Centre Hall reporter. [volume] (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1868-1871, 1871-02-10

!
"Be II enacted &c. That all fines
imposed by the Court Of the Codnty
"of Centre, and all forfeited recogni>
frances, which under existing laws,
ARE not payable TO the Common
wealth Of Pennsylvania, for is own
"use, are directed to be paid To the
committee hereafter named, for the
purchase of law library. TO be kept
'in the Court House of said County
"ior the use Of tho Court, bar ana e't''
scns Of said County"
II is thus provided by law that the
library is for the use of the Court the
tar and the citizens Of the County. and
not exclusively for the lawers. 10 lf
however contendcd, that being Law
library, no one has any need or desire TO
use II but lawyers To great extent
this may be true. but IL does not there.
fore follow that il is for the benefit Of
attorneys alone. II does not save at
torneys the necessity of having their
own private library IN their offices for
every day use. A full aud complete
Law library. however, costs more mon
ey than any attorney can AFFORD
10 invest in books. Yet. frequently.
cases arise in the investigators OF
which attorneys are compelled TO con
suit Law hooks only found in publh
or distant libraries. This IL done nj
great expense, not TO the lawyer. but
10 the suitor. Let the individual eli.
ents pay these expenses is the reply.
These clients however constitute "a
nuhlic, il is one person to-day and
Others tomorrow. On the same prln>
eiple would the whole expense OF our
judicial system be put on the parties to
suit. II has frequently happened
that whole week has been occupied
in trying a single ejectment---to settle
the title 10 one tract of land between
two rival claimants. IL the cost Of the
Jury, salaries of the judges. fees Of at
tending eonstables, aud other neees>
sary expenses we're to. be charged TO
the parties to the suit, it would make
resort TO the Court as n means Of
settling disputes impracticable, and
cause parties TO resort 10 force and
violence alone TO settle thier differ
ences.
In other respects the library Is Of pub
lie advantage. Before its institution, il
was not unfrequent that the President
Judges would adjourn Court before the
usual hour in order 10 examine authorities
upon some point suddenly arising in case
This was = loss Of public time, and great
pubte erpeHse. Yet il was unavoidable
unless the judge was willing to make de-
cision without regard to law, which would
probably necsssitste new trial and thus
entail upon parties, witnesses and the gen
srAl public, great additional expense. A
complete library in the Court House would
remedy all this. A single instance viii
illustrate IL during the trial Of the case
of Barnett 4 Bieksl rs HoteeIi, GihitaHd &
o., at our last Court, which involved n
new and intricate question oflAw, his Hon
Judge Mayer, desired TO see a similar case
reported in 81 CrAneh G. C., reports, that
book was not IN the library nor was IL in
the cfiee OF any attorney in Bellefonte.
The judge therefore had TO direct YER
dict, reserving the question Of law until he
could see the case reported in that book.
II upon examination he hnd his decision
wrong he will have to set aside the verdict
aud give new trial, which viii eoSt the
County more than has been appropriated
any one year to the Law library beside the
great expense sniailed upon the parties
and witnesses.
From all this ]; must be apparent TO cY-
cry unprejudieed person, that the county
Library is Of public utility, and should be
continued, even though the funds were
drawn directly from the taxpayers Of the
county to support IT, This, however. ia
not the case. Not 9 dollar Of taxes paid
by any property owner in tho county, Is
appropriated to support this Library. The
contributors to the library fund, are the
violAsors of the law.
The eroAkers and dsmAgoEaes, however
Rllege that these zines and forfeited recog-
Eanees were won't TO be paid into the
County Treasury; that they belong 10 the
taxpayers, and by thus taking them to
buy Law books W tn, we are robbinE the
people. Al fass and forfeited recogni-
zAnces belong Of right 10 the State, and
she can donate them TO whomever she
plcases. II is true that before the passage
Of the Library Act; the commonwealth
had by different laws given some OF these
fines 10 the county, some TO school dis
tricts, some to the poor Of townships, and
some TO informers or prosecutors. None
Of these recipients however had any right
TO complain. il the State. withdrew her do
nation and afterwards gave her bounty
to other purposes. Il was a matter OF
grace and not Of right that the counties
townships and school districts even rec
eeived any ofthis fund
There and substantial cause of COM
piaint is this; that since the passage Of the
library law, the rScoEniEances forfeited,
and hnes imposed. have been collected ac-
eOrding TO law, while before that no for
feited recogniEance was sued out and
largo proportion Of fines actually imposed
by the CouIt were, through various inHuen-
ces, remitted by the County Commissioners
without any legal authority and in direct |
contempt Of the Law. This change in the
OF criminal justice falls |