The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1875-09-16
CHI Jntelligentfr,
The "Jury.SyStem."

At recent trial in Massachusetts, OF
Mr.. Samuel Bowles, for damaging the
character of Mr.. Willis Phelps in "The
Springfield Republican," to an amount
represented by large expression in
American currency, the litigants agreed
to dispense with the jury altogether, as,
by law of the State, they had the priv
ilege of doing. 1t was an exceedingly
sensible proceeding, and ought to have
attracted more attention than it did at
tract, and a wider following than it has
yet secured. For, of all the hallucina-
tions which, from generation to genera.
ton, possess and pervert the minds OF
men, that which attaches sort OF sacred
nees to a Jury trial. and holds the Jury
system" as half divine, is the most ia
tuitous. 70 be tried by ones "peers,"
those "peers" reaching the exact number
Of twelve, is regarded, by very large
number Of the community, as privilege
to be surrendered under no circumstan-
ces-a privilege to be defended at any
cost of blood and treasure.
The word "peer," as it is used here,
is a cheat. All that it means is that the
Juror has the same political power and
privileges as the man whom be helps to
try, yet the women of America nave
never been tried by their peers. In
fants" are never tried by their peers.
Those who were formerly slaves were
never tired by their peers. If we 60
bevond this, and attach any intellectual
or moral significance to the word "peer,"
we shall find that 8 man is almost never
tried by his peers.
But to come down upon the solid fact,
Iet us confess that the ordinary jury is
utterly incompetent to perform the du-
ties of it's Office. Men who are taken
from the different walks of life, men
whose minds run in the narrow channels
of specialized industries, are brought in
to a courtroom under circumstances ut
terly strange to them, without practice
in sitting evidence, easily imposed upon
by the plausibilities of counsel, easily ac-
ted upon through their sympathies, easi-
ly impossible by eloquence, and are ex-
pected the first time, and every time, to
render justice. The thing is absurd on
the face of it; and so notorious now is the
uncertainty of a jury trial, that men regard
q verdict very much as they do the draw
ing of lottery. A verdict is matter
of jury and not of Justice at all. So we'll
understood is the fact, on the part of cor
porations, that, before jury, they stand
no chance in any case against an individ-
ual, that many of them have ceased to
expect justice from q jury, and, so, are
constantly compromising suits in which
they know their opponents have no case.
The average juror makes common cause
with any individual against a corporation
as the corporation has found to its cost.
AS men average, there is one man in
twelve, at least, of exceptional mind and
characteristics. There was a devil
among the twelve Apostles, and in near
ly every jury there is CROOKED stick"
He may be without common honesty; ne
may be without common sense. He may
be man who has genius of differing
with everybody on every possible subject.
Que man in twelve, at least, has some
kind of eccentricity, and as he has no
special education to help him, his opin-
ion on any subject is without the slightest
value. Now, this twelfth man is the man
on whom hangs the fate of all who trust
themselves to jury trial. He can him
der justice, and he usually does it. The
good sense of eleven men may have de-
cided given case in a given way, but
the badFsense or the bad disposition, of
the twelfth man, is enough to thwart their
will, and make all the labor bestowed
upon the case of no avail. We decide
all other questions by majority vote
but this. Here alone we require unami-
ty, and no chance whatever is afforded to
realize the results of preponderating
opinion. If a jury tria. could be decided
by majority, even if it should be five
sixths, or eleven-twelfths, justice would
have better chance. AS it is, we have
always to count in the chance of getting
the crooked stick, the dishonest man, the
corruptible man, and to admit his power to
spoil any verdict that eleven men may free
ly decide upon. The law does its best to
make everyjuror incompetent by insisting
that he shall be so little intelligent in cur
rent affairs as to have no opinion concern
ing them, as they may relate to cases in
hand.
But there is something further than
this to be said against juries. The fact
that their service is compulsory is an out
rage upon the rights of the citizen
There is no other civil or judicial service
into which men are compelled but this.
In time of war, the State can compel the
service ofhe sons for her defense, if they
do not volunteer; but state of war is
altogether an exceptional condition. In
condition of peace, any compulsory SER
vice in the making or administration of
law is essentially hardship and an out
rage. To be forced to compel this service
is to acknowledge slavery to precedent,
and confess to scantiness of resources
To force men unpaid, or only inadequate
Ey paid, into the service of the courts, to
drag them away from their business or
their families, imprison them under the
charge Of officers, and annoy them for
days, weeks, or months, as the case may
be, with the details of affairs in which
they have no interest whatever, is oppres-
sion, against which our people would
Have kicked long ago, but for this hallu-
eination about the sacredness of the jury
trial. People do not see how we can get
along without it.
Well, Mr.. Bowles and Mr.. Willis got
along without it. We should very much
prefer to leave case of ours with three
men trained in the law, or to one man
accustomed to comparing and measuring
evidence, than to twelve men selected by
lot from the realm of acknowledged in
experience and incompetency. After