Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1871-12-15
House Of Delegates.
$166,334.1S

NOW, IL tuC uCIupClc VI wv OShCA"A AAo
sembly would, instead of mileage, charge
the State only with their actual travelling
expenses paid out in going to and return.
ing from the annual sessions, dispense al
far as possible with committee clerks, ant
reduce the expenses of printing, binding,
stationery, &C.. &C., one-half, the entire ex
penses Of your session will be less by $780,.
600 than the legislative expenses Of the
fiscal year.
But not alone to legislative expenses is
the opportunity for economy confined. As
Ihave before stated, I hope within the pre-
sent fiscal year to put the penitentiary upon
a paving basis. About half of last year s
expenses, say 10000, I am satisfied will
be sufficient to meet expenses for the current
year. provided the recommendation made
be adopted.
Our system of courts is also entirely too
expensive, and from fifty to seventy-five
thousand dollars can and ought to be annu-
ally saved in this department alone. We
now have eighty four county, eight corpo-
ration, and sixteen circuit judges. Some
time since, for the purpose Of obtaining GER
tain statistical Information, I prepared and
had mailed to each county and corporation
Judge in the State blank form, with the
request that he fill the same up with the in
formation desired, and return it to me-
About sixty responses have been received,
and are on file in the Office of the Secretary
of the Commonwealth. From these Stats
tics deduce the conclusion that the county
courts are doing two thirds of all the new
legaTl business in the State, and that the liti-
CATION, except in old cases, or growing out
.of old cases, is very light, and what is more
gratifying still, is gradually decreasing We
shall hereafter, and for the next decade,
need but one court of original jurisdiction.
Corporation or hustings courts are distinctly
provided for in the Constitution, and must
be maintained; but the circuit courts are
subject to the will Of the Legislature, either
to increase or decrease their number, and
the Jurisdiction of the county courts may be
enlarged or diminished at your discretion.
Now, the Legislature may either enlarge
the number of circuit courts sufficiently to
transact all the current legal business neces-
sary to be done in a court Of record, except
probate business, and reduce the county
courts to courts Of probate only, with COM
pensation derived from fees alone; or, it
may enlarge the jurisdiction Of county courts
and diminish the number Of circuits to one
or more, and limit their jurisdiction to chan
Gerry business only, although the jurisdic-
ton of the circuit court Of the city Of Rich
mona, as now provided by law, must, Of
necessity, be retained, If authorized by
the Constitution I should prefer the abol
ishment of all circuit courts except that of
the city of Richmond, and the constitution
of our corporation and county courts as the
only courts of original jurisdiction, and the
diminishing of the number Of county judges,
say to one for evory twenty thousand inhab'
itants, or as nearly SO as circumstances
would admit Of The number Of county
Judges might thus be reduced to sixty-one,
and the corporation judges to six, and, in
GLIDING the circuit judge and the judge Of
the chancery court Of the city Of Richmond,
sixty-nine Judges in all AT the present
time the salaries of the one hundred and FIVE
county, corporation. and circuit judges
amount to $l19,975 With the number Of
these Judges reduced to sixty nine, and with
the consequent abolition of the salaries and
fees Of clerks and other officers, apd the
fees of Jurors and other expenses, the amount
above named which might be annually saved
to the Commonwealth is not too large. Our
courts, too, should be made self-supporting,
or nearly So A system Of fees shoald be
adopted adequate to defray all the expenses
of the courts in ciyil cases, except the
Judges salaries, and the larger portion of
these also. "While our courts should be
freely open to all, and the costs incident to lit
igations ought not to be SO high as to amount,
in any sense, to denial Of justice, yet it is
right that suitors should bear, to some ex-
tent, the increased expenses they occasion. !"
This systrm was recommended in my mes
sage Of the 9th Of February, 1870, and in
the main was adopted by the Legislature,
except that the fees prescribed were too low.
The expenses incident to the administration
of our criminal jurisprudence ought not to
be any charge upon the State treasury what
ever. cordially approve the recommends
ton Of the Auditor upon this subject.
He says In mis- report at page IA, Il think
every county should pay the expenses of the
administration OF criminal justice within its
own limits. Were the laws SO framed as to
provide for this, I feel satisfied that while
the State would be entirely released from
the burden Of this charge, the counties could
reduce it probably one-half." And if he
had added that if our courts would in tie
punishment of lesser offences more frequent
ly resortto fines. our criminal Jurisprudence
might be rendered comparatively inexpen
sive, provided the fines were collected ane
applied to the liquidation Of these charges
A reform isalso demanded in our laws for the