Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1882-01-17
TIE REvIsoRs AND THE sU-
PREME COURT.

the extra session Of the Legislature which
net IN Wheeling las, Wednesday, has att
trseted so little atten ton throughout the
Stats. Involving an immense expendi.ur.
OF money, at time when the Governors
Message shove a depleted treasury, .ad pro-
-Fosng wsrk 90 serious as . complete re-
vision sf che laws Of the State" it seems 10
have passed without challenge or comment
from the Pre,s or the people. When this
rohessw was hrs. Eoossd, We expressed the
oPiaies that DO such duty had been imposed
upon the Legislature when it was elected,
and, 90 far IS We eoald learn, 40 such work
was expected froz it,
II complete revision of the laws of ths
State was IA absolats or pressing necessity.
: which VS. are very far from eoncediag, all
experience has shown that it can be accom-.
Plishsd safely, efficiently and wisely, only by
comm ission of able jurisis, who make tho
revision not EattsE of : few weeks confer
enes during the recsss CT 4 Legislature, but
OF meatha of Intelligent, exclusive and plod-
ding labor In this way our admirable Code
OF ls49 was prOducsd, and the Legislature
OF Massachusetts, is aow Icting upoa a reyis-
ion made ia this came manner The less
fitted men ere for the eodiGeation or cou.oi>
latioa OF laws Ihe more ready they are to en-
dsrtake 10. These who ara eom,ete,t for
the work shriRk from its magnitude and diff
hculties. 1t is NO reflection On the legisla-
tive comm ittee to whom this task was IS.
signed, and who gave to ii several wssk's SER
vice At tho White Sulphur Springs last sum
msr, to Gay that their report needs honest
and ezac!ing scrutiny, nor upon the Legisla-
tars which is to psss on that report, to say
that it should be aided by a ,igi!ans and
critical public opinion. We have bsfore US
ToiuniaOes mass of Bills prepared by the
COMMITTEES, and have compared many of them
with the chapters in the Code which tbey
profess to "EsVise." In some ths changes
are so slight as scarcely to justify the e1>
peHso of rsPrinting; in othsrs we discover
decided improvements, and in others again,
as in the married Woman's law, the changes
proposed are SO radica! as to demand patient
and cautious consideration.
We may call attention to SONS of these
Bills hereafter. This morning We will take
up House Bill No. oG9, which refers to the
duties OF ihe Secretary of State, and the Su-
promo Court Reporta. The revisors have in
serted in this chapter new provision, direct,
ing tbs reporter of the Court to prefix to the
printed report of each case, the dates when
the saue was submitted and decided, and to
include in each volume, of not more than
nlnO hundred pages, the repor. of at least
eighty cases. IF this cannot be done other.
V'so, 10 is authorized Gsd required 10 "cos>
dense for publication any OF oil of tho opin-
ions of tho judges. or either of them"
moments reflection will convince that
this provision is conceived in a spirit of I'm
frleadliness to the Court, and that its adop>
ton would be not only unwise, but unworthy
the Legislature. Uuder our Constitution
as 'ncesd under our theory of government,
the throo departnents-the executive, lesis>
lativs and judieial-are not only indepou dent
OF each other, but co>equal in power and Dig
nifty. Any attempt of one to interfere with
snother in It's constitutional duties, is not
only unbscoming but uIwarranted. Nor is
1t IE5 ssraining of III ia salutary principle, to
say that any offer or effort of one to prescribe
or dictate the manner in ,rhich another shall
perform its constitutional duties is equally
unbecomiRg and unwarranted. The Coart
is creature of the Constitution, not an
agency of the Legislature and its members
are commissioned directly by the people
That Constitution in creating the Court pre-
serloes Its duties, and among these laws upon
II the obligation, in reversing or affirming
any Judgment oy-deNree, to considor and de-
eide every point isr!y arising upon the re-
cord Of the case, and further, to state con-
cisely in writing their reasons for such de-
cisions, to be preserved with the record of
the case. Certainly the Legislature could
not undertake to regulate the length of the
written statement of reasons to be mads nv
the Court In any given case, any more than
1t could impair or control it's constitutional
duty to decide the case. But is rot this at
tempting, by indirection, to do this very
thing, and by regulating the length of the
decisions to be published, trarsceuding the
Legislative province aud Offering a grstuitous
atfront to a coordinate power? Tho Cousti>
tlon' by designating reporter, implies that
the decisions of the Supreme Court shall be-
reported, and by imposing this Office upon
the Acknowledgement for the time being. rec
ognized the fact that under the duties placed
upon the Court, the task of the reporter
would be but a nominal one.
These decisions are reported or published
for the in formation of the people of the State: