The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-09-21
Leads all North Carolina Dailies i'm News and Circulation

tatives presented articles of im-
peachmcnt of two Republican
members of the present Supreme
Court.
During n century, is it not sig-
nifcant that the only severe criti-
cis1n OF the great appellate court
was made of partisan Republican
| Justices? 1t is because they alone
have permitted judicial decisions
to be controlled by political ext
| gencies. Furches and Douglas,
| like Pearson, are generally fair.
/ But all three of them, as well as
| Republican Judges in 1862 fell
| down when the need of the Radi-
| cal party seemed to call for gross
| judicial partisanship.
1T is this Radical party, too, that,
now backed by certain corpora
/ tions which desire to control the
/ Supreme Court of North Carolina,
has the check to ask independent
! voters to let it name the judges in
this good State!
Not only has the Republican rec
ord on the Supreme Court bench
been such as to destroy faith in
the fairness OF its decisions, but
some Of the Superior Court Judges
4
the same class with those Supreme
Court Justices who escaped inn
peachment only by the skin Of
their teeth, and some of the things
they have done were infinitely
more shocking than anything the
Radical Supreme Court Judges did
in 1868 or in 1899.
The following extracts from an
address, delivered by the editor OF
this paper at Lemon Springs in
IS9S. give concrete examples of
what Radical Superior Court
Judges have done in North Caro-
lima:
LET us now turn to the Judicial De-
partment of our State Government. The
| peoplc ought to respect the bench, but
do not believe in any fetch Worship OF
/ anything that is human. Judges are pub
lie servants, and their acts are as much
| the subject of public criticism as the acts
| of anv other servants of the people TIE
| Iusurpations of the Federal judges and
| the lack of judicial qualities in some OF
our State judges has shocked the public
/ conscience The only way for the judi
| ciary to retain a lofty position IN the
confidence of the people is for It to DC
| composed of able. honest. upright men
who hold the scales of Justice equally
| between the people and the corporations,
| and who know no party. creed or race
! | in their judicial actions.
will give only three incidents f-the
conduct of three Republican Superior
Court judges to illustrate how low we
have fallen:
/. During the session of the General
Assembly, there was a movement begun
by Republicans, to impeach Judge Nor
wood for drunkenness. He knew moro
law than most other Republicans PUT
upon the bench and had good qualities
For these reasons, a trade was made by
the Governor and others if Norwood
would write his resignation, and put 1t
in the hands of the chairman of the
Judiciary Committee, to be presented the
first time he got drunk, the impeach-
ment proceedings would not be pressed.
The Judge kept sober some time, but
few months ago he looked too much or
the wine when it was red, he fell. the
Governor accepted his resignation writ
ten to escape impeachment, and appoint
F., | ed his successor. Never before in the
history of the State did such a thing oc-
cur.
2. At the spring term Of Wayne SUI
perior Court Judge Robinson's conduct
showed his partisanship in such bold re-
lief as to make good citizens indignant.
In his charge to the grand jury he laid
special stress on the subject of selling
intoxicating liquors and cigarettes to
o minors 1t so happened that four indict-
ments were found against one Hiram J.
O CHM, two for selling liquor on Sunday.
: CHM insisteS on a trial and the jury
: rendered verdict of guilty in less than
v five minutes in one case. Ginn imme-
p diately plead guilty in the other three
c | cases. All these offenses were COM
O mitted on Sunday within stones throw
: of a Presbyterian church on the outskirts
of Goldsboro. where there is no police
g protection. When the judge heard tho
O evidence and the verdict was rendered,
o he showed great indignation and pointing
= his finger with theatrical air at Ginn,
o said: Il will not trust myself to sentence
: you now. sir, for / don't know what
!. would do if l were to meet man in the
Il road that had sold one of my boys liquor
: especially on Sunday. ! will pass SEN
# tence on you later" All of which sound
8 cd very fine and the temperance people
@ felt to commend such righteous indigna-
d tion. In considering how much punish
ment to inlict, Judge Robinson learned
1
f to put his gang in power. That settled
: it. Judgment was suspended. There was
" another case which showed that the
, politics of the defendant determined the
i judges action. man by the name OF
= Hatch, the leading Republican of Wayne
@ county outside of Goldsboro, and who was
h made mayor of Dudley by the Legisa-
= ture of 1897 owns and runs a public GIN
= A true bill was found against him for
q false pretense, in substituting sand for
i lint cotton in the cotton of a customer
# and he plead guilty in open court. Judge
r Robinson directed the clerk of the court
to strike out the submission and enter
q plea of nolo contendere and suspended
judgment on payment Of costs That's
the way he sentences law breakers who
o helped to put him in Office and disgrace
o the State. How was it when Democrats
2 were before him for violating the law? Al
v young white man, a Democrat, and the
9 only son OF a widowed mother, was found
ouilfv of lxuock o man dowu with a