Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1873-02-08

| ihSbiCAo q iittAC hCaiCi dOAuc. liz
great national pick-pockets only took
and divided out among their friends
the small sum a hundred million OF
more.
| For the Chronicle.
THE JURY SYSTEM.
MEssRS. EDITORS Having read
with much interest an article recent
ly published in the CHRONICLE, re-
lative to the trial by jury, over the
signature of Triangle" I thought
it would not be amiss to give thepublic
statement of the many and diversi-
fled difficulties, which lie in the way
of the abolition of the trial by jury.
And while write, do not understand
that am totally insensible to the
sound sense and good logic of Tri-
ANGLE" and further, my object is
not so much to combat the ar
guments and opinions of Triangle, as
it is to elicit truth and expediency in
the proposed change; and in the dis
cussion of this subject, we will mere
ly advert to its ancient authority.
The trial by jury has existed since
the great Magma Charta was wrested
from King John, by the jealous
barons of a watchful age, and accord
ing to Coke and Blackstone, it exist
ed in its ruder forms, even when the
rigid tests of trial by ordeal were used
to demonstrate guilt or innocence of
the accused.
do not introduce the antiquity of
the jury system to prove its efficacy,
or even its adaptation to the ends of
justice, but merely to show that
usage which has run a course "where-
of the memory of man runneth not
to the contrary" /" should be attacked
gently, cautiously, and With all the
concentrated wisdom of past expert
ence. There are many difficulties.
outcropping upon the field of legal
jurisprudence, which will have to be
overcome in the settlement of this
much vexed question. AS a portion of
said difficulties we propose to notice.
Article 7th of the amended constitu-
ton of the United States, which reads,
Gin suits at common law, where the val
ue in controversy shall exceed twen-
ty dollars, the right of trial by jury
shall be preserved, and no fact, tried
by jury, shall be otherwise re-ex-
amined in any court of the United
States, than according to the rules of
of the common law" Again, the
constitution of the State of Tennes-
see declares, "that the right of trial
by jury shall remain inviolate, and
no religious test, shall ever be requir-
ed as qualification forjurors." Now
in the face of these declarations, has
the legislature any authority for
change. We certainly believe that
a reform could be had, yet we do not
believe that the legislature alone has
Jurisdiction in the premises.
I did not intend at the commence
ment of this paper, to make direct
attack upon any of the points assum-
ed by Triangle" but he will ex-
cuse me no doubt for adverting just a
moment to some of his conclusions
which / conceive to be formed in er
ror. He says: " we have many stat
utes now in force that have proven to
be most signal failures, and wholly
inadequate to the purposes for which
they were adopted, the most promi-
nent. of which is, our jury system,
or trial by jury, of litigated cases in
our courts-a system which we seem
to have clung to, more on account OF
its antiquity than its utility" Now
the question comes up, did the 'jury
system,n or trial by jury, emanate
from our State Legislature? We
think not. The Legislature has the
right to legislate in furtherance of
the expressed provisions of the con-
stitution of the United States, and
that of the State of Tennessee, but
in no other way can it legislate.
Again he says "we have in our
courts many abstruse law questions
to be decided, where there are great
and vital interests at stake, amount
ing to thousands, and even millions
of dollars, and in selecting persons to
decide and settle those questions, as
well as minor ones, it is indispensa-.
bly, necessary that they should have at
least two prominent traits of charae-
ter, honesty and capacity. The first
you may find among the great mass
of the people, such as we commonly
call in for jurors. But capacity is not
generally found among them sufti-
cient to insure a correct decision of
intricate law questions for they do
not pretend to know anything about
the law in its most simple FORMS"
The only answer which we make at
present to the above is, that if we as
a portion of the mass of the people
are capable of making and entering
inte the various covenants and con-
tracts of financial life, we certainly
ought to possess all the essential re-
quisites for a proper solution of the
same according to the principles of
law and equity.
Again, he says: then let us dis
pense with juries, particularly in civ
il cases. The people would be much
pleased to be relieved of serving on
juries."
This latter declaration of ''Tri-
angle" is lamentably true, from the
fact that the compensation of a juror
is so limited, that the able and eflici-
ent men of the country, in a great
measure, shirk the duty If possible,
for the very reason that they can
make more at home. Again, I" Tri-
angle" says: "Let competent and
well paid judges decide all cases COM