Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1882-01-27

rFrom the Rutland Herald Wednesday,
The Windham County Reformer, II we
read IL right, asserts that Governor Farnham
appointed Judge Royce chief justice Of the
Supreme Court in pursuance of n corrupt bar
| gain with ex-Gov. Smith and his friends
The bargain, as described by the Reformer,
was made when Gov. Farnham was seeking
the nomination for governor. The support
| of Gov. Smith, IL Is asserted was obtained
only on condition that in the case of the
death of Judge Pierpoint Judge Royce should
be appointed to the vacancy, with further
| pledge that il Senator Edmunds should be
appointed to the supreme bench of the United
States, Gov. Farnham should appoint ex-Gov.
Smith to the vacancy Now this charge Of
the Reformer is true or untrue If It is true,
Of course il is q perfectly proper fact for pub
LEGATION il il is not true 1t is q very gross IL
bel upon Governor Farnham, upon ex Gov.
Smith and upon Judge Royce, who is infer
entially described ASA corrupt judge, since
he is asserted to be so much of a tool of eX-
Gov. Smith that his promotion was thought
to be of sufficient consequence to be made
the subject of bargain with Gov. Farnham
We venture to say that there is not word Of
truth in the whole statement. There was not
the slightest occasion TO make the promotion
of Judge Royce a matter Of bargain at all,
for Judge Royce by virtue OF his age, long
service and talents, was morally certain to sue
coed to tho Office of chief justice in case of
the death Of Judge Pierpoint. The custom,
sanctioned by precedent has nearly always
been in Vermont to give the succession to the
first associate justice unless some excellent
reason existed, which, as u matter Of sound
public policy, forbade it. Now no such rea-
son exists. Judge Royce is but sixty three
years old is a man Of vigorous health, and
the public confidence in bis integrity has
been endorsed by successive elections by the
Legislature for twelve years. His decisions
in the matter OF the Central Vermont litga-
ton have all been sustained by the unaui.
nous voice of associates sitting in general
term, including the late Chief Justice Pier
point.
The is something inefably absurd in the
position Of certain Massachusetts, papers that
criticise the promotion Of Judge Royce, and
yet at the same time describe the late Judge
Pierpoint as the mirror of judicial purity, as
the worthy successor Of such men as Poland
and Red6eld. As a matter of fact Judge
Pierpont has never dssented in general term
from the decisions of Judge Royce in the
matter Of the Central Vermont litigation, and
Judge Poland was on the bench himself when
Gov. Smith, Jo. Clarke and their associates
were made receivers and managers of the
Vermont and Canada railroad under the or
der of the court of chancery. All that Judge
Royce has done in this litigation has been
unanimously confirmed by the action of his
associates in general term, and il will not do
to hud the late chief justice and damn his
successor for Judge Royce has thus far been
unanimously sustained by his present and
past associates, including the late chief JUS
tice and that able jurist, ex.Judge James
Barrett. 1t is gross libel on the whole
bench to libel Judge Royce for the whole
bench have reviewed all his important de-
cisions, and in general term at Montpelier,
in November, 1880, rendered q decision that |
substantially sustains Judge Royce as having |
travelled always Equarely within the law and |
the facts. We have more than once referred |
to the great wrong wrought the public by |
this reckless impeachment by direct asser-
ton or indirect insinuation against the integ- |
riiy and competency of our judges.
The effect Of all this reckless effort 10 weak |
en- public confidence in the purity and impair
TALLY of our courts is TO create in ignorant or |
ill balanced minds an unjust suspicion which |
might show itself in open acts OF turbulence |
or mob-law; and, even if no such results fol- |
low, do not newspapers suffer seriously with |
the public when they are so ready, on mere |
rumor, TO charge the governor of the state
with bargain, the very necessity for which |
lnsinuates that the present chief justice is a |
mere tool of a corporation? The whole charge |
that Judge Royce was appointed in pursuance |
of bargain with Gov. Smith is transparent
ly absurd for, in the natural order OF things, |
he was sure to be appointed, since the prece- |
dents are all that way, subject TO reversal by |
some extraordinary disability, which in this |
case had no sort Of existence. The sugges-
ton that bargain was also made with refer
ence to the appointment of Senator Edmunds'
successor is also ill-founded The fact that
Judge Hunt would stick was fully settled be-
fore Gov. Farnham was moving in the matter
Of the governorship; and the moment Garfield
succeeded to the presidency there was no sort
Of prospect that Senator Edmunds would be
invited to the supreme bench.