New-York tribune., 1905-06-04
ENGLISH AND AMERICAN JUSTICE.

!
/ Ex-ronsrl General Evans's observations on
! English tus ice correspond closely with those
of other students of English administration that
they will not impress the public as offering any
: novel information Nevertheless, though II De
| n commonplace that the English show greater
resnect for law and order than we do, OUT peo-
ple cannot have that truth borne IN upon Iheni
too often or too emphatically. 1t is an every
day complaint here that our courts are Iar De-
hind with their work The civil calendars are
so congested to amount TO pracucal uehiai
of Justice; and for criminal trials an lIlsui
ance company could well afford for moderate
premiums TO insure persons committing eflii'0
against conviction and punishment. Lawyers are
allowed TO multiply technical difficulties ID u,e
vav of the punishment of crime and even OF au-
mfnistratve discipline. Lax views OF the s'icreu-
ness of law prevent any attempt at al oeihs
made to punish many offences, ana dlslnelihe
iuries TO convict even when prosecutions are
undertaken While there may be need OF ne"
Judges and even Of new methods OF procedure
in our courts. the great reform here needed Is
that popular disposition which III England sus-
tains law and makes it possible for Mr. EVans
to say:
The most permanent impression that brought
home with me from the English metropolis was
the prompt and effective administration OF IdW
under the English system, and the respect u
commands while everywhere crime IS so reouceu
TO the minimum and order preserved. 1t prlhss
into relief the shortcomings in our own coull.Is
where our education and practice OF the law are
along the line of techntcalfty, The keynote OF
English administra ton is justice. though teehIh-
+ cal evasion must be thrust aslce.
/ Nobody who has ever watched the qniet. polite
but efficient London bobby" will fail to ap-
nreciate what Mr.. Evans says in his praise
! Compared With the American policeman he IS
poorly paid but nobody suggests the necessity
I. n i'm fO
/ the necessity of grating! And If he is ever
! fcG,nd in any dishonesty his dismissal is sure
without hope of reinstatement. His virtues are
not so much due to himself as to the COM
| munity in which he lives. The vices OF our
policemen reflect those of the people with whom
they deal. Our easygoing view OF law and the
obligation of obedience, and readiness to
tolerate all sorts of subterfuges to obstruct the
administration of Justice and then make up
for the shortcoming by taking the law into our
own hands-a trait by no means confined to the
South and West, where it most easily takes the
form of lynching-result in bad police protec-
ton and inefficient courts. Mr.. Evans makes
this statement about murder here and in Eng
land:
Crime In London, the famed East End. includ-
ing the Whitechapel district notwithstanding, is
at the minimum The number of murders COM
mitted in metropolitan London-which, after the
fashion of greater New-York in its encompasslng
only twenty-one in the twelve months of 1901
| The number in 1902 was twenty, and in 1913
only seventeen. And equal number of muir
derers were promptly convicted and as promptly
hanged. The contrasted cheapness of human life
/ is notable in the fact that during the months OF
! November and December Of last year there were
eighteen murders committed in Scranton, Penn.
| and it is my information that thus far no execu-
tions have resulted q retribution.
Such contrast as this is obviously con-
trast of civilizations not merely one of admin
istrative machinery. The English public SER
vice is in many respects more cumbersome than
! our own. Our people more curious, more
inventive, more ready to adopt new methods
than the English. We pride ourselves on our
adaptability. Yet with all our genius for or
! ganization and efficiency our administration Of
justice is unsatisfactory from the enforcement
I of the simplest sanitary regulation to the pun
ishment of murder. The trouble must be with
the spirit of the people and their attitude tow
ard law and unless the American character
can have developed in 1t a new respect for law
as law, and new determination to make law
an effective instrument of justice, American
civilization is bound to deteriorate