The Evansville daily journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1870-1875, 1870-12-02
THE SUPREME COURT.
Movement Looking 20 the Creation
OF q Fifth Circuit.

A meeting of the Bar of this State
was held at the Supreme Court
Room, on the Both of November,
1870. pursuant to notice. On motion.
Judge Asa Iglehart, of Evansville,
was called to the Chair, and Hon.
George Y. Howke, of New Albany,
was appointed Secretary.
j. E Mcdonald, Esq. Of Indian
apols. presented to the meeting the
following memorial:
zothe General assembly ofthe State Of n
diana:
Your memorialists would respect
fully urge upon your consideration
the Importance and necessity of an In.
crease in the number Of the Judges of
the Supreme Court, to the limit pre-
scribed by the Constitution.
The Court was organized with three
judges, and held Its first term in
May, 1917. Its labor in nine years
and a half. up to and including the
MAY term 1926, is reported in the first
volume of Blackford's Reports; q
book of four hundred. and thirty two
pages. From that time until the
present Constitution took effect n
November, 1851, the cases decided are
embraced in nine volumes and half
of our Reports.
Bv the act Of February Is, 1862,
the Judges we're increased to four,
the present number.
The adoption of the new Constitu-
ton, the introduction of the Code,
aud the organization of the Common
Pleas Courts, together with the rapid
growth and development of the State,
greatly increased the business of the
Court. Numerous new and difficult
questions of constitutional construc-
ton, of pleading and of practice. were
the legitimate outgroWth of the new
order of things.
The work of the Court in the nine
teen years since the adoption of the
present Constitution, has resulted in
the publication of thirty volumes of
reports, including the one now in
press, averaging some six hundred
pages to the volume.
In the niuety-tWo counties of the
State there are two District Courts,
the Circuit aud the Common Pleas.
In addition to these, there are Grim
| inal Courts in nine of the counties.
From all these courts there is d.
rect appeal to the Supreme Court.
These courts are administered by
nineteen Circuit, tWenty.four Com
mon Pleas and eight Criminal Court
Judges, and the great increase in the
number of appeals is doubtless. to
| some extent, the natural result of the
diversity of so many different minds
thus engaged in the administration OF
our somewhat complicated judicial
system.
There are now over FIVE HUNDRED
CAUSES SUBMITTED WITHIN THE LAST
YEAR AND UNDER ADJUSTMENT
enough to engage the attention Of she
present number of judges for more
than a year and half in their con.
sideration, and more than enough to
make three volumes of reports.
Experience, we think, has demon
strated that an odd number Of
judges is best for q Court of last re.
sort.
The Supreme Court of the United
States, and of twenty. seven cut of the
the thirty-seven States, are composed
of odd numbers. The odd judge no
only adds his services, but the time
spent In consultation is shortened, il
avoiding an equally divided Court.
Indiana, in wealth and population
ranks as the sixth State in the Union
There are fourteen States in which
the court of last resort numbers more
than four j Judges; seven having five
three having SIX; three having seven
and one having eight.
Illinois, under her ne% Constitution
has increased the number of tn
Judges of her Supreme Court from
three to seven. New York has jus
increased the working power of he
Court Of Appeals.
1t is conceded that the Increase o.
the number of Judges of the Supreme
Court to FIVE, will not meet the in
crease of Its business under existing
laws, but IT 10 ell that direction
that can be done under the Constitu
ton. 1t will at least be step in thu
discharge of the obligation of tn
State to provide appropriate mean
for the protection of the rights of he
citizens in the efficient and speedy ad
, ministration of her laws.
This memorial is accompanied b.
two bills, one increasing the numbe
of Judges to FIVE, the other, re-dis
trictiDg the State and8r the constitu
tional provision requiring " the Stat
to be divided into as many districts a
there are Judges of the Suprem
Court"
On motion Of John Brownlee, ESQ
of Grant, the memorial was adopted
and thereupon, on motion, q commit
tee of one from each Congressiona
District was appointed by the Chat
to present the memorial to the Legis
lature. The following gentleme
constitute said committee: Judg
Parrett, Judge HoWke, Judge s. Stan
sifer, Benjamin E. Smith, j. K. Nc
Donald, General Charles Cruft, r.
Gregory, j. u. Petit, John Colerick
w. A. Woods, John B. Niles.
Judge r. @. Gregory offered tn
following resolution, which wa
adopted:
, ResolUsd, That the members Of th
bar of the several counties of tn
State be requested to express thei
opinions on the subject of the memo
rial adopted by this meeting, and for
ward the result to Joseph E. McDon
! aid, of the committee appointed b
this meeting.
On motion, it was ordered that th
proceedings of this meeting be pub
; lished in the Indiana State .JOarna
and Indiana State Sentinel.
JOHN V. HoWKE. ASA IGLEHART,
,, Secretary. Chairman
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