terms Of court per annum, two of the
terms allotted to the counties of this
Circuit were COnsOlida ted by the last
Legislature, making one Tong term out
of two. The consequence was tRat
suitOrs, impatient for disposi-
ton of their respective cases,
all looked to the long term
as Offering good opportunity for
success, and a great many cases being
set for trial, q multitude Of witnesses
were retained at Court in many cases
for almost month, involving in some
cases near one hundred dollars addi-
tional costs, and the cases continued in
the end, the witnesses sent home and
the suitOrs pay the bills with bnt little
hope of return. An interval
of four and ave months occurs
between the different terms of
Court; tritiing cause, must continue
the case for that length of time, snitOrs
become discouraged, and the censs
quence is that iu this circuit the Courts
are beginning to be abandoned as hum
bugs and oppressive to tho pesPle rather
than sources of justice and relief,
Is there no remedy for this evil 7
Must we supinely wait and see the
m ost valuable institutions in our gov
ernment go to the dogsf Or would it
not be more wise in our Legisla-
ture to awake to the necessities of
this matter, and apply the very
simple and suggestive remedies for re-
form that have been adopted by other
States.
The remedy is simply this
More Courts or Less.
The Constitution authorizes theL Leg
islature to increase the number of terms
of Courts when necessary. II each
county could have q Court as often as
ence in two months, even this would,
no doubt, be sufficient to enable the
Courts TO keep up with their dockets
In some of the States, however, the con-
trary remedy is adopted. They have q
less number of terms of Court, but re-
quire the judges to sit until every case
upon their docket is disposed Of.
1t costs the State at large nothing
more for Courts to sit the whole
year round than part of IL, and IL
costs those who do pay for il, much less.
Why can't the people have it so I
Why is the Legislature 80 ready to en-
ter upon reform as TO every other sub.
ject. while this most important Of all is
totally neglected. Why is every bird,
fish, rabbit, dog, and creeping thing in
the State cared for with most mater
nal solicitude, while the Courts of the
State are left in confusion worse con
founded y Will those responsible for
it aHsweri
Democratic Meeting.
n.-~--,,, Tn UrTzvr 10 W Va