, 1885-02-07

obtained by appointment of the aforesaid
persons, the superior authority is entitled
to appoint other properly qualified men,
residing within the jurisdiction, to be
cOurt-witnesSeS.
Tbs appointment is made for 1 year.
No one can refuse to accept appointment
without stating grounds for exemption
that are accepted as valid by the superior
authority. AS remuneration for their
services the court witnesses thus appoint
ed are paid 81 from the colonial treasury
for each appearance in court.
IS.
When the appearance OF the court'Wlt'
nesses under the circumstances cannot be
waited for without delay or adjournment OF
a court fixed to be held at a certain time,
or without danger of losing information
available at the moment, the Judge shall
call other men possessed of all the quail
tiles that are required in competent wit
nesses and persons thus called are then
bound, in consideration of a remuneration
of 81 for each appearance-which remu-
neration is betrayed by the cOlonl al trea-
sury,-to fulfil the charge as court-Wlt-
nesseS.
In so far as court witnesses have to take
part, according to law, as assessors IN the
adjudication of a case, the existing rules
remain in force.
s 8.
In the case of estates in dealing, auc.
tions, ~notarial and similar proceedings, 1t
is. as hitherto, lawful to use as cOurt-wit-
nesseS any men being competent witnesses,
whom the official concerned shall think tit
to call for that purpose, in consideration
of payment allowed them according to the
existing rules.
This ordinance takes effect 3 months
after it's having obtained royal sanction.
MOTIVES.
AS generally known, the arrangement of
the court witness institution in the Danish
West Indies remains till now based on the
rules contained in Code Chr. V. l. Z, in
Ordinance of 4 March 1890 s :, and in or
dinance of 3 June 1896 "a, confer 5 &c
but established practice in conjunction
with the demands Of circumstances have
caused rather important mol iicatiOnS i'll
the arrangement established by the law.
In this manner a state of things has been
created which indeed, regarded as u whole,
presents rather serious disadvantages, yet,
on the other hand it is supposed to con-
tain something that can be used, and
ought to be used in reforming the institu-
. zion ny means OIL leRlSldtlOlI.
According to the enactments above re-
ferred to, 4 men from among Il list, kept
by the Judge, of the burgherS i'll the juriS.
!. diction, are chosen at the end of each
year, subject to the approval of the superb
or authority, to act as cOurt-witneSses
during the ensuing year. The men nave
the option of appearing in person, or by
substitute approved by the Judge. In accord
ance with a long standing practice the men
thus appointed are not used in the police
courts, where, generally, pOlice-writers or
constableS are acting. Practically, the OPP
ton allowed the court-witnesses to appear
by substitute is made use of extensively,
and, generally speaking, clerks or writer's
employed in the judges office are used as
substitutes.
1t must no doubt be admitted that the
legal arrangement, Chus described, of the
cOurt-witness institution is rather unSatis.
factory, especially in so far that the wit.
nesses frequently do not understand the
language i'll which the court protocol-the
correctness of which they have to attest
is kept, and that they are not sworn in.
When the thought of r~emodeling the
institution had been conceived the idea
lay near at hand to seek the reformation
realized by taking the same road, which,
from the same point of departure, had
been chosen in the mother country.
But for weighty reasons it is considered