The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1872-02-09
Tho County Courts.

The County Courts :,
We publish the letter OF our os'u''.on ~. =,
RESPONDENT ON the subject of reforming th'
judicial system of the State, that the a '''.
c,tcs Of his plan may hear what is to be sast
:, rs navor and not because we agree wit!
him II Is possible that the circuit court
c,u,d do all the business that he cuts out FOL
them. but 1t Is not at all probable they would
The Judges are not so fond of labor. The,
arc not going to. spend one-half of their time
upon the bench. Nor, If we abolish the oiS
nifty Of the county courts, can the spirit o
the Constitution be complied with by placing
IN eftigy upon the bench and calling II
"iudrc.o Such q method OF evadtnS Inc
Constitution would be too much like tha'
employed by the present Congress {" sct r'o
of that uroy;sion of the Federal Constitution
which prohibits the suspension OF tie pl''''
lece Of the writ of hobeGs corpus except III
cases of invasion or rebellion. congress
simply made law changing the meaning OF
the word "rehellion,' and providing thai
thereafter it should mean conspiracy on the
part of n half-dozcn sand-hillers or others to
prevent negro from voting. The LegiSla-
turc. following this example, would proceed
70 declare that when the Constitution speaks
Of "iudgcs" it means justices Of the peace,
or, in other words, that in abolishins county
court held by several unlearncd justices rs n
tribunal unsuited to the times IN which we
live. and substituting for 1t court t.
be held by person "learned IN the
law" the trainers Of the Constitution meant
TO provide for county court to be held by
single unlcarned justice. The Legislature
has no power to diminish the salaries OF the
present county judges, however much 1t may
,ninilv the dignity of the court. 1t cannot
change the personnc! Of these courts. IL can
only change their Jurisdiction. 1t canno'
economic in this respect. The Constltutlon
expressly provides that the amount" OF tht
;udrcs' salaries "sha'l not be diminished
during their term of office" What doe
this language mcanI 1t means that having
entrusted to the Legislature the power Q!
clecing judges, the fr.iiners of the Constltu'
ton determined to prohibit that body from
Iesisating Independent Judges, or judges OIL
icc.ipnablc to that body, out OF office by III
u:iui,ling their salaries. 1t means that the
mode of getting rid of incompetent OR corrup'
Judges prescribed in section % Of article VI.
shall he strictly followed, and that competent.
faithful, and pure judges shall not be pushed
out of office by any evasive measure. But
if the General Assembly may pass law pro.
yiding that after the 1st of January, 1871,
county Judges shall receive only four dollars
for each day they actually occupy the bench,
it has the power to change the Constitution
for nothing is more certain than that mel;
learned IN the law are not going to sit fol-
that pay in mere court of probate, which
would probably not have sufficient business
to engage its attention for fifty days in year
II the General Assembly could not get sucl
men to accept the Office, it would be reduced
to the alternative Of having to violate thu
Constitution by electing men not learned il
the law, or by electing none.
Again Section % Of article VI. provide
that judges "shall continue to discharge The
"dutics of their offices after their terms OF
"scrviec have expired until their successor
shave qualified" Therefore to compel these
Judges to resign their offices i'll 1874 before
the new ones snail have qualified will be jus
as truly violation of the spirit Of the Con
stitution as it would be to attempt to legiS
late them out Of office now. Suppose that
half dozen judges out Of the one hundred il
the State shall be forced to discharge the du-
ties of their offices for six months after the
expiration Of their term of service: would il
not be a violation Of the spirit Of the Consti.
tuition to cut down their pay to four dollars
per day! When the Constitution says theil
pay shall not he diminished during their term
of office it means, unquestionably, that it shall
not he diminished SO long rs they COLI
tinue to act as judges under their original
appointment or election. This provision doe,
in fact extend indefinitely the tenn Of ever!
Judge; and his term being thus extended, hi:
pay cannot constitutionally be diminished
during such extension Of his term. Thus we
should have six judges in the State whose
salaries the Legislature could not diminish
and ninety whose pay it could regulate tt
suit itself. We should have mixed system
of Justices courts and courts held by per
sous learned in the law--of constitutionaland
unconstitutional courts.
The General Assembly is talking of pro-
viding for new State Convention. Inas
much as it cannot turn the present judges
out of Office, nor reduce their pay, nor save
to the State single dollar which it canno
just MS easily save and at the same time pre-
serve the county courts as they are, w.
think 1t would be wise to attempt now nc
such reform in the judicial system as The
enemies of these courts propose.