New-York tribune., 1890-08-06
THE WORK OF REVISION.
REASSEMBLING OF THE JUDICIARY CeM
MISSION Z.
DISCUSSING THE REPORT OF THE coMMrTsf1
Of SUPREME CoURT-DIEFERENcEs RE
GARDING THE SELECTION AND r..
JURISDICTION OF JUDGES.
lBr TELEGRAPH 10 THE TRIBuSE.l

JURISDICTION OF JUDGES.
lBY TELEGRAPH 10 THE TKIBuSE.l
Albany Aug. Tile DAYS session Of the Con-
mission 10 revise the Judiciary article Of the Con-
stitution was given up entirely 10 an interesting
debate, but no result Of any kind was reachfd
All but eight Of the Commissioners were present
The report Of the Committee on Supreme Cosrt
was taken up. and Joseph II. Choate. its char
man. moved the adoption OF Section 4 of the 'e-
port which reads:
be twenty Justices OF the General Term be
Justices OF he supreme Court who at the time Of the s6p
ton Of these amendments shall be Justices Of he
Term Justices OF The GsnfsA
t.rrU Office for which they were resrc
lively elected expires The Justices Of the General TEN
hereafter elected shall be chosen by the electors OF he
STATE first general election after the adoption OF
these amendments four Justices shall be 30 select a.
and at the several elections preceding the expiration vi ne
OF oce for which the several other Justices Of No
General Term hereby constituted respectively elects
their respective successors shall be 50 elected.
Franklin Bartlett opposed the two cardinal
features of the report-the mode of election by
the electOrS-at-large and taking away the original
! Jurisdiction of the judges. The latter virtually
| created O new code. The judges should have
| the supreme jurisdiction az now. Sucf
recommendation could never be adopted by hs
people. by the proposed mode the appetite
power would be taken from the judges.
james c. Smith favored a return to the I'D
district system adopted in 1916 II DEVELOPED
! the talent OF the selected. and made them
better "all-around judges. This system was ne
of the excellent features Of the United States
Supreme Court. II the Judges Of the Court OF
Appeals would hold a circuit occasionally it VOL iG
| he better. The Commission was going out OF its
way Its creation was simply TO get rid OF the
clog in the Court Of Appeals. If that was done
ta
plished State Conventions were held for ths
distribution OF political patronage. and To bring
all the Supreme Court Judges into the vortex
would soon teach the politicians Of the Importance
Of the KEY Under the district system the selcc-
ton had been lctt TO the bar
Mr. Fiero moved % amend Mr.. Choate's mo-
! zion that the Committee on Supreme Court ba
requested to present a provision Tor minority
! reprpsentation Speaking OF the motion he heid
TINT the report reached 10 difficulty tina. nao
been experienced since 1916. There SHOULD oe
something permanent about the General Term
! Judges The desirable thing TO he brought aoous
was TO give them the same responsibility ss ths
Court of Appeals Judges. lie thourns
! that the proposed scheme would renmoy
a great evil The Court of Appeals had proFsS
that the largcr the constituency the oe'tcr tno
Judge At his request, his melton was iaia Oh
|
Martin l. Townsend made a strong arguuSens
in favor Of election by districts. and moved an
amendment that the section be amended SO as u
| provide for tie election Of justices hy distrcts.
lie believed the elective system the soulsavtna
doctrine except In ecclesiastical matters no
had lived in district in which he had nevcf
seen judgc elected from lis political party. The
system had always been satisfactory. Why
should it he given mp for plan TINT wold uet
allow the people in the district - select one m;o
Until the present plan had been proved failure
II was good enough for lin. The people would
not relinquish their rights. and place the power
in the hands of the Executive. lie had nothing
to say against the Governor personally but the
ante-chamber Of the Executive Chamber has the
faulcst atmosphere of any place on Gods earth
AZ times" This was the influence the people
wanted 20 keep away from They wanted 70 mike
their own selection: say whom they wanted "a
. admnisteT their justice.
II was the opinion of Timothy +. Bush that
would re more in accord with a rpnblican FORA
Of government and democratic principles that
the Judges should be- selected by the electors at
large Electors in one district should not b. al
lowed 10 select Judges who We're TO pass upon
questions of interest 70 the people AZ large.
Francis H. Woods opposed the recommending ons,
saying the principle was wrong, and asserted tlat
local constituencies should select the local ju''oi'
aries The plan proposed was fundamentally ana
Eintastically wrong
In fuyoring the report, Daniel c. GriNith SAID
thc people would get the hest judges under rhG
proposed plan. The reason for the excellent repre-.
sruiatlon in tie Court Of Appeals was due 10 ths
appeal to the mass of the people. lie was glad o.
,c, that the matter was 10 be- decided outside of
party lines
William b. lIonblowcr favored the electoral
plan. arguing tat Judges who were elected
! by large constituencies and who Lad less local
Influences 10 contend with. were more satisfactory
than those elected, like justices OF the peace, "
even like cornty JUDGES. Mr.. Townsends plan
WIS more pau-iblc than practical. The larger
the constituency the better. People sought a cn'
emit Justice more than a county iudge The feeL
ing of the people that they wanted Judge
from district who wac unhamperel by locs.
polltico influence. The smaller tie constituency
tie lc,s desirable were tie opinions OF the justices
lie did not know why politics should be men
toned in opposition. lie did hot believe that the
politics of the State were to remain the sars
for twenty years This plan would he better, and
would nuke 1t imperative Tor each party % place
the best men III Nomination. There had never
hcra nominated by either party candidate nr
Judge OF the Court of Appeals who would aoe
have honorably held the office. AS now con-
stltutcd, the General Term did not give ssns'
gn, ion. and there was need of remedy.
Mr. Cochran differed with Mr.. Hornblover,
who had said the Supreme Conri was an inferior
court claiming that il was the highest court OF
original lurisdiction The report called for the
subdivision OF complete court. This was -
direct opposition to the fundamental principles
upon which the whole court syst.'m was lounded.
The present system should be preserved, unHss
L. alas
tribunal WAS only u board OF arbitration BEFORE
which people we're 10 submit their srlevan9es.
Under the proposed plan all OF thc twenty Judges
could he elected from one district Nelsner
politics or politicians could Withstand the srcss s,
strain that would De put upon 'heui. LIE. ane
idea of keenpg the judiciary OUT OF ponnos
=. Iann of DOl