Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, Ramsey Co., Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1905, 1885-08-01
Judge and Jury.
Grand Forks Herald.

Judge and Jury.
Grand Forks Herald.
When the United States grand Jury
at Fargo failed to indict the alleged
co~nspirators at Devils Lake, but made a
series of allegations in the nature of a
report to Judge Mcconnell. it is stated
the judge declined to make the same
public, but said that the report would be
forwarded to Washington. 1t is very
evident in view of the precedent in the
case of the report recently submitted
by the Cass county grand Jury that
there could not have been enough SUBJ
stance in this report to found legal pro.
ceedlngs, or our judge would have i'm
mediately sent the matter to the learned
district attorney with instructions to
frame an Indictment. Failing in this
respect. the wonder is that the jury was
was not discharged and the report in
dignantly refused with a very proper
lecture from the Judge on the duties of
the grand jury. However, perhaps this
was too much too expect, after the
Judge himself had ordered the investi-
cation on street m and h%earsay,
that the jury should be otherwise treat
ed than to receive their report whatever
it a 1t was also very evident that
the report contained nothing in which
the public is at all interested or it would
have been published like any other pro-
ceeding of a court. A record is public
and a report of any branch of the pub
lie service of course becomes a record as
soon as it is accepted and filed. Itmay
have been a matter entirely unfit for
publication and such as the judge would
suppress for the public morals, for there
is no telling what sort Of q libel a grand
jury organized as that is said to have
been organized would perpetrate if not
held in check by the judicial rein.
Some are inclined to marvel at the
statement that so inconsequential a pri-
vate document, which is wholly Of no
interest to the public and which is not
Of a character to be published at all,
should be deemed of sufficient weight
to forward to Washington and bother
the secretary of the interior with. Is it
possible that this was only a joke? 1t
hardly is to be believed that the depart
ment of justice, whose business it is GER
tainly not, would be recognized by the
department of the interior, whose bust
ness it is to investigate such matters as
these if there be any truth in them. Be-
ing of sufficient legal value sven to
found indictment, with probable cause,
after hearing only II side, why should
Judge Mcconnell send it to Washington
to Il department with which he has no
connection, unless indeed he is the mere
political instrument of certain ex-Re-
publican politicians and unsavory Dem.
ocrats who are seeking office and who
are too cowardly to fight their own
political battles? Surely Judge Nc.
Council would not transcend his duty
thus and make himself liable to a more
serious complaint of"oifensive partisan
ship than any yet unearthed by the in.
genious Villas. But suppose it is not
the last crack of the defunct Fargo far
%faronnade! Suppose this important
and unpublishable document Is sent to
Washington! 1t must go to Secretary
Lamar OF his assistant, Hon. George A
jerks, both of whom are probably
tolerably familiar with the situation by
this time. Besides both of these gen.
tlemen have no superiors as lawyers,
and would they not at once adopt the
admirable law of Judge Mcconnell in
the case of the Cass county grand jury
and send it back to him, telling him if
his branch of the government find any
thing wrong, to proceed by Indictment,
and that it is not of the functions
of a court of justice to prefer charges
against officials and pass resolutions of
censure. Would they not thus compile
ment II young and Jealous judge upon
his former opinion and knowledge OF
the law, and express profound regret
that he had thus soon reversed himself
in so sound an opinion? In fact they
could not give it any legal significance.
1t would be improperly before them.
As Joe Bradley remarked in the famous
electoral commission, and as Judge
jerks will remember, at is alundc."
The only way they could deal with such
an elephant would be to consider it q
privileged political communication by a
youthful Democratic judge, ove jealous
to "turn the raskils out" in order to
put in some ring politicians late identi-
fed with the carpet-bag rule Of the Re-
publican party in Dakota. 1t is not
likely, however, even as a privileged
communication, surreptitiously SEM for
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