Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1879-01-18
rHE srATE LEGIsLATURE.


False Economy.
+ We know not whether our effort
to give our readers the substance of
what their Legislators are doing for
them viii be appreciated by them,
but we will say Ibis, that there is no
department of our duty as an editor
which entails as much DOWNRIGHT /
hard work as this of compiling from
the undigested reports the substan-
tial narrative Of the work of the |
General Assembly. We would |
rather write three columns of Origi- |
nal editorial matter than compile
one of parliamentary reports. Per-
haps our readers will be the gamers
indeed one of our valued contribu-
tors recently declared in the frank
est manner that it would be an inn
provement if our editorial Iucubra-
tons were omitted altogether. They
are necessarily at present abbrevi-
ated, and whether the work be
palatable Or not, we deem it an
Imperative duty to keep our readers
informed of what their chosen Leg
islatOrs are doing by their authority
and in their name What are they
doing then? The most superficial
glance thrown over our columns of
legislative reports will show that,
more emphatically than anything
else, they are striving to reduce
expenditure.
So far as true economy is observed
in doing so, this unquestionably is
moving in the right direction. 1t
is loudly affirmed by the men who
are now leading in public affairs
that the people of this State are
unable to pay their debts. Our not
believing this makes no practical
difference as regards this matter of
expenditure. We believe that the
strictest economy would be neces-
sary to enable us to do this if it
were proposed that we should pay
them, and for men who say that we
can't pay them, it would be Palp-
able inconsistency to launch out
into extravagant expenditure.
But it is possible to reduce ex-
penditure in such way as to set at
naught all principles of true econo-
my. Thus, say that q merchant
who finds that he is not making
IL
his frugality by discharging his
bookkeeper and putting in his place
man who would work for half the
salary but knew nOthingof accounts.
lie would hardly find at the end OF
the year that he had acted econom-
iCally. Hence, tOdetermine whether
our Legislature is really economis.
ing, we have to consider whether
on the whole the State is likely t,
save by their action.
At present the saving proposed i,
almost exclusively in the direction
Ofabridging salaries. It's advanced
by those who demand this that sal
aries were raised during the wa
and Immediately after it because al
prices went up then, and that price
having now come down, the salarie
ought to come down too. There
undeniable cogency in all this, an'
we have no doubt that many sala
ries can be reduced without impair
ing the efficiency of public officers
but, since reduction is the rule now
il il desirable that some one shoul,
consider the exceptions, and as W
have never had much dread of bein
ont of fashion, we will undertak
the unpopular duty.
No department Of the public SCI
vice has been so eagerly attacked i
the interest of economy as the iud
ciary office. WepropOse 10 enquir
whether the proposed reduction i
the salaries of Judges as true econC
my; whether the State is likely I
he richer or poorer by measures no'
adopted. The only criterion b
which the right salaries for Judge
can be determined is the purpose
that of placing our best lawyers o
the bench. DO the present salarit
do this? No one can say yes VIII
knows anything about the benc
and bar in Tennessee 1t is motor
Gus that the talent is everywhere i
the bar and incOmpetency and il
experience on the bench. TIL
Judges are at the mercy of the a
tOrneys because the former al
either the raw fiedglings or II
chronic failures of the profession
Hence the immense amount of al
peals, hence the gorge of business
the Supreme Court into which min
teen out of twenty cases tried in ii
other courts make their way. TIL
very Legislature has appointed
commission to enquire into tt
causes of the obstruction of busine
in the Supreme Court, in which it
said that the cases now before
CdlitlOt be iIISA lOE tWO years. NJ
compute the losses arising to lii
giants from this delay added to Il
money they have already spent j
the lower courts, and little refle
ton will show that an under-pait
and therefore incompetent bench,
the most expensive economy Sta
can practice. For an excess of bu
iness in courts of appeal is an infa
iible evidence of incompetence
the courts appealed from and wh'
right have we to expect aught ell
but incompetence there when v
pay the Judges such salary AZ
less than the income of II brisk Law
yer of three years standing. Whe
are our BaileyS, our COopers, OF
Ewings? Ina wisely ordered Sta
those men would all be on Il
bench, but they all prefer the ba
and for the best of reasons. VIII