Smyrna times., 1875-11-10
Must Twelve Men Agree

OHc ol the most valuable points of the
jury system is its requirements of an mani
nous verdict. In every other politicole
gaI institution, the majority rules. A ma.
Jor1ty OF one on the bench of the Suprcmo
court OF the United States can settle ease
, that involves issues of transcendant i'm
portance, but majority of ten inside a
Jury-boX is held incompetent to decide the
most insignificant point Marcus Mortar
was once elected Governor of Massaclu-
setts by one vote. Ar iota more tban 10
per cent. of the votes made him chief r1Iler
OF a great State. If some scoundrel had
mallclousiy brought a charge Of petty lar.
ceny against him and had got a fcllow-con-
sprator ON the jury, the verdict of the
hohcst eleven could not have freed him
from the stigma of crime. On the bench.
inside our societies and corporations and
at the polls, the majority rules. Wbv
should 1t not 90 so in the jury-box?
lie early history Of the iuIy-system is
somewhat obscure, but it is certain that tho
requirement of unanimity is of comparo.
lively modern date. Sweden, which with
the rest OF Scandinavia, furnished the
Northmcn who became Normans in Franco
and carried the Scandinavian institutions
OF Their fathers into conquered England.
| sun preserves jury system that counts lis
age by centuries. One-half the i,rv or
any greater number, with the Judge. or the
whole jury. against the opinion of the
Judge, give the verdict When a majority, |
OF Jurymen is opposed by the minority and |
the Judge, there is no verdict. This is |
m2lorty-rule, tempered by sort of cumu- |
l"tlve vote on the part of the Judge. The
Northmen carried this system with them
INTO France, but when they became Nor.
mans, and the province they had seized
Normandy, they changed about and re-
CURED an unanimous verdict. Thus cor.
rupt form of the Scandinavian ORIGINAL
was carried to England by William the
Conqueror. Before the Conquest tLe rar.
DICT OF two-thirds Of the iurv had pre.
vailed in English Courts. The dissentipc
minority was fined. \ trace Of this Old Gus,
tom crops out in several cases after tbe con.
quest In these, the verdict Of eleven iurv.
men was accepted as conclusive. and the
twelfth was clapped into prison for hi. oh.
Stnacy' But in the reign of Edward III
1t was settled that the twelfth must agree.
ne decision to this effect contained ono
remarkable clause, advising the Judges of
AsSlzc to take the jury around with them
IN cart until the luckless wights man.
aged to agree. This was encrafted upon
our legal system this requirement of unani.
NIFTY, responsible for so much Of the delay.
the uncertainty, and the expense with
winch legal administration is iustlv
'harged. There have not been WANTING 5
ne as>ailants of the idea. Jeremy Bent. I
nam says: " II the work Of forming yer. I
!Icts had been the work Of calm reflection.
working by the light Of experience in n c
comparatively mature and enlightened aco G
ONE number certain OF afording MAORI |
Y on one side, viz: an odd number. wound
N TINS, as on other occasions, have been =
provided, and to the decision of that prc {
number would, Of course. have u
zen given the effect of the conjunct deci- 7
ION OF the. whole" This is bad English, :
ut good sense. IIallam combines good. u
ess in both when he refers in his " Histo o.
Of the Middle Ages" to that prepos.
erous relic of harbarism, the Requirement u
unanimity in jury" Yeatman saws, 10
his Study of ofGovernment: " We could
ow well consider whether absolute unani. W
llty may not safely be dispensed with =, I,
inally, we may quote in support of our :
osltion the report Of a Parliamentary 10 -
which recommended a few "i
ears ago, that, after a jury had been out III
7elve hours, a verdict given by nine of its GA o,
embers should be accepted as final vi
hicqgo TrtJ,cae ne