Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-07-23
CAN TAKE PASSES
]. G. Mabrey Says Judges May
Do So.
DISCUSSED BY BAR ASSOCIATION
Prominent Abba Attorney Starts the
Ball RoIling-Association Also Goes
on Record as Favoring Increase in
Judges Salary--Mabrey's Address.

2! Council Bluffs, July 19--The Iowa i
! State Bar association has gone on rec |
ord as favoring an increase OF salary I
Z for the supreme and district court
judges in the state, and the report to |
increase the salary Of the supreme
/ judges to $4,000 and the district judges
i to $4,000 a year has been adopted. |
along with the other recommendations /
/ of the law reform report.
i Along with this adoption came the !
/ interesting paper of J.C.Mabrey of AL
/ bia on What Salaries Shall Our SUI
/ preme and District Judges Receive"
He advocated an increase all along the
line and at the same time discussed
the ethics of judges accepting passes
and other favors from railroads and
other possible litigants. The speaker
was of the opinion that such accept
ance would be all right and was in no
manner violation of the officials
oath or the laws code of ethics.
+! Mr.. Mabrey said in part:
4 Il do not know to what extent the
custom prevails of railroad compan-
les furnishing judges with transporta-
ton or whether at all or not; but, be
this as it may, since ! have devoted
some study to the conditions that sur
round them l have fully decided on
my own part that as long as they pay
all the other legitimate expenses to
which they are subjected maintain
their families, clothe and educate their
children, keep up an appearance of re-
speciality, contribute to the various
charitable and educational causes and
institutions and to the yearly campaign
fund Of their party, all out of a salary
of $1,000 year for district judges and
$4,000 year for supreme judges, to
their acceptance of such courtesy if
it comes their way; not only SO, but if
some charitably disposed farmer
should denote load Of wood, or a side
of bacon, sack of potatoes or barrel
of apples, l should urge no objection
to such display of generosity under
existing circumstances.
cit is unnatural that talent which
can command an income of $4,000 a
year either in general practice or in
the serving of wealthy corporations
shall remain long in a position, even
if it is a public Office some dignity
and distinction, upon a salary of 81
500 or even $4,000, and especially
when in the latter positions they are
confronted year after year by the i'm
such figures are wholly inadequate to
! meet.
!. There is already growing tenden-
). cy of the old and failing and the young
:, and inexperienced men of the profess
o sion to seek places. on the bench, the
:. one as a means of rounding out pro
!, fessional career by an honorable title
\ the other as a stepping stone to some
, other preferment or distinction. The
time is approaching when the strong
and. active lawyers of the state, in the
prime of their life and the vigor and
maturity of their faculties will not seeh
j. places upon the bench at the present
rate ;of compensation. ;.
"There is many. a farmer in Iowa liv
! ling on forty or eighty acres Of land
who rounds up at the end of each veal
|. with more net cash to the credit side
,. of his account than the average dis
:, trict judge in Iowa, and he works NJ
. harder and lives just as comfortably
:, There is scarcely county in the state
u in which the sheriff of the county doe,
not come out at the end of the yea
9 with more money as the proceeds O
y his compensation than the average SUI
. preme judge of the state, after paying
for his living expenses, and there ar,
captains of football teams and baseball
y teams and the grooms and drivers o
: fast horses and the engineers and con
e dutcors of railway trains and the alder
u men of some of our larger cities who
= as the result of a years work coult
y exhibit net cash balances that woul'
u cause the average judges of our distrc
- courts to turn yellow with envy; tn
+ world of industry and the world O
e. sport discounting the state in appre
!, citation of the kind of talent and abilit
y demanded by the terms of successes il
y any undertaking OF calling.
~ "a brief comparison of the salarie
D. of our judges with the salaries Of col
responding courts in other states re
IL veals the fact that we are far below tn
II average state in the amounts paid. !
A shows that fair average salary for
al nisi prius judge is about $4,000, wit
u. actual mileage travelled and expense
e. e. of board and lodging when actual
~ Holding court away from home, an
az about $4,000 for a supreme or appe
II late Judge"