The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-06-27
called upon to sit in Judgment on the same

called upon to sit In Judgment on the same
case.
Mr.. Ludlow said that the Court of Par
dons was not not really a court, but a body
of men who dispense mercy and clemency,
and why, he asked, shonld that work be de-
volved upon three of the highest judges on
the bench of the State. He moved that the
proposition be laid on the table until such a
time as the Commission should take up the
discussion OF the Constitution of the courts.
81 cannot agree with the gentleman who
once SO ably presided over the affairs of this
State as Governor" began Mr.. Kean, in fat
tering tones.
What's thatl What's thatp' interrupted
Mr.. Ludlow. and when Mr.. Kean repeated
his words with a Chesterfieldian bow, Mr..
Ludlow exclaimed ''Uh," and repeated what
he said. So
Governor Bedle sat down on the youthful
Commissioners from Union by moving to in
sert the words, ssThree Junior judges, instead
of the three senior judges The work
should be put upon them instead of the
three senior judges, he said as being younger,
they were more able to bear the additional
labor.
A OUR OF MERCY.
In continuing the debate, Attorney Cen
eral Stockton said that the Court of Pardons
was not a court of pardons except that it
listened to those things to which the inferior
courts could not listen, and it was his opinion
that the Governor, the Chancellor and the
Attorney General were the men who should
first be consulted as to points deserving
mercy which might arise in a case. If the
exercise of clemency was not vested in the
Governor as part of his executive jurisdic-
ton, it should be vested in those three as the
most proper ones.
Mr.. McDermott said that it had been
stated in the Commission that they were at
tempting TOO much in revising the judicial
cr-Cfa,1, INT ~ xs,ar tie ari,,;nt, @Ln+ I'll 0x,n
may be the duty of the Legislature in MAX
ing changes in the judicial system of the
State, it was the duty of the Commission to
suggest such remedial changes as were
necessary to the public good, no matter if it
was necessary to revise the entire system.
Governor Bedle then came in with his fine
work again. He suggested that some diff
culties might arise in having the Governor,
the Chancellor and the Attorney General
constitute the Board of Pardons, and thought
that before the Commission commit them
selves fully on hat point, they should wait
until the number and constitution of the
other courts were determined upon. and
therefore he moved that the proposition be
laid on the table, which motion vas lost,
and the proposition was adopted by a vote of
IL to 4.
O A U
Several propositions were then taken up
and laid over. Judge Fort of Newark
fought hard against delay and succeeded in
starting an argument on Mr.. McDermotts
proposition that there shall be a court to be
designated 1.-THE Superior Court Of New
jersey Such court shall consist OF nine
justices, which number may be increased by
law Such court shall be divided into three
OF more divisions. The sessions of one
division shall be held In the State House at
Trenton; the sessions of the other divisions
shall be held at such times and places as
- l.. L. 49, 49, - III
court. Original jurisdiction similar to that
now vested in the Supreme Court shall be
vested In each division of such Supreme
Court. Not less than two or more than four
justices shall hold any division. Final
judgments in any civil proceeding in any
court established by statute may be brought
by writ Of error into any division. The de-
cision of such division, upon such wrlts,
shall be final.
OBJECTIONS 70 PRE- COURT.
Mr.. McDermott stated that the objections
to keeping the Supreme Court intact and
having its appellate jurisdiction retained
had been given to the Commission, and that
the proposition to have Circuit Court judges
only seemed to him to raise the objection
that there would be no court out of which
p~rerogative writs could be issued. To have
merely Circuit Courts would be to have nine
or ten individual courts throughout the
State without having any court composed of
an aggregation of wisdom.
If the reason for division did not now
exist it would soon come into existence, for
is fast breeding litigation, and it
is a fact that the Supreme Court has sat in
banc but once during the last seventeen
years. Mr.lMcDermott did not favor vest
ing in the Supreme Court the right to sit in
banc. One of the divisions mentioned in
proposition would sit in Trenton, another
perhaps in Jersey City, another in lGamdena
Each one would have its time in different
parts of the State, SO that there will at adj
times be one division in session to which liti
giants from all parts of the State could APP
peal for p~rerogative writs, and the same res
suits would be reached in this wa as would
be obtained by a continuous sitting of the
Supreme Court. Mr.. McDermott did not
think that cases should be brought from an
inferior court to the Superior Court by writ
of errar, and thus this Superior Court would
not have jurisdiction over cases in the Cir
cult Courts.
This was as far as the debate proceeded
when Governor Bedle got the floor and
argued against considering such a PROPOSE
ton hastily. He thought it should lie over
until the next meeting, and consequently
over it went, not, however, until Mr.. Nc
Dermott had succeeded in having it made a
special order for Friday.
AL the other propositions which had pre-
viously been laid over were taken up, and
some were amended. But all went over
without any final action having been taken
upon them.
MYSTERY OR FAKE.