Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-12-06

| AT THE RECENT CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS
WITNESSES LIVES IN DANGER.
Attorney General Miller, in his annual report,
| refers to the matter of election frauds in the
following languages:
Every soon after the 4th of March last it was
brought to my attention that at the then recent
congressional elections there were very
numerous and far-reaching violations of tho
federal laws relating to such elections. 1t was
charged that by intimidation of voters, by
seizing and destroying ballot boxes, by substi-
tuition of false ballots, by false returns by
bribery of voters and election officers and by
various other means well known to those
engaged in this nefarious business the popular
| will was stifed and falsifed and returns OBJ
| tanned wholly at variance with what would
have been the result Of free and fair vote
honestly counted. In every case where such
charges were brought to the attention of this
department instructions were given to the
district attorneys to investigate and prosecute
to the utmost of their power every person
implicated in such violations of federal laws,
| and am happy to be able to report that in
number OF states such prosecutions have
been successful. A large number of indict-
ments have been returned and upon some of
them trials have been had; in number of
cases convictions have been obtained and in
some cases the culprits have plead guilty
and asked for mercy at the hands OF the court.
large number of these cases are still pending,
and the instructions to the district attorneys
are still to push them to the end. 1t is proper
to say that In some cases efforts have been
made, some OF them very recently to prevent
and cripple these prosecutions by attempts to
intimidate the marshal from serving process
and witnesses from giving their testimony, such
intimidation going to the extent of actual assas-
sination.
PROTECTION OF wITNEssEs
But it must not be supposed that hostility
to the United States courts and United States
officers is confined to election matters. On the
contrary, the records of the Department of
Justice show that in some districts the civil
proceedings of these courts and criminal prose-
cutlons wholly disconnected with the elective
franchise cannot proceed, because the lives of
necessary witnesses are in such danger that it
would be simply inhuman to enforce their at
tendance and the giving of their testimony,
while the evidence is abundant that in certain
localities no occupation is so dangerous as a
faithful performance of duty by United States
marshals. OF course such lawlessness cannot
be tolerated. In every case the instructions
to prosecute have been coupled with the assur-
ance that no means within the power of this
department will be spared to protect officers
and witnesses in the discharge of their duties
and to bring to punishment every man who
Illegally attempts to thwart such prosecutions"
He calls attention to the necessity of reor-
ganizing the Judiciary, saying:
THE Importance of some change in the ju-
dicial system of the United States which will
enable the courts, and especially the Supreme
Court, to dispose of the large number of cases
now accumulated and decide current cases rs
they shall come up on the dockets can hardly
be exaggerated l may, however, safely and
properly urge that Congress shall address itself
this subject n N nd
remedy for the crying evil of delay in the ad-
mlnistration of justice in some OF the circuit
courts and in the Supreme Court-an evil
which amounts practically to denial of JUS
tlce III large number of cases. Without
entering into details as to any plan in this mat
ter, L simply suggest, as an illustration of the
urgency of doing something, that the eighth
circuit, including the two new states of Dakota,
consists of nine states, embracing twelve dis
tricts and twenty-five divisions 1t is of course,
unnecessary to say that no circuit Judge can
hold the circuit courts, as contemplated by the
present system, in all of these districts. The
condition of things in the Supreme Court is
still worse, and that court is getting every year
further i'll arrears. The docket of the Supreme
Court at the end of 1897 showed an increase of
sixty-seven cases during the year, and for 1883
an increase of 1873 cases during the year. In
other words the increase was twice as great
last year as i'll the one next preceding, and the
present state of the business indicates that the
still greater in the current year."
VARIOUS RECOMMENDATIONS
The report contains recommendations for an
assistant attorney general for the Department
of Agriculture; for an additional assistant at
torney general for the Department of Justice;
for an appropriation to be used in the collec-
ton of old judgments due the United States;
that the United States statutes be amended so
as to recognize more than one degree of
MURDER that authority be given to a receiver
appointed i'll one district to bring suit for as
sets i'll the federal courts of any other dis
trict; that United States courts be given iuris-
diction to investigate and punish any crime
perpetrated in and as part of the commission
of any oifense against the laws of the United
States. and that a clear and definite fee bill be
enacted for proceedings before United States
commissioners.
REDUCTION IN PASSENGER RATES ON THE PENN
sYLvANIA RAILRoAD.-It is announced by the
passenger department of the Pennsylvania rail-
road company that for the better accommoda-
ton of its patrons the Pennsylvania railroad
company will, on and after Sunday the 9Th in
slant, reduce the passenger rates between
Washington, Baltimore and Pittsburg to eight
(S8) dollars for first-ciass tickets and seven SD
dollars for second class. This reduction in
rates, with the magnificent service which this
road affords. will unlOubtplly meet nth favor