The representative., 1895-01-02
LIES ABOUT JUDGE WILLIS.

Readers of the REPRESENTATIVE
will remember that the Pioneer Press
printed, with staring, glari ng head
lines, false and absurd account of
the proceedings had at chambers, be-
fore Hon. John w. Willis, in the mat
ter of appointment of the successor to
the first receiver Of the Mast, Buford,
Burwell Company. The article was
entitled in the headlines of the Pho
neer-Press Educating the st. Paul
Bar" Some one OF the little creatures
resident in our midst who are fond Of
nagging at Judge Willis, because of
his exalted character and independ-
ence, sent this Pioneer Press article to
the American Law Review, evidently
believing that the Review would Print
a severe reflection upon the course
pursued in regard to this appointment.
The ''smart aleck' who busted him
self in sending on the article must
have been surprised at the manner in
which the Law Journal responded.
The article is printed below, and is
complimentary to the judge and dis
appointing to his enemies. Two state
ments in the article will be noted as
erroneous. The action of Judge Willis
did not ''stir up so much ill-feeling
that it cost him denomination at the
hands of his political party" He was
not candidate for any denomination
during the present year. Neither did
the judge say as reported by the vera
cious Pioneer Press that he twas OBJ
| liged to educate the Ramsey county
bar" Otherwise the article is correct
| in it's statements and conclusions.
| Here it is:
| EDUCATING THE ST. PAUL BAR.
| "a learned friend has sent us clip
ping from the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
| describing scene in the court of Hon.
John w. Willis, district Judge, who re-
fused to appoint trust company as
| receiver of an insolvent estate, upon
the application of all the counsel for
the creditors save one-an attorney
who represented some creditors in Chi
cago. The learned judge refused to
make the appointment, upon the
ground that corporation was not
proper person, so to speak, to discharge
the duties Of such an office. He. in
it's stead, appointed two reputable
members of the bar, of his own selec
tion. and required them to give bond
in the sum of 100000. This action
stirred up so much ill-feeling that it
is said to have cost the Judge re-
nomination at the hands of his politic-
al party. We do not know what COM
ments an independent legal publica-
tiOn is expected to make upon mat
| 70 of bind oh vu1,i ifsh
have no close. information, and which
it can only view from long distance.
Upon the face of the matter, there is
nothing toindicate that the judge was
guilty of any improperly, although,
in stating that he was obliged to edu-
cate the Ramsey county bar he may
have been guilty of d want of dignity.
A good many lawyers believe that cor
porations are not fit persons to act as
receivers. They can not be imprisoned
for contempt, and they are often hol-
low and fraudulent concerns whose as
sets do not afford a sufficient guaran-
tee for the proper execution of such a
trust. We have not yet reached the
era Of the failure Of trust companies:
butit is safe to predict that when they
do begin to fail, many of them will be
found to be as hollow and rotten as
many Of the life insurance companies
have been. Some of the trust COM
panies illustrate nothing better than
the spectacle of a corporation practic-
ing law. The circumstance that the
judge was defeated of denomination
by reason of the fact above stated, if
such were the fact, puts disgusting
imputation upon the system of nomi-
mating judges by party conventions
and electing them by vote of the
people. The very fact will tend to
render his successor less indepe ndent,
especially in dealing with trust com
panies. No well-informed mind can
be divested of the suspicion that
the particular trust company used its
influence, and probably it's money, to
defeat the denomination of one who,
so far as appears, was deserving and
upright judge, guilty of no wrong
| THE RECT1J TIC