New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-02-01
FROM BENCH AND BAR.
GATHERED FROM LAWYERS AND AMONG
THE COURTS

~ cIergymen in being able 10 say WHAT hc clOose'
without an opportunity Tor immediate correction bA
his auditors used some harsh language from his pull
81. ,at sunday respecting lawyers. judges and courts
MI, the administration Of justice might In some re
snects be improved is beyond dispute but some OF the
reported statements of the clergyman are not the calm
and impartia arguments which are most impressive.
He SAYS according to published reports, that the ola
idea of Justice is fast becoming memory Inc poo
,,e are losing confidence in courts. To 90 INTO
ronrt is dangerous proceeding for the ordinary czeh
today Among the masses OF the people there II
growing contempt for law courts judges and lurlcs'
This means that a revolution must come. Inc au-
ninstration of our criminal law and the conduct OF
MIR criminal courts is fast becoming roaring IdFVe
Referring TO the of man who was heiNhS hi0u
ON a charge OF abduction, he says: How many crisp
one-thousand- dollar bills futcred around the Temps
OF Justice only the angels and Mr. John stevens Vi
Newark (the defendant), probably KNOW NOT j. Wv
criminal law the only object of attack Inc uncei-
,ainty attending the prosecution of suits at law i"
SANS is fast reducing civil PROCEDURE 10 :" al
There is no sense of any sort in much OF our ECU
procedure 1t is a scnselcss maes-a chaos liio
ends of justice ofencr defeated tnr9rsn I'M, I
,e' hHeat rue h oi Pn@err is 1ne best lawyer" Tim
Fiick case and the 1ilden will litigation are ENcn as
Instances OF the extent to which tachhicsn,eS tn
tro important interests The conclusions drawn lroni
the few examples referred 10 are sOHlc"ha INV 'je
denonnce ali physicians charatans, ana wlen tlS
read OF q de.aul1er Tho has been church lhcIloor'
declare that Christianity l. hunoue'
The evils which many lawyers themselves ho'i.'
are the Injustice which general rules often wofh Ill
special cases. the delays in final decisions anu ~
gard for techncates which occasionally results i'll
urdoipc imnortant work accomplished by trial courts
Neither courts nor lawyers responsible to any great
extent for either the delays or for the heceSs! Vi VT
forcing general rules without regard to the eec' oi
the decisions. Judges, especially appellate JuuN0.
are usually Industrious and if cases are not usoseo
Of as rapidly as they arise the fault is with the LeS
,aturc which does not increase the number OF tribunals.
Tb. occasional wrong inflicted by enforcing eehcl"i
laws is inevitably in any human system ana lle !""7
who arc compelled to obey tie laws are not reSoN0
for the wrong. The Iulc of technlcallty WHO" = '
most reasonable ground of criticism Is by no means
universal Trial courts rule. are less suoScr>c''
to il than appellate courts. The decisions Ni''
trecd the boOdlers" made necessary the reUl"i W
NcTIya,ne and other murdercrS. obvious Euli'!' anu
p,evented the punishment OF Sherlh fhoA' WIZ
rendered by trial judges Jures, according ~ ' "'
vcyI opinion Of those who know the most ABOUT 'o',
40 u.uaIlv manage 20 arrive at the TRUTH anu
uu % NV more frt,IuentIy than other men, jury
mon rs rule, honest, h"NcIe u'
nre me fo che Interests Of their clients ana JuE-
aD m,O =" Known execution in this state al least
above the rank of police justice; are hoip' ny ~
Tbc ak of " crisp one thousand dollar DIS nn
lmc me courtroous9 be RAYS little know dig oi
judg> and uieS Those familiar WIN That rich
nm and corporations lind more dlhchlt 10 o'L
fair decisions from Iuiies th4l poor non an ,jrb
TId new of jurors is to resolve doubts araS ib k
toYuoratons and in favor OF poor Sultor> anu -"
,.,sion Of crisp ION -thou'anddoIar Dllis
III. ,Jvantacp in a courtroom. except a. II chaDics
ma 10 cmDoy lawyers OF Superior ability. and me
disadvantage even then Is greater WIN VIZ "Tr
than the RAJ courts
Even the criticisms Of the appellate judges VINO
ar nopulariy supposed to be devoted to techhlcall
L. , t,,r, 400 sovar, They believe that il Is
their province to overrule any disposition Oh .n'
nar,. of ,rol courts TO vary the rules of law IN
fac, that defendant clearly guilty OF nnioef j.
M, 30 imporant TO them a. the fact that he was &c
urived of some right which the law gives NM lh.'
,vc.Id arrue tina if in any case. however clearly
prc we'd is the offence, they allowed any Hght 10 u"
sacrificed some innocent man put on trlai S"D>e
oucntIv might suffer a gricvcuS wrong from the
preccdent established. The jus eT cnhclsm i 'n'
IL i, sonc lines difficult to reconcile their argument
They say at times that a Judgment Sio'Hu 10 w
reversed except for an error winch "ouiu iI"No ""
lko!y to change the result yet they 90 reVeI'c JuT
me,ts for errors which. TO The mind oil the aNeIaE5
reader appcar to be too Insignificant TO ahec' IN
MINI Of any Juror. When in the FlacK case ior fi
Sta~r IUdre Barrett said. in answer 10 a relue> o,
Tiacn,, cnunseI that of course conviction couli
be had unless the Defendants hal cIi i @ ~
did not seem impOr ant that n shonld not haEC r.
noated that expression at another point 81 III.
case when he was discussing ahO'hr PIop ' ,,r
law The most technical judges undoubtedly nlctt
thai thcjr work will result in worlng out us'i'e III
the end ana no motive less high can justly be a.
irlnted TO them, even by those VINO occa, , i
critici,n them. 1t j., nevertheless unfor urat" INA,
such eminent trial jndre> as Justice bafftu anu
Recorder Smvth should occasionally find that the car
and skill which ;ley give TO the public service are
rem Tered of no avail by some seemingly Trivial III
cdcHt Of trial.
Neyv-Icrsov IS not the only state which is afflicted
with women whose bad temper and violent langua"'
mako them nuisance to heir noighbors, but 1t j.
one of the very few places in which such women are
liable TO punishment criminals. The offence OF
being a common scOd is punishable in that STATE ana
tbc supreme Court recently. in reversing the con
yiction of a Mrs. Baker, describes the crime wihch
Is referred 10 in the law The trial judge had said in
HE CHARGE 10 the Jury "The evidence on the par;
of the state consists of number OF witnesses VINO
have sworn not NAT she only scolded one person at
one time but that she did it to several persons on
several occasions. Now, if you believe she did that
thing il Won believe the evidence on the part OF ne
state. she is guilty of being common nuisance 10
the neighborhood In which she resides" The supreme
Court in crtcising the charge, says; W"ma'
docs not necessarily become common scold by 'cod
ing several persons on several occasions. i inc
NAIL IL criminsi: and whether the Seeding, 10
whic the Siae's irn,es ,cStin-d were freqarnt
as IN prove the existence OF the habit ahG
c,rcnrstance, as to disturb the public peace. wore
questions which the jury alone coua a"llN ,f, ",
witnesses"
A Western law paper quotes the following law re-
ccntlv enacted by the Nebraska legislature 1t shall
be unlawful for any person TO fire on or discharge
any pistol revolver, shotgun, rife or any firearms
whatsoever on any public road or highway IN any
county In the state Nebraska or within sixty yards
~ snch public road or highway, except TO destroy
some Wild ferocous and dangerous beast or an oicer
In discharge of his duty
The correspondent OF "The Scottish Law Review
finds much TO criticse in the conduct OF sir THOMAS
Chambers the aged Recorder of London, before whom
was tried the celebrated -Del Of Marks against
Dntterfeld The trial had interest for Americans
on account of the of one OF the parties IN TINS
country The trial created the greatest Interest IN
London and one of the Recorders remarks was that
Il was impossible hold the scales of justice evenly
under the influence of the bitter partisan fecIlhg'
aroused He said in his charge that much evidence
bad heen admitted which Judge probably mean
ing a Judge of the English High Court OF Justice
would not have admitted TheSe were queer con