Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1876-01-20

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having the Only cognisanoo of their oas,
thoy are thon equally as graroly told Ii,
thoy arc Just little too lste,'' end tha
they are preCludOd from suing because @
the intervention Of tho statue of limi,a
tlous. Such are some Of the iuconsisten
cios of our present system.
Under our mixed system" we hay
twelve Chancory Divisions, with Chan
elor for each and sixteen Circuit Judces
with number of Common Law an,
Criminal Courts scattered about owe,
the State, 50 as to mar the whole system
Now, whether we shall consolidate tbese
courts by giving the jurisdiction to, and
clothing our judges with, power to redress
all wrongs, either at lao or IN equity, and
thus lessen the number of judges and
contract the machinery of the courts, OF
resort to some other method of cuttino
down expenses, is question for little
practica. craftsmanship. To have but
one set of judges of our inferior courts,
would certainly be advantageous to liti>
gants' If in no other respect, by the pre-
vcnuOn Of constant conflict of courts from
which they now suffer. But it would
also as certainly curtail our judicial ex>
ponses to very large degree.
In order to present this question in q
practical light here state what l believe
ovcry we'll informed man must admit,
that We have too many Judges under our
existing system.
For instance, take the time that each
Judge dovotCs te holding his courts, and
it viii be seen that he is not emplo;ed
half bis time. And, if the Legislature
does not reconstruct the system, it should
by all means re.arrango the circuits and
Chancery divisions, and Criminal and
Common Law courts, so as to dispense
with the unnecessary judges, and thus
save their salaries to the State. That
alone will make quite an item.
If the existing dstinc i've syst9m is to
be continued, then ten Circuit judges are
enough to do all the business. No well
informed gentleman will controvort this
fact, as fact, though some may offer OK
cuses to avoid its force. Ten competent
Circuit Judges can transact all the busi>
ness cognizable at law. except the criminal
business at Memphis and Nashville, and
then have from two to four months for
reading, rest and recreation every year.
To thus dispense with six Circuit judges
will save to the State fifteen thousand
doIt0rS pHr,dnaunt, an item worthy Of
consideration in these hard times, when
our State is unable to pay even the inter,
est on its debt. So am likewise of the
opinion, and by computing the time de>
voted to holding the Chancory Courts in
the several Divisions, tho roader will SEQ
that six Chancelors can do all the busi-
nesS OF an equitable character in the State,
and then have abundance Of time for
pleasure and literature. To compress
the Chancerv business of the State into
the hands of six, instead of twelve Chan
celors, will save to tho pOoplc fifteen
thousand dollars more, making the net
sum of thirty thousand dollars, lifted
from the shoulders of the people by ro>
adjustment of the Circuits and Chanccry
division Of the State. Then there is 70
excuse for any Criminal or Common Law
Courts outside ofMomphis and Nashville,
and few thousand dollars may be saved
to the State by the abolition Of the
special tribunals, that appear as ga
blotch' on any judicial system where
they exist. What we want Is system
that harmonizeS with itself in oil its pats,
and is cheaper to the people.
To reconstruct the Judicial Circuits
and Chancery Divisions will lcgislato no
one out of Office, and We may therefore
escape the cry Of demagogucs on that
account.
The Legislature will convene on the IS,
Monday of January. 1877, and all the
present judgcShips become vaca1t in
1878, SO that the re arrangement would
just take place in time for the August
election of 1878.
No cry of persecution can therefore be
raised in order to defeat this necessary
reform. The people should look we'll to
this question, and elect No man 10 the
next Legislature who will not pledge him,
self to reform our judicial system in the
one or other ways have indicated. | do
not make these suggestions to provoke
controversy. Nor will l be drawn into
the defense Of, or opposition to, any past
or present doctoring Of our State credit.
or financial Numbering. l speak not as
a politician, but as a private citizen
What | want. is beginning in the ,iobt