The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1904-05-04
COURT.
The spring term Of court con-

uS SPINS CSA IL VI SOeA wa
vened last Monday morning with
Hon. R. O. Purdy as presiding
Judge, R. Latham, stenogra.
pher, and Hon. John S. Wilson,
solicitor. This was Judge Pur-
dy's first term in Clarendon, and
after the organization of the
court he delivered a clear and
concise charge to the grand jury.
Judge Purdy was born in Law
renceville. Va, Feb. II, 1857. at
tended the common schools, and
was two years at Virginia Agrl-
cultural and Mechanical College:
then took the degree of Bachelor
Of Laws at the University Of
Virginia: moved to Manning IN
1881; practiced law here for a
number of years; married a
daughter of the late DR.. John [.
Ingram; moved to the city Of
Sumter: became the law partner
of the late Hon. Joseph &. Earle;
served one term as mayor OF
Sumter. He was elected Judge
of the Third Circuit by the Gen
eral Assembly in 1902, to accept
which he gave up a very lucra-
tive practice. Judge Purdy, al
i though on the bench not two
s years, has already won distinc-
ton, not only for his excellent
decisions. but for frmness and
courtesy. Naturally our readers
feel prosd of his career.
:=E It is to be doubted whether
! there is upon the bench Of South
Carolina today a circuit judge
whose charges to the grand jury
are so enlightening to that body
as are the charges of Judge Pur-
dy. His remarks to the grand
jurors upon the opening of court
& on Monday We're at once lucid
and forceful, direct and abso-
Iutely to the point. What he had
to say was calculated not only to
help the newly-empanelled grand
Jurors properly to understand
their duties, but also to stimu-
late in them the desire fearlessly
and conscientiously to discharge
those duties. More than that,
the advice he gave was sound
advice not only for grand jurors
but for every citizen, and TIE
TINES only regrets that it can
I not reproduce his remarks in
5 full. What follows is but a brief
& synopsis Of what he had to say,
after frs5 instructing the jurors
as to the nature Of the bills
handed out by the solicitor and
the manner in which they were
to pass upon them:
Under our system, Mr.. Fore
man and gentlemen of the grand
Jury, several Of your number
were brought over from last year
and they bring to the investiga-
ton of these matters which are
to come before you their expert
ence, and in that way your Ia
bors will be very much simpli-
fed, but each and all Of you
should bear constantly in mind
that you should be what you
purport to be, the grand inquest
Of your county. The great body
polite, composed Of individuals
throughout the country, takes
very little interest in reporting
crime unless it be a matter di-
rectly personal to the party who
brings it to the attention of the
grand jury or the magistrate.
This is but natural, is only in
thorough keeping with human
nature, for none of us care to
prefer charges against someone
with whom we will, perhaps, be
brought in daily contact. None
of fzus would like to be considered
an intermeddler with our neigh
: bor's affairs. But when you
come up here those motives can
no longer restrain you, and it is
for this very reason that a grand
jury is formed. What is no.
body's business in general now
becomes your business in partic-
ular, and unless you perform
your duty crime will go ram
pant in the land.
Hence it is that the law has
made a wise provision that the
States secrets and your own Sc
crets you shall well and truly
keep. It is not your privilege,
Mr.. Foreman, to come out OF
that room and tell me or any
other citizen what took place in
that room. Any man can go IN
that room and report to you any
crime or any citizen with perfect
impunity, and what he says in
that room should be forever
locked within your breasts. You
have taken an oath to keep Sc
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