Albuquerque evening citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1905-1907, 1905-09-23

quircd no discretion; If The execution OF
the law was mere automaton; II the law
through the medium Of mere dummies
executed Itself, there would be some rea-
son for the position. But the experience
Of all mankind shows that the well being
and happiness of the people depend as
much. IL not more. on the manner Of en-
| forcing the law than on the policy OF its
enactment. It was not so much bad laws
as bad judges like J~effries, that during
the reign Of James II made English life
almost intolerahlc.
Everything that conduccs to the happi-
ness and satisfaction Of the people Is
good while everything hat tends to rem
der them unhappy is bad. a good Judge
can administer n bad law with more
satisfaction Co the people. than a bad
Judge can administer q good law. Every
thing is I'm allowing the people TO believe,
TO understand, and to appreciate the
fact that the court is their court. that
the Judge is their judge, and that he ana
they are part Of the same people. For
that reason ! favor the election Of judges
by the people.
Judge elected by the people will he in
| clined TO favor the party %electing him.
Are not appointed judges inclined to the
same infirmity? Even on this score the
elective Is preferable to the appointive
system; for n judge who has received
the suffragos of "a majority Of the quail
fled voters must have received the sup
port of % very large proportion of the
people. To satisfy these people, his ad-
ministration of the law must be such as
to meet and satisfy all just criticism.
When. however. he holds the commits
sion Of one man only, and that man a
thousand miles away from the scene OF
ornrttion. th, natural tendency OF the
| situation is to render the judge, or other
officer. Indifferent TO the appreciation or
the people over whom he Is called upon
to PRESIDE. All officers, whether, belong
ing to the executive or judicial branches
Of the government are naturally deslr-
Gus of propitiating the good will OF that
mower under, ar from whom they hold
their respective commissions. NAV
mower be the executive or the Inlltu
States then they are anxious to please
the president, and arc Indifferent TO the
views Of the people. While II elected 10y
the people, they are anxious 10 pIeaSe
| The peopic, and are Indifferent to the
views Of the president.
In the former case they feel them
selves to be. what In fact ana IN law
they are. or ought to be, to-Wlt' puplID
servants; while i'm the latter case they
are too much inclincd to regard th'i'-
selves as pubic masters. Nor Is 1t true
that the people are not as well qualltleu
to select their judges as to select thelr
other officers. They elect their delegale
to congress. they elect their sherltts'
traasurers and probate judges: why not
their district and supreme Judges as
wellf
/ believe that congress should author,
ize the people of each judicial district OF
this territory to elect their district judges
and should also authorize the people OF
the territory at large to elect their su-
preme Judges. However, as a compro-
mise it might be well to give the electIoh
of nisiprlus Judges to the people; provid-
ing for the appointment of an appellate
or supreme court. l am firmly OF the
opinion, however, that two reforms are
needed
First that the people ought to be en-
powered to elect the Judges, who in the
first instance try their cases, and second
that we ought to have an independent
appellate jurisdiction. ! believe that in
most, If not in all states, the judges are
elected by the people, and on the whole
It has been found to work well, because
after all, If we would have the law ad-
ministered properly, the people That are
called upon to obey, and enforce the law,
must feel that they, themselves, are
part of that law. No power in this coun-
try has ever been found sufficient to en-
force the law as against a dtsloyal citi-
zenship. If you would Ia a good gov
ernment you must have a good eOple; If
you would have a good people you must
have a loyal people; If you would have
a loyal people you must have a people
i'm love, not only with their lawmakers,
but with the executors or administrators
of that law as well.
As to the second proposition that we
should have a supreme court absolutely
independent of a trial court, the neces-
sity for hat reform is too great to need
any argument at my hands. The pres
ent sysem has the approval Of no one,
so far as ] am advised. / think | appeal
to the experience of every lawyer who
hears me when | say that 10 attorney
can get VI before the supreme court,
constituted as ours, of judges who are
the associates not only officially but
personally. and socially. with the Judge
to be reviewed, without a feeling Of ex-
treme embarrassment. We are inclined
to introduce every argument that we
may nave to offer with an apology for
differing with the Judge. We crave the
indulgence of the court while we Criti-
else one of it's members. This ought not
to be. For every attorney. when he
brings his case to the Supreme Court,
ought to feel that in the interest of his
client, and in the interest of right and
of truth, he is at liberty to expose i'm the
p~lainest possible respectful language
what he regards as an error of the court
below, and he ought not to be continually
called upon to apologize for exercising
his right.
Then again the Supreme Court, itself,
will be relieved of very many embarrass-
ments that are attendant upon our pres
ent system. To say that our Supreme
Court, constituted as IL is, is as well pre-
pared to hear the appellant as the appel
lee; to say that 1t is just as willing to
reverse as to affirm the judgment ap-
pealed from; Is to aver that they are
able to do what no class Of men have
ever yet been able to do, and that is to
disregard and set aside all of those feel
ings of personal regard and attachment
that are created by their association
with their brethren. II Is to aver that In
becoming judges they cease to he men.
l am of the opinion, therefore, that this
Bar Association ought to take IN tn,
subject with the congress of the United
states and urge upon that body the ne
cessity of providing a court of appeals.