The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1888-09-09
NOT A CODE LAWYER,
OBJECTION efFggED TO THE APPOINT
xEyF or SrDGE BofLE.
Reason. Advanced Why IL WIN Not
BE Possible For Him TO Dispatch
The Court Business Of King County
Promptly Pertinent Talk with =
Lawyer.

The appointment Of Charles T..
BOYLE a. Chief justice Of Washington
Territory. from a business point OF
view. j. received By the bar OF Seattle.
irrespective Of party predictions,
with disfayor Lawyers Of Seattle
have been discussing the matter be
hind closed doors. 10 10 speak, and
there l. unanimity Of opinion that
the appointment cannot help bat clog
the machinery Of the courts for several
months. 1t is claimed b. all lawyers
who hayt considered the subject that
sIr. Royle hy education ami expert
enee j. not fitfed for the bench Of
Washington Territory because the
practice here IS under the code Penn
sylgania is a common law state. and
there Mr.. Boyle received al his legal
education and gained al his expert
ence. Speaking Of this matter, one Of
the leading lawyers Of Seattle, ard a
Democrat, by the way. said TO a PosT-
INTELLfeENcEE man:
$50 far as the courts Of King county
are concerned, President Cleveland
has made q colossal mistake in the
appointment OF a Pennsylvania man.
The docket i oYercrOwded with basi-
ness. and IL there was the best sort OF a
man on the bench. man quick in
decisions. well yersed in the code OF
the territory and having the heartiest
cO-Operation vi the bar, Il would
require great industry on hi4 part
10 dispose 81 the accumulated business
within reasonable time. Well, Mr..
BOYLE, coming from a common law
state. will not he able 10 get fairly well
acquainted with orr code short Of
veil saw six months, and even then he
will not he able 10 free his mind from
the common law view vi things. The
fact Is that the lar viii have TO teach
the court all the time until he i famil-
lar with code practice. My experience
with fellow professional men who we're
educated Ia common las states, is that
it.takes a very bright mind 10 drop hi.
former mode OF practice and adopt
code practice quickly. An eminent
member vi the seattle bar who had at
tanned prominence in a common law
slate. confessed 20 me once that he
battered himself he had accompli-
cur code before he had practiced here
six months. After that be began 10
learn that the code was a more COM
plicated thing than one-half years
study Of IL had led him 70 believe. and
he was some time longer mastering il.
though he studied diligently.
Judge B0yle's experience, | have
no doubt, viii be similar to thar of the
man | have alluded 20. even assuming
the new appoiutee to be we'll
equipped lawyer. Under the most
favorable circumstances the business
81 the courts viii drag and nay opinion
Is that the appointment viii tend 10
discourage new litigation Tor the
present. am sorry the president
did not appoint a man from New
York or Iowa
Siih. there IS one consolation.
Judge BOYLE Is likely 10 be an abso-
luteiy impartial Judge. II LAWYER Of
the territory had been appointed. he
would have his friends and his
encmies, or to pat il more mildly he
would Ike one set OF LAWYERS better
than another set. and be would be
little more than human Il he forgot
old associations the moment he
stepped on the bench Judge Bowie
viii come free from personal likes aud
tisiikcs. and ~ time may prove a per
feet Judge. but it Is not IN the nature
ut things 20 be expected that he can
dispatch King county business
promptly until be has learned the
Washington Territory eosle and has
tamiliarigcd himself with practice
under the code