Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1899-10-12
ROMAN AND ANGLO-SAxON LAW
COMPARED.
a Cuban Lawyers View of the "Incom-
munioado" system and its Benefits
Secret Preliminary Trials An
American View of the Same
Method of Administering
Justice.
Justice.

tion Ia the new order of things in cuba,
not the least in importance is the ducs-
ion of criminal Jurisprudence. That the
substitution of the Anglo Saxon system
for that heretofore i'm vogue here is not
looked upon with favor by the Havana
bar IL pretty well known by this time and
a careful study of the question leads to
the conclusion that it will be some time
yet before the problem is solved, says
Havana correspondent who continues:
As there are two sides to every question
- with this. and it has been no easy task
TO obtain disintcrcstcd opinions of both.
which at the same time would be entitled
to weight. In this instance the case for
the plaintiff is presented by Venezuelan
lawyer of ripe years and mature Judg-
mcnt. Educated in Madrid and Paris. and
long a resident of the United states, he
has prdcticed in the courts of his own
Couptry and Mexico, ana his standing hogc
T. high. If his language should be deemed
Incorporate at times. all there Is To b"
said about it is that his expressions are
milk ana water compared to those Of the
aVerag" Cuban lawyers on the same sun
Jcct. Following is the gist of several con-
N,rsntous with him:
at is unfortunate forChina at this time
that not one American lawyer in a thou
sand understands the Latin system Of
criminal jurisprudence. The opinions of
bench and bar ON the DreYfuS case. as
published in the American press, are, [
think, sufficient proof of this assertion.
Were it otherwise you may be assured
that no such subVersion Of the laws Of tine
land would ever have been contemplated,
much less put in foCcc during the military
occupancy of the country. II is, to every
legal mind throughout the Latin Amcri-
can world the Substitution of brute force
tor justice. The inscrsate talk by tenn
porarN residents of the country of III"
horrors Of the incommunicado system IS
largely responsible for the present state
of affairs. | would that the American
people understood Just what "iucommun-
cado" really is Founded upon all that is
hest in the laws of ancient Rome, as c3di-
fled by JuStinian, ii is part of the system
used to-day by all civilized nations out
side of Great Britain and the United
States Of America. If | were asked to de-
Ine its virtues in n few words. | should
use the famous saying of General Grant,
Let no guilty man escape"
"a man accused of crime under our laws
is arrested and detained in prison He is
not permitted to place himself in com
muuCation with others and conuives
sumo scheme by which he may defeat the
ends Of justice This is the famous IN
communicate" about which such pother
has been made. There are two stages in
the trial. In both all testimony is taken
down in writing. There Is no reed i'm the
first stage of his trial for the accused to
MO" OF Wh"' tle testimony OF ms "ccuS-
~ Nu!l9'S.'; ~, even IoI MN 10 N"'"
"a great ado has been made in the
tHited states and by misinformcd per.
sons here because the proceedings of the
ms stage Ul d PIlH"I'tr trlul are lc'u
80 a.tlc'' ne 80 ti'59 10 ma. tLe
l''t' ~ Ha9 Ncrli 9"lIN'ioIl' ny Nu'.U'ii,
" - , ~ 49, .''',.l "'iS ""' H'," VI I
BESIDES the second stage of the trial is
puo'tJ' anu dl, 'i,e proce'u,lss VI lile nrSt
~, 80, 49, INV ny ~ @ ~, "o
SUN 9o't"-S Ilout we PROCESS " "Nce'-
talr'ns the suiIt OF innocence Oh the "c
Nu'IV' az - DoiIic out ~ we ni1'l'5'i VI
,u''u".''"e "i''A'' III ''"' Wv" 5i""N July
.T hn,.o .+,,,,., a., ,,u,, Co.,, e.i..,
f.. 7lI"t'" w us ~ MI il'l'-
ila' NV "nu nav 'io HeS''''loil J" Soy :
- '"''' - ~ ~ W. ~ va
t'' , ,,i ~ ''Hi''l'S t',c V''''H - J"'
I ny ni'i!u Wv ~ Ii''4, VI , Gul
TNS''ul ~ tH' COURT P'eSIu'u over ny Judge
It, =, Huoa Iero''ins uI'n.eS, com.
i''l'l'u III mo NAME ol justice nav ever
Zen peTietraleu III amy country rueo ny
i.oinau I"N "s me IS'lc"lIsS MhIcn ocr"T
lepCe".IS III So"' "'s"'S oN"'~'u
!'Icu 'o'"uta' -.- ,...--,
NSah II ~ " laIter Oh common Know
euse .I!at ihurue , raush, reu-ilailoyu'
'9''l',' ''i'Ni' 'l"'' IN ouS II SUNNI
'o,iiIlC"i.lS, or p'CauSe oI Soihe eIoluPht
guy az appeaI ~ tHe lccHnHS Oh tne
Jury are common an over your country
- - n.y. ~ VIZ Us II - HO' 10 ne sup
poScU tuat WIN theSe elarlns uolects u
''il IA" yrs WIN SUNNI without Prot'St
TO tn' anrogatloH Oh the Jaws under which
I"Sl'' mas peeil d"niiIilS'tIt" since me
country was HtSt sc''Ieu' MlhlaiY Ia" Is
PARAMOUNT mere now ana uitth II ~ sup
'rseoeu oy some form OF clVI government
onarH "'i Ig's'- but 'i,t 'II'c WI COME