New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-12-06
WORK ON THE JUDICIARY.
THE COMMISSIONER CLOSE THEIR SESSION
vrw.YoRK COUNTY TO HAVE W suREoGATLS

yrW.YORK COUNTY TO HAVE TWO SCKlO"N'
ACCORDING 70 THE REVISION.
Th, Commissioners who are reviewing the Jnu''.'',
Articles Of the Constitution competed ther "V" N.
night. after holding a session from 10 ocio'" "
morning. The topics touched upon ycscfu" -,
,be division Of The state into Judicial Department, :"
eunreme Conrt, the superior Courts OF Ne" '"" ".
nnga,o and the surrOcates' and County C'"rt' "
80. d.cided that there should be an add iioral aur'"t''
Cor This county. The Commissioners were '"N!'' ~
90 through Cornelius Vanderhilt'S art gallery anu MANY
NJ them accepted he invitation.
When the Commissioners met the pcnoinE ""
ros n thc division Of The state into Judicial deP',C
we y" - - tho members wanted 10 make Only
rmn judicial deportmcnts. Those who favo'eu Im'
mot ucra the CITY members of the commission III.
Commissioners from the country VII" p'H"'
unapimity were in favor of Increasing INC !""' 80 -,
nartmcnts 10 FIVE. II was decided that 'he?T N''"n'
no only four departments. Commissioner Irdh'l, "'
Gilbert. Of stamford. i~ntfOduced a resolution prov u"|
tb,, tbe Third Judicial Department should consist u
Tho ND. Uth and WITH Judicial Districts 10 '"S
resolution Commissioner James {. smith, Oh ,''a"'
salrpa. moved an amendment. providing that the re-
djstricting Of the state should he left TO the I"S'NIi'u'o'
Commissioner Gilbert accepted this amendment anu II
was unanimously adopted.
Commissioner Joseph II. Choate m0Ved t"aV WV
,udges Of the supreme Couit in each judicial depart
ment should serve a General Term judges III INC
department in which they might be elected. III sup.
port of this motion Mr.. Choate said That lie N''" u
cases which had been tried in this city IN Which inc
evidence was immatcrial and insufficient for a conNI'-
ton. and vet the popular feeling was so strong that the
tudre's opinions must naturally have been affected.
Commissioner Frederic Il. C0udert opposed The mo'ioh
made by Mr.. ChOa'c. The pressure OF public Sent-
ment and the power Of the press, he said. would be
equal throughout the state, in Buffalo the same As III
New-YorlI Commissioner James {. Carter also VI
New York. supported the proposition as did Som
,o;,sf,rar I asIia " RUSSELL. Of Canton. VIZ. t0iOcTl
moved as a further amendment TO strike ont the words
in schedule b " But no more than two such judges
shall be designated from any one district FOR any
General Term" This amendment was lost 10y a vote
of 6 to - and Mr.. Choate's motion stood by a'Vo'e
of "a to .. ,
The question then came upon the retirement of
iudges and the pensions which they should receive.
This is found in section I3 Of the Constitutions. Ma
Choatc moved 10 amend the section by striking out
everything in the section except that part Which
reads as follows " No person shall hold the Once "i
Justice or judge of any court longer than until and
including the last day Of December next AFTER nc
shall be seventy years Of ae".'
For the last clause Of this section Mr.. Choate pro
posed the following As a substitute " The compensation
of every judge Of the Court Of Appeals and every
Justice Of the supreme Court whose term OF once
shall be abridged and WHO shall base served as Slch
ten years or more shall be continued during The I-
remainder Of the term FOR wlich lie was
elected This substitution vas lot by a
vote of - 10 - after thrIe h"u
been considerable discussion hpon it. CommiNiontf
Michael \. Lcary. OF Penn Van, said that i'1SH'n'H
as Mr.. Choatc's proposition lad been defeated 'h'Ic
was nothing lef- for the commissioners L. 40 O' /"
reconsider the report Of The committee. VI. Garter
said that this had been dove l., an Affirmative Vo'e'
After The recess the commissioners took up Inc
provision in the schedule prohibiting judges t" accept
a free pass for transportation. \ vote resulted III
keeping the provision a. 1t now l..
Commissioner Wilson :. B.,Scll. OF Buffalo, callcl
up Section c of the ,chcdule adopted at Albany aud
moved an amendment which in eject provided FOR
a continuation of the superior Court Of hn'ialo.
This was opposed vigorously ~ Commissioners C!i)atc
and Cochran. Commissioner Cochran ofeied - Il
substitute tbs brief resolution.
Resolved, That the superior Court OF the CHy %
Buffalo Is abolished This resolution was lost by
a vote Of 3 to II. Commissioner EI-,lHS re'olu-
ton was then put 10 d vote ana was carried by q
vote of ID 10 -.
Commissioner Carter offered 4 further amendment
10 this section giving the Legislature power to
abolish or change The superior court Of Eutalo, the
Court Of Common Pleas q Nc" York and the CRY
Court OF Brooklyn, and il that be done to provide for
an iEcrca>s Of the suprcIuc Court judges. This
notion was carried BY = lalgc majority. Nj. Cochran
,hen olied up = tTs'I4noh tn,Gln cear, D.,
i hm 2 2b@-i'n'1 T61 in Wgs dateo, tSi anu 9Ha''i iho C ,chcdnie
was then unanimously adopted a. II had been amended.
which ave, the Supcr!o. Court 0l buffalo. schedules
L and { were then adopted ~ they have been amended.
schsule d, relating 20 county courts and s4Irosate
courts and proposing amendments 10 section - OF the
Constitut on. wa, next taken mp Commissioner Leslie
W. Russell called up hLs resolution opposing thc add
ton of another surrogate for this city. EN Surrogate
Daniel q. Rollins spoke in favor OF the additional Sd'
rogate. He said that he thought that perhaps thrie
Surrogate, were necessary. General Franklin Bartlett
also spoke for the extra surrogate, as did Joseph II.
Choate. who said that he could speak from an eApeFl
ence Of many years a. a practitioner IN that cou:t.
There was both room and need OF two surrogate, he
said. Frederic II. Couiert amended Mr.; Hus'eIs no
'tion by proposing that in place Of adding one extra
surrogate. two should be added. lie sad mat II was
from MANY respect, the most Important court in the
city. Mr.. HOrnblOwcr spoke for TWO SIrrogates, hdF-
inG equal powers. Mr.. Ru,sclls motion was lost by
a large majority. The additional surrogate Is 70 he
elected al the first general election following the ddop
tion OF these amendments TO the Constitution. Mr..
Coudert withdrew his amendment.
The Commissioners held a night session ana flhlshed
te work for which they were appointed,
Before adjourning last night the Commissioners
decided to meet in ALBANY on January %. when tho
Committee on Revision will have read the recolnmeqda
tions which the Commission has decided 10 make III
changing the Judiciary articles OF the Constitution.
All recommendation 10 the legislature except tno'e
providing for the presentation OF the amendments 20 a
popular vote were stricken out.