, 1872-05-25

Governor, or IN his behalf the Government
Secretary. After the final organisation of
the entire judiciary department in the
Courts OF lower instance as well as the Po-
lice Department had been made the sub
ject of renewed and repeated deliberation,
the Government in 1854 proposed to re-
unite the Sheriff and PolicemaSter- Offices,
In the same way as formerly according to
the Regulations of 1855. This was adopt
ed, and our present Vicegovernor was APP
pointed in 1855 to fill the Joint Offices in
Christiansted and Mr.. Sarauw in Frederic
sted. At the same time there was a speci-
al Policemaster at Kingshill. But already
before we had got a Colonial Council, q
Provisional Ordinance of 4th January 1S49,
and subsequently a Royal Ordinance of 9th
January 1852, had emanated, commit
ting a number OF minor cases, for debt,
for petty thetts, for labour relations, etc, to
the Police Court. Now, this does certain
y appear very strange; but we venture to
believe that 1t can be accounted for in this
way. There is a distinction between a
Court (Retten) and a Judgment Seat.
(Domstolen). The word Court is a generic
term commonly used to designate any Au-
thOrity invested with the power of deciding
controversies and settling disturbances but
Judgment Seat is only applied to those
legal Institutions that are authorized to
give sentences, which are certain positive
DEGREES that may be put into execution by
an executive Functionary.-Hence, we are
at liberty to suppose that the intent
was this, that the Police-Master after
in the Police Court completing what
was required of him as such in all
the class Of cases treated of in the
Ordinance OF 1852, would be having to re-
fer such OF them as he could not settle
within the limits of his administrative or
executive power, to the Police Judgment
Seat (DomStolen) which by the then es-
tabIlshcd organisation was administered by
the Police Judge, who again was Identical
with the Town Judge. But as we all
know, both ideas, the Court and the Judg-
ment Seat, are In every day language here
rendered by the one common term 'sthe
Court" And, if against this argumenta-
ton it should be brought to bear, that the
PoIicemaster at Kingshill, who was not
Town-Judge besides, gave sentences. that
were appealed to Courts of Higher Instance,
we can only try to account for that in
either one of those two considerations
eitherthatfrom the xceptionalstate ofthings
at the time In the Central Country District,
the Policemaster had been tacitly consid-
cred as being invested with sentencing
authority,-or else, that the whole anamo-
lous and arbitrary organisation of the Po-
establishment in the Center District
had afforded q sort of transitory cause for
that deviation.-One thing is certain, how
ever, that year after year, the State treasury's
Colonial Budgets have always held out the
separation of the Judiciary functions from
the Executive /; and all the Officials have
been made subject to that condition. No
thing real or positive was since done inthe
matter, till in 1867 Mr.. Sarauw introduced
his Bill, the results of which are no doubt
still fresh in mind with most of our readers;
at all events His Excellency, acting Vicegov-
ernor Stakemann's recent illusions thereto
have no-doubt served as a reminder. It
has for a long time been a public secret,
that Mr.. Sarauw had to be relieved as Po-
licemaster at Frederiksted because he was