The Monticellonian., 1895-01-25


 public funds by officers entrusted with their custody In respect to theso crimes our record is not one of which we should feel proud When We come to account our achievements along this linn, I do not intend to speak in spirit Of levity when I say that 1t will appear that our most brill ant victories have been gained when the contest was with moneyless men This ought not to be and many things that will make it's continuance impossible must come through chan ye in constitutional provisions. This address has now been ex- tended to such limits a5 will make 1t i'm proper to suggest anything that is not con nccted with revision of the constitution but 1 should feel that had omitted matter of the first importance fl 1 did not impress upon you the necessity Tor an amendment of the statute by which the right 10 change Of venue In civil or criminal case should be made to de pend upon the existence of such prejudice as will prevent a fair and impartial trial. and not, as now, upon the willingness Of party to make an affdavit in which this state of affairs is set out pro torma The right to change Of venue is remedy that ought not 10 be surrendered, but 1t should be guarded by such restrictions as will prevent Il from being resorted to as means Of delay, without any effort to disguise the purpose, as is now done daily ih our state, 10 the great expense Of tho people and d mani lest obstruction Of the enforcement of justice. Some better system Of selecting special jurors must be provided if popular respect for the Jury system IS 10 be maintained
 Except as to the application for relief to which have made reference, there is very little necessity for changes in the constitution in the provisions for organizing and governing the supreme court The salary Of the judges should De increased to at least four thousand dollars per annum Under the present consti tutlon this cannot be done so as to make the increase apply equally to all members of the bench. An increase can only include such as arc thereafter chosen Yet all are expected to pGTtotm au equal share of the work which Is deyolyed upon the court. This argument upon the inequality Of the pay where equal service IS rendered Will prevent any increase until our constitution is changed. Unless there Is some sensible limitation placed upon the right to prosecute appeals in unimportant cases. no one supreme court can keep up with the mum Der Of appeals that will be sent up by our eighteen circuit and three chanccry courts.
 If this unlimited right to appeal is to be pre- served as a settled policy then it will become necessary to provide for six judges, the court to be divided into two divisions, except that when causes involving constitutional questions or where there would otherwise result differ ence ln The judgements Of the court on the same questions the bench should sit as one court.
 This system is in operation in some of the states and seems to produce satisfactory re suits
 The usurpations of the judiciary have been so marked and persistent that l. cannot now b6 denied that the judges Of the court of last re sort in this country are the goycrnmen. in every practical sense Of that term. All other officers in the government exercise permissiye au thority merely. The courts measure and fix limitations upon the power Of all others in authority and outside of 1t for that matter, and in turn declare the limits Of their own author. ity, if that can properly be said to be q limit which can be changed al pleasure. In this condition q iS n m Of bp importance to attract to the service Of the judiciary the wiscst and best Of our citizenship. To do this in competition with other calltngs, where such pcrsOns are sought for and liberally compensated, we must embrace in our offer al least equal terms Even fl the retort be made that persons Of first class ability are found who are willing to serve in judicial positions al ex isting salaries, there is room to suggest that this Is for season only. Such in variaby serve with no purpose to make career of the service, but to quit it upon finding an opening where better results for themselves can be had. We thus lose the value that comes from training and experience elements that in the dispatch Of business are Of first impor tance.
 Much Of the present delay in the dispatch of business in our supreme court is doubtless due to the fact that the frequent changes in its membership has required d certain sacrifice Of time to enable the members of the court 10
 
 each other. Then an abstract matter of justice tue state ought not to expect the judges of her highest court to serve for sum which is barely sufficient to defray the current expenses of family Of not unusual size
 Something in excess, as a provision for the tnfrmities ot advancing age, ought to be in cluded in the salary as the service is in its nature permanent and it's value to the state increases experience and training arc added, up to the point where the physical powers necessary 10 their proper discharge decline, when the incumbent should retire without feeling required to prolong his service as means of subsistence after his period of usefulness has passed to the detriment of the service and the annoyance Of his associates. Nor is this parsimony ill the matter of salaries the result of want of ability to be more liberal, for the state is amply able to pursue the course of wisdom in this particular. IL appears to result from gratuitious denial of the fact that the Iaborer is worthy of his hire" If he happens to belong to the legal profession.
 The advocates Of a revision of the constitu tion understand perfectly well that the people of the state will not approve of any measure looking 10 an an increase of the public bur dens, but they insist that the people pos sess sufficient intelligence to discrimt. nate between an increase of taxation and a measure to adjust, with view to equalizing those burdens Theoretically, all persons ard interest, under the protection of the govern ment should contribute ratably to it's support In Arkansas this IS not true And tho rule cannot re made effective without change in constitutional provisions. The growth Of cor porations and agencies that conduct large and profitable business enterprises, in which they employ very little tangible property that is subject to taxation on our advalorem basis, has made ii matter Of justice to the other tax payers of the state to provide a system Of taxing privileges. In no other way can equal ity of burden be established. An examination of the taxing laws of any well governed state will disclose this fact that at least one-thrd of the state revenue is derived from the taxation of privileges.
 Our state ought to have the right to pursue the same sensible course, for 1t is estimated by those in a position to do so inteltgcntly, that at least one third fin value Of the profit producing enterprises of the state contribute nothing to the support Of the government from which they enjoy protection. Ihave doubt that all the constitution makers who ever semblcd in the state, except those who framed the constitution of 1868, believed that provis- ion had been made for the levy of such taxes in proper cases by the legislature. In fact they went further in this direction than was neces- sary under the rule which declares that in matters of taxation the authority of the legis lature is without limit: that 1t needs no af- frmative grant to confer this power, but il does require very plain limitation to deny or impair 1t. Had the constitution been silent, the power Of the legislature to impose such taxes for state purposes must be conceded. But it is not silent In sec B. art. l6, It provided that the legislature shall have power from time to time to tax hawkers, peddlers, ferries exhibitions and privileges in such manner as may be deemed proper" This provision is 10 be found in every constitution the state ever had, except the constitution Of 1868. In 1si0 the legislature passed u law tax