New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-05-05
FROM BENCH AND BAR.
GATHERED AMONG THE LAWYERS AND
N THE COURTS

GATHERED AMONG THE LAWYER AMI
IN THE COURTS.
TT. a., .r, ~ the court, which begins TO-
r Nil, ~ the custom OF other years Is ioi-
lowed no the busiest of the year '.a"s.'s a.
preparing for the closing OF 'he ooui,' "' AZ
month OF June and those VINO are a"N'ou' "
nose of their cases before the long summer ns
poe ot daaror "a try them when reached IN NAY
The calendars in most OF me TUu for lack of
II the shOw hsT Of u ihe tme off
to bring cases TO tr;a; tins trrln i'll u ''-
the courts Will be fully occupicu
Tho Court Of Appeals decided last week some
cases which were taken up rom 'ne aasos
Term only a few months ago, but these VIZ 49,
ON tho nraferred calendar Of the court. Inc se"-
er,l calendar still has on 1t cases III ""'0" aP
, ro s,ed two or more years ago. Inc
court OF Appeals affirmed several Judgments Ias'
,o,, on Tho oninions of the courts below inc
opinions of the General and so carefully review the
que and ~ the facts that the Court OF Appeas
n,en ordering its Judgment without long writ
fen opinion and referring the Coun'.l g. ali naadad
IONS If the General Term Justices ior al heedeu
lUs as TO the points arising in the case.
,,,,vors having occasion to walk along the down
town streets in the busy hours OF the Gay WIN
30 ,, "a notice that in one OF the cases decided pS
tho Court of Appeals last week a business houSe
VAS held responsible for the careless ha"ui'''s VI
ods IN unloading them from :rucks by the use
- skias In the case before the Court a Twelve
,.oar-od girl had been killed by a hogshead when
Mas in this city The hogsheads instead OF
being let down by ropes, were nat ~ passerby
rom have no time to get out of the way II tne
hogshead began to fall as he was iasS .asi aiipmei
Oh t u,T in favor OF the representative OF
year-old boy who was lnjnreu Il. aaestone which
had been carelessly left leaning against "e
In the contested Mayoralty case from -iou''.
vernon the Court of Appeals sustained the order
~ ,o,yor court DENYING the right Of Edison
.uis 70 the Office The Board Of Aldermen con-
s.sts of ten members. and quorum was NECESSARY W
in order make The action taken III "a he meet
Ing and IL was argued that his presence WIN nv
Aldermen sufficient to complete tne b d' hem un
The decision OF the lower court when aS ~
stained vas that the presence OF a majority OF
the Aldermen was necessary 10 max up o. fhnuad
some OF the quoted by the couIlSvt ,'o,irc
,%af the Mayor might carry measure by vo ,
only half Of the trusts Wh tbe enact question
Gecided by the Court OF Appeals was almost mover
in this State
Tho Apperate Division Of the Supreme Court
which begins the performance or It's duties neN'
January. will not lack power TO MAINTAIN itseh III
appropriate dignity. bill recently s's"eu py ''l
Governor gives the Appellate Division OF TINS as
trio, the power 10 hire or construct building Tor
,,s use or 10 take such part Of the present Court
house as may be necessary. IL may a,su
,bl, from other courts The new supreme Court
Justices who have been serving In the superior
~iarKs with them when they change their olciaI
positions The number OF pr9Rable cnsaneI nv the
passage OF the law. Some or , Ihe emc ,r,
clerks Of the Superior ana common b, 1,ties for
many wears feared that the abolition OF the t"o
"np.rior city courts would cost them their places;
S,,mc -, ,hen, are valuable public servants VINO
have acquired a fund OF knowledge by iong eh.
nerence which new clerks could not OBTAIN IN
iioanv ,ears The new law makes the transfer Oh
these clerks easier. and most or mem WI" ihongh
urder new titles and In somewhat different sur
rOundlngs
To many lawyers even the names OF The Inter
nal Revenue Record ana The United States Kew
emile Journal" are unknown, but those VINO MAKE
specially OF customs and revenue cases VIII be IN
terested in the change announced last week IN Inc
n.venue Journal THE Revenue JournaI mas
bought The Internal Revenue Record me
Record" had FOR thirty years mace the oinci Ia
rubiratiou OF the customs and internal revenue de-
cis.ons u the Treasury DEPARTING nt was WEI!
conducted but a few months ago Inc Jouriti,
which had lel a brief existence under another
name succeeded in obtaining he otifiai support OF
thus deprived Of It's official standing. and soon sold
out TO rs younger rival
Judge Buchwalter. OF the Court OF Common Pleas,
OF Hamilton County. Ohio. Is not ashamed Of the ac-
ton which made him famous. few months ago. IN
refusing 20 allow "A prisoner named Hampton 10
b. exiraditcI to Kentucky. because he believed he
would be lynchcd If taken there. He has recently
revised HIS opinion IN the case for official publication
and cites many cases To support of It's posi-
tons He does not quote any legal opinion sus-
tanning him as to his power to refuse TO cNtradite
the defendant because he believed that mob would
hang him He refers to statistics. however, TO snow
that nineteen persons had been Illegally put TO death
been reminded by Judge Buchwater to the custody
Of the Kentucky authorities In extraditon proceed
ings lust before he was lynched The Judge con
sdered the circumstances as proof that the extra
diiion proceedings In the Hampton were not
begun In good faith
~ DIR
buchanan in their attempts TO prolong his life by
technical proceedings In the courts. il likely to
lead to movement 10 modify the United
States laws relating to wrts OF habeas corpus.
Judge Brown. OF the United States Distric, Court
followed a wise course In simply refusing TO con-
slider the request for a writ. denial of tho APP
plication would have given good grounds for an
appeal and a consequent stay. II the warden Of
Sing Sing Prison had proceeded with the execu-
ton OF the sentence he would probably have been
fully justified but the State authorities desired to
bc certain that OF the prisoners legal rights
disregaricd. and they acted with great eau
ton. The laws relating to habeas corpus are de-
signed TO prevent oppression. and lawyers may
ordinarily be depended on TO see that they not
used TO interfere with the execution OF the orders
tribunals. There are however. few lawyers who
with the course OF justice. They have been re-
buked by the United States Supreme Court and
nppcationls They have not been Sensitive TO pnb
lie opinion the regard Of their associates at the
for which they not Intended can only lead to
a complete change in legislation relating TO stays
OF execution on appeals. The lawyers Will be
sponsble for greater harshness In future laws In
consequence OF their endeayors TO use the present
merciful statutes means OF preventing the
carrying out OF the judgments of the courts.
The universal criticism among lawyers OF the
change enacted last month in the laws descent in
this State should lead 20 immediate modinca-
ton of the statute. Austin Abbot. W. Il. Horn
blower and their Associates have not spoken any
The two unanswerable arguments against the law
are that IL gives the mother of few children a
preference over the mother of a large family and
that 1t cannot be continued at all In It's present
form If "A man dies leaving widow with several
grandchildren by one deceased child and a different
I..lall In