The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1879-04-05

I
much retarded.
Organization Of the judiciary,
One of tho matters which niue
come up before the Constitutions
Convention 10 the reorganization o
the judiciary. Tho present arrange
me0t is generally considered to be ,
bad one; and several substitutes ar
It 10 to be hoped that wbateve,
system is adopted, it will b. ~ de.
vised "a tn 10 not only economical
but also flt to secure ito object -
which 10 the rendering Of "speed,
Justice" Tho word justice by itsei
implies careful investigation, enIight-
ene.l judgment, coIrect aud unbiased
application Of tho law, accessiblenes,
to all, and uncostliness to tho honest
Iitigant; but all this il lost or defeat
ed it justice is not speedy.
1t is proposed By some to abolish
ali the Parish Courts without increas.
iog the number of District Judges
aud they support this principally on
considerations Of economy-not re.
decting that such = measure would
prevent justice itself from being
speedily rendered. The District
Judges having % many more casee
to try, would not he able. to get
through with them a. fast as institu.
ted ; aud therefore tho number await.
Jog tsisl would be continually increas-
ing, % that at last cases would not
come to their turn, 90 che calander,
till years elapsed. Ths6, when the
cases would 10 reached, they would
be tried 10 . hurry-not fully aud
deliberately discussed and considered
and wrongly decided, to the great
disgrace Of the judiciary, and tho
disrepute IF the law itself. We have
40 example of THE in our own Su.
preme Court, aud another in the Su.
pyvme Court Of tho United States. II
appears clear to all rejecting minds
that, IN matters Of this nature, the
point Of economy should be merely
secondary. We must have :6rst Of
all 4 sufficient number of cGmpetent
Judges /; Or give up the institution of
so.called courts Of justice assa sham.
By such . plso even economy il de.
frated. 1t may be easily shown that
the extra costs expenses and losses
occasioned BY the putting off Of cases
10 ten times greater than tho salary Of
two or thtee moro judges would
amount to. Every time a case il
postponed, the witnesses must be son.
mOned again; and it often happens
that cases, 10 which there are q con-
siderable number Of witnesses, are
continued elk or eight times in i ses-
siOo. Then when . long case is on
trial, the Witnesses 10 al tho other
cases, after waiting for hours, are
dismissed f; but afterwards summoned
again aud again, only to suifer the
same Inconvenience anew. This
swells the Clerks and SHERIFF. fee
bilIs enormously; but what IL even
worse, the time Of tho witnesses is
wasted; aud they suffer great detri.
meot aud loss of wages, salary or bu.
sinsss. Tho parties aud their Law.
yers suffer from tho same cause.
Debtors and their sureties fail {; !
Witnesses die or 60 away. All this
amounts, III tho parish Vi Orlsans, tn !
At least three huod,ed thousand dol.
lars per annum. True, tho State
Treasury, by tho fewness Of Judges, |
saves fifteen or twenty thousand d"l.
lars, but tho people spend or lose |
twenty times more.
To diseucumber tho docket of thu |
Supreme Court, it IL proposed that |
appeals be allowed only 10 cases in |
winch the amo0ut exceeds two or
three thousand dollars. This is sub
stituting . total denial to the slow |
attainment Of justice, in a great mo. |
jority Of cases. The luxury of an |
appeal could only be enjoyed By the |
rich; for the common run of people |
hardly ever have suits for two or |
three thousand dollars. There was
= striking instance of this in tho ia |
NOUS Gaines case. Hundreds Of the |
defendants could not appeal from the |
decision rendered BY Judge Billings,
because the property they were die
possessed of respectively vac valued
st lee than @s0N. 4. Only = few Of
tho defendants held pieces worth
moro than that sum, the lowest GU
which 40 appeal to tho United States
Supreme Court can DO based.
But 10 It not posaibIe to reconcile
oil the essential requisites with that
Of economy! May DOT justice b.
dispensed to oil efectually, equally, |
easiIy and without increase Of public
expenseS
Many think that there il no great
obstacle 10 the way Of such q result ; |
aud here 10 . plan to that effect:
Abolish tho Parish Courts.
lnclease the number of District
Courts.
Preserve the Supreme Court.
Create three intermediate Courts of
Appeals, each composed of three
judges, to which oil. appeals sbalI be
tirst returna0le-one for tho country
parishes 1.-TWO for tho Parish of Or
leans. Let tho one for tho country
have sessions 10 Baton Rouge, Ope.
lousas and Monroe; and let each Of
tho two for Orleans have appellate
Jurisdiction over On equal number Of
The District Courts OF that parish.
Make the Jurisdiction Of tho Courts
If Appeals 6oal, On questions Of fact
bot require them to make . Estate.
ment Of Facts," % settled BY them, !
10 each case.. This on iuterlocutory