Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1902-02-07
Elections by the People.
For tbe SpectatOr

= Vi eAAS hJECSveS9OA
| see from your editorial columns
that you have stirred up the newspa-
pers Of the State which are opposing
the work of the committee on cOrpo
rationS in the convention. DO let the
good work go on. But there is an i'm
preston among the people that cOrpO
ratiOns had great deal to do with the
clause of the constitution providing for
the election of the judges of the State,
especially the Supreme Court judges
by the Legislature The corporations
can be counted on as being ever pres
ent when their interests demand it
All the lawyers who are known to be
corporation lawyers 10 the convention
we notice, voted for that clause When
they do this unanimously suspicion is
at once aroused. There is belief also
prevalent through the State that our
present Court of Appeals is a great
safe guard to the interests of corpora
tiOns, that while corporations may
have trouble with other officers these
judges stand by them with great reg
ularity, uniformity aud strength. We
have asked lawyers about this, and in
every Case they admit that the present
Court OF Appeals does seem to be 1.-THE
poor corporation" friend. One law
yer informed us that in a recent batch
of decisions handed down, that corpo
rations got about all they wanted.
The G. & U. got some valuable land
along the old James River and Kanaw
ha canal, and the Western Union Tel
egraph Co. was exonerated from deliv
ering dispatches except at their own
sweet will, besides other minor indi-
cations of a sheltering case for corp0
rationS, manifested in other decisions
rendered at the same time.
Il is therefore thought that should
corporations lose in the convention in
SO far as the committee on corpora
tions is concerned, they will have
gained great point in taking away
from the people the right to vote for
judges, especially Supreme Court
judges. This portion of the constitu-
favor in my section, as the people see
in it some occult motive. and a lack
of everything for which our govern
ment stands. We do not charge any
thing of the kind, but if the Legisla
ture elects these judges why may not
at least one branch of that body be
controlled by corporations or why
may not the same methods be resorted
to which have been and are being con
demned throughout the country in
electing U. s. Senators-methods
which have caused many of the States
to petition Congress for change of
the U. s. constitution, so that the
people may vote directly for those
officers. It does seem to be a singular
proceeding to take away from the PEG
pie the right to choose their judiciary,
when they are allowed to choose their
president, and will soon choose their
U. S. Senators Ii fit to choose those
officers certainly they are capable of
choosing judges.
In the event our judges are chosen
by the Legislature, and there are deals
and combinations made in their selec-
tion-as there will be, and after they
are elected there is leaning toward
cOrporations-as there will likely be,
because the corporations will have a
great deal to do with choosing them,
we may look out for scandal, and con-
sequent distrust of our courts, con-
dition which ought never to occur in
Virginia, but the fear of which today
is growing in public opinion.
LAYMAN.