The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1876-05-25

disposed of IN SAID time. 4l5; number ai
all the places at this date, 1857
These 1867 c.srs will be distributed
as follows, tu-wit:
TURNED OVER To THE APPELLATE COURT.
Criminal cases at Austin, 1888; criminal
cases at Tyler, 7-l45. OF these twenty
or thirty are escaped. Civil cases at Aus
tin, 20; at the same ratio at Tyler and Gal
weston We may suppose, 40-1l0, Whole
number turned over to Appellate Court, 255.
WITHOUT JURISDICTION NOW IN ANY COURT.
At Au>Iln, 10; at the same ratio at Ty-
Ter and Galveston, 9-24.
SUPREME COURT. .
Civil cases within the present jurisdiction
of the Supreme Court at three place, more
than half of which are suits for or relating
to land, 779.
EXPLANATION.
The foregoing distribution of cases has
been and will continue to be made under
the following rules founded upon our con-
5 ruCtiun of the present Constitution, which
is THAI the cases must be distributed to
each court according to its present juris-
diction, just rs ii the several courts, Su-
preme CouIt, Court of Appeals, the district
court, the county court and the Justices
court, as provided for in the Constitution,
eighteenth day of April, 1876, when the
1914 cases now in the Supreme Court were
brought into it by appeals or writs of error.
(See sec. of judicial department of the
Constitution of 1876,
Thertf re, the Supreme Court r, tins SUITS
for land, tor divorce, etc, aud where the
amount III controversy is five hundred dol
lars and over, exclusive of interest, which
gives II about 779 cases ..# .-.
The Court of Appeals will have trans
terred to 1t suits wherein the amount in
controversy is less than $500, exclusive of
interest, and over 5000; and also suits for
less than $500, wherein a judgment has
been rendered for more than 800 (see
! sections and 16) and all criminal cases,
which gives the Court of Appeals about
255 cases.
| And there are three criminal cases that
have been returned into this court since the
! eighteenth of April, 1876 not filed, that
will go tn the Court of Appeals
First No appellate jusIdiction has been
provided in The Constitution for cases
wherein the suits are for less than 5000, and
the judgments therein less than $780, (See
see IONS IL and Of the Judiciary depart
ment of the Constitution of 1876 o
such suits there are about twenty tour case
now on the docket at the three places.
Second. Proceedings by writ of haJea,
corpus, by parent to recover a child, srs
only provided for in the present Constitu.
ZION, as an original and not au appellate
proceeding in the Court of Appeals. (See
sections SO, s and 16, of the judicial de-
partment of the Con>titu i,n.) Therefore,
such suit now pending in the Suprem,
Court on appeal, is left without iurisdic
| RI in, h.,in
of damages claimed, or in controversy il
the suit.
| o.. WRITTEN OPINIONS BY TUE COURT.
There were delivered by the five Judge,
on the bench, written opinions as follows
in deciding 1876 cases in two years suC
| three and a hall months: From the frs
of February, 1874, to the last of July, a
Austin PA; from the first Monday in Oc
t ,ber, 1874, to the last day of June, 1875
at three places, 443; from first NJ 'nday il
! October, 1875, to the fifteenth day of May
1876, at three places, 285-942. These
opinions have been enough to make two
! good volumes of reports annually.
The law does not REQUIRE written opin
ions where cases are affirmed, and, there
fore, many such Cases that required laboreC
examinations were affirmed without writer
opinions.
Nor docs it require written opinions OF
motions. They have been numerous, AM
seem 10 he increasing, most of which hav'
been decided without written opinions.
The law required criminal cases TO b.
decided without reference to the date o
filing, and hence II large portion of thu
1916 cases that were decided were crimi
nal cases, and cases with little difficulty
which caused the most difficult cases, will
some exceptions, to be left undecided
which now make, up the 779 civil case
now on the supreme Court docket unde
cIded, some of which have been on tn
docket for four years.
Respectfully,
o. NJ. ROBERTS,
Chief Justice of Supreme Court.