Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1881-06-30
That Foolish Veto Again.

ditional Law Judge of the 18th dis
trict shall become the President Judge
of the county of Lebanon, which is
made a separate district. He says
"grave legal difficulties surround that
proposition" What these grave legal
difficulties" are he has not seen fit to
state. Does he mean TO deny to the
legislature the power of assigning any
Judge to which ever Of two or more
districts may be made out Of the old
district in which he was elected? I? BY
the apportionment of 1874 there were
four double districts-that is, districts
composed of more than one county
and having each two law judges, viz
the 4th, 18th, 18th and 18th. The
twelfth district consisted of Dauphin
and Lebanon. If in dividing this dis
trict one of the Judges cannot be as
signed to Lebanon the same difficulty
would arise in making single districts
out of the other three double districts.
But there are peculiar facts existing in
reference to the twelfth district that
makes such an objection come with
less reason or grace than the same oh.
lection would in reference to the other
districts. The act providing an Ad.
ditional Law Judge for the 18th dis.
trict. provided that he should reside in
Lebanon county. With this provision
in the act Judge Henderson accepted
the appointment from Governor Hart
ranft and afterwards took the nomina.
ton from the Republican party Of
Dauphin and Lebanon counties aud
was elected 1t is true We believe
that he has only nominally made his
place of residence in Lebapon his
real residence being in Harrisburg.
He naturally would prefer to remain
at the Capital of the State and become
the President Jadge Of Bauphin'cosn.
ty upon the retirement of Judge Pear.
son, which in all human probability.
owing to his advanced age will take
place next January. As Judge Hen.
dcrson is good Judge, the bar Of
Dauphin county no doubt prefer to
retain him than to run the risk of n
new man. Possibly it would have
been wise for the Legislature to have
allowed him to remain, for the present.
as the Additional Law Judge of
Dauphin county, and provided for the
election Of President Judge of Ieb.
anon But surely their failure to do
this was not a valid constitutional OBJ
lection to the bill. Judge Henderson
himself had no right to complain,
when he accepted the office under n
law which required him to reside in
that county. The individual prefer
ence of n judge as TO the district,
which in n judicial apportionment,
shall be made for him, is surely not
absolutely binding upon the legisla-
ture, and if that august body should
not always acquiesce in these judicial
preferences, it is not a sufficient reason
for the executive interposing a veto and
thus thwarting a plain recruitment of
the constitution as to the time when
the judicial apportionment shall be
made.
The Governors third objection to
the bill is that it is unnecessarily in-
creased the number of Judges, and
especially in allowing an Additional
Law Judge to each of the counties of
Erie and Crawford. OF the increase
in these two districts he says "as in
dependant propositions il is believed
they would neither be demanded by
the people in the districts nor receive
legislative sanction" In a former
part of his message the Governor says;
"The present bill designates each
county of the State over 10000 in
population, as separate county dis
trict, and so far, beyond all question,
conforms to he constitution, and lis adj
dition of law judges, in some Of these
districts, .is also an exercise Of paiid
po,tcr." The only law judges added
by this bill in these separate districts