The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1905-01-11
More Circuits Needed.
The Newberry Observer says:

ouT eoUSSucu lne
Laurens Advertiser says, st is non-
sense to argue that the judges and
lawyers are responsible for tho delays
in dispoSipg of the courts business ,
Then who are responsible Some body
must be, for there are certainly delays
long and numerous, as everyone
knows who ever goes about court in
session. And ninety-nine par cent OF
these believe they are the judges and
the lawyers
THE ADVERTISER should have said
that the judges and lawyers are respon-
sible for only small portion of the de-
lays. We do not claim that the law
yers and judges are infallible.
Other causes count much larger in
the congestion Of court business than
their shortcomings. Here are some of
them.
Probably more time has been lost
in the last few years by defects in leg
islation rs to the drawing of juries
than from any single cause. Time and
time again, in this or that whole
jury panels have been quashed as
illegal. Such incidents have ne
cessitated adjournments of courts
and we believe in some instances
counties have been without courts for
jury cases for nearly q year.
Another cause Ia the delay Of Jury
men and witnesses in reaching the
courts III the editor of The Observer
~ili step into the court room some
Monday morning when the sessions be-
gin, he may find sixteen instead of eigh-
teen grand jurymen present, eighteen
we believe being the number required
for passing upon an indictment. Two
or three will send DOCTORS certificates
that they are i'll in bed. The news
will come that a "creek is up" fifteen
miles from the court house which Juror
Smith cannot cross. Possibly the train
from Lite Mountain or Silver Street
is two hours behind time. Possibly
some juror has died.
Most of the capital trials are of me-
groes who are poor. The law justly un-
dertakes to bring their witnesses into
court A constable must be sent
twenty miles perhaps to find the wit
ness and sometimes he must be cent
into another county.
This is another way of saying that
the population Of the counties is sparse
and the territory broad. In grea.
city jurors ard witnesses may be
br ught in quickly, but there are long
trials even in New York and some
times many days are consumed in OBJ
tanning jury. There are no subways
or even surface electric lines in New
berry county, Notwithstanding such
promising names as "Silver Street"
and "Jolly Street."
Sometimes jurors become i'll even af-
ter the court has begun its work
OF course the calendars always con.
tain large number of cases which
have been continued and many are
continued but we believe that The OBJ
server will find that the lawyers are
always ready with a sufficient number
of cases to occupy the courts attention
during the term. The judges are
always willing to work on while any
thing remains to be done but they
cannot prevent the absence Of wit
nesses or jurors. We believe that few
men In llne of business dispose of q
greater volume of business in given
time than our friend Tom Sease.
A great deal of time is frequently
consumed in the trial of o $50 COW
case OH the civil side OF the court but
the lawyers are not to blame for this.
A lawyer in Laurens must take the
twenty dollar as we'll as the twenty
thousand dollar cases II he means to
earn living and the average lawyer
in these parts must scratch lively even
for slim living at best.
We have the same number of circuits
and judges in South Carolina now that
we had when there were 80 instead Of
Al counties and little more than one
third Of the present population. Spar
tanburg county requires more time
from judges with its seventy thousand
people now than when 1t had thirty five
thousand people in 1876 We have been
familiar with courts for nearly thirty
years and the judges and solicitors
have always had plenty to do. Neces-
sarily their labors are uncomparably
heavier now than they were quarter
of @ century ago. Will The Observer
contend that four judges would have
been sufficient in 1880?
Over 200 homicides occur In this
state each year. This means that each
judge must try about rs cases for muir.
der alone each twelve months, that is,
he must give one month to murder
trials if day be allowed for such a
trial.
AS long &s the number of cases ready
for trial SO far as the lawyers are con-
cerned is sufficient to consume the
time OF the court term, 1t cannot be
success 'ul y argued that the cases not
ready for trial cause delays
The illness of judges causes delay.
We cannot prevent judge from be.
coming i'll occasionally. When there Is
two much work for eight judges the
illness OF one causes clogging of the
courts. With ten judges the illness OF
one would not be quite so serious q
matter.
Unless new circuits be created there
to M hn nj