The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1886-01-27
In Favor of An Elective Judiciary

In Favor Of An Elective Judiciary.
Mississippi originally elected her Judiciary. rem
dotlng the three branches Of the g0yetnUsnt ab-0-
luiriy independent Of each other Since that time
the selection by executive appointment has been
tried Asd the people are not satisfied with IT,
EDITOR Cha 2IoE: The above is from
the Atlanta Constitution, the leading
exponent of democratic principles in
the foremost State of tn, South-Geor-
gia. With a soil more sterile than ours
she has progressed in material develop.
mcnt far ahead Of Mississippi and her
sister States, until she has Justly won
Tor herself the proud sohriquet Of the
Empire State of the South.
Notwithstanding the rapid growth Of
her manufacturing and railroad inter
ests, aud the fact that her development
has been real aud lasting, she has meyer
allowed bugbears and wiseacres to appear
aud induce her by threats or entice her
by soft, high sounding promises to barter
away the rights Of her people. II is an
unquestioned fact that the people of
Georgia are to-day possessed Of more
liberty aud have more voice IN admin
istering the Government Of their State
than have the people of Mississippi.
But | will here only refer to the case in
point
The Constitution is right The people
OF Mississippi are not satisfied that
their Judges should longer be appointed
by the Governor,
1t is not my purpose to refer to any
particular appointment to the bench by
any Governor since the State was re
deemed from the alien horde that chang.
ed the organic law of our fathers and
said to Mississippians, you are not com.
petent To eject your Judges
The people have chafed under this
relic Of Radicalism now for decade.
aud have been soothed, and quieted by
the bugbear of negro domination"
ave can t afford 20 elect our Judges"
say those, whose interest it is, that the
distribution of favors, (otlices) should be
confined to the narrow and circumscrib.
ed circle Of II favored few The people
have heard enough of this nonsense.
No sensible reason can be urged why the
people should not IA well elect their
Judges IA the man who appoints them.
They elect our District Attorneys, and
why should they not have u voice in the
selection of Judges?
The argument that the party in power
could not elect its candidates. and that
bad and incompetent men would be
chosen, is an aspersion upon the election
OF every district attorney in the State,
who is Democrat, and | think they
are all Democrats. The argument that
judicial officers should not meddle with
politics and be brought to the level of
the people and required to electioneer or
ask the people for their support, can be
answered by simply pointing back to the
illustrous names of men whom the
people elected and who did not consider
themselves above asking the people for
their support, 1t is no disparagement
to any Judge, appointed under the
system left Us by the Carpet.haggers, to
say that the names of Sharkey, Ierger
and Smith, and others now dead, rs well
as that of Wiley L. Harris, who,
thank heaven, yet lives, will always
stand as high upon the scroll of
honor and fame, rs tina: of any appointed
Judge.
Mr., Editor, the rank and file-the yeo.
manry-the great mass of the Demo
cratic party, believe that they are com
petent to elect their judges. They want
to return to the ways of their faith.
ers, The submission to the people of
Mississippi Of this question by Constitu-
tional amendment will be before the
present Legislature. Shall the will of
the people prevail? The record will
show. After this record is made the
people will see who of the one hundred
and twenty members of the House, and
the forty members OF the Senate. con.
slider them honest and competent enough
to vote ntelhgently for the Judges
by whom their rights of life, liberty and
property are to be protected. They will
also observe closely the names of those
who hold by their action on this grave
question, that the people are ignorant,
aud not entitled to the rights of free
men, aud who by their action saw they
are in favor of I continuation of the
present policy, which deprives the Judi
eiary of its independence, and concen.
trates the powers which the people alone
should enjoy, in the hands Of a narrow
circle, wherein they have no voice.
In the name of the people of Missis.
sippi, this plea for the enforcement of
the judiciary from the fettered embraces
of sthe executive, is entered. Submit
the case to the sovereign people at the
balIotbox, and they will, with the
strength of an Ajax, burst asunder the
bonds of this unhallowed and unnatural
union. They will restore the goddess of