Danville intelligencer. [volume] (Danville, Pa.) 1859-1907, 1906-05-18
A FAIR REPLY.

70 the Readers of the Inteligeneer:--
In his circulrr letter issued to the vot-
ers of this Judicial District, Mr.. Herring
attacks my fitness for the position of
President Judge, solely upon the ground
OF my age, and upon what he sees fit to
/ call my lack of experience. | want to
say word to the voters on these SUBJ
| jects
Mr.. Herring has been actively practic-
ing law about seventeen years. Although
admitted to the bar in 1885, he was locat
ed at Scranton, as Revenue Collector for
four years, to say nothing of the time
during which he acted as President of
the Pennsylvania Paper Mills, at Cata-
wissa, to the almost entire exclusion of
his law business.
l have followed my profession exclu-
sievly for twelve years, so that in point
of active professional experience, there
is only about five years between us.
Moreover, believe | am clearly within
the facts when say that | have appear
ed before more juries, and tried more
cases in the Courts OF Columbia County
than Mr.. Herring. As District Attorney
alone, | have tried not less than one hun
dred and fifty cases. Certainly have
had three times the experienced that Mr..
Herring had when he went upon the
Bench ten years ago, and made, as he
claims, such good record.
Now as to the question of my age. If
elected Judge | would take my seat upon
the Bench only little short of "a years
OF age. Mr. Herring himself went upon
the Bench at 36, and do not notice in
his circular that he admits that he was
not good Judge by reason of his
youth. But, looking generally at the
history of the Bench of Pennsylvania,
affirm that the greatest Judges this Com
monwealth has ever produced, went up
on the Bench when they were from 81 to
SO years of age.
The greatest Judge in Pennsylvania, or
even the United States excepting posi-
bly, Chief Justice Marshall, was John
Bennister Gibson. Where is there a
lawyer who will deny this? Yet he be-
came Judge OF the Supreme Court at
SO. Duly second to Gibson as Judge,
and surprising him as lawyer and
statesman, stands jeremiah S. Black,
Chief Justice of our Supreme Court, U.
S. Attorney General and Secretary of
State. Yet, he was the President Judge
of Bedford, Blair Fulton and Somerset,
Counties at 81. James T. Mitchell, the
present Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court of Pennsylvania, went upon the
Bench at 36. Judge McClue, of the pres
sent Union and Snyder District, was
elected at 80, and he has just been over
whelmingly reelected for second
term.
But let us look nearer home. The two
Judges of our own district who achieved
the greatest fame, were Warren ]. Wood
ward and Ellis Lewis, the latter after
wards Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court. When these men so ably filled
the office of President Judge here in our
own locality, one was 50 and the other.
56, And these are not isolated, selected
cases.
| do not make these statements with
any idea of comparing either myself or
Mr.. Herring with these distinguished
men, but simply to prove that because a
man is "a years of age is no reason why
he cannot make good Judge. Indeed !
would much prefer, and be quite content,
to allow my legal and public career to
stand side by side with my opponents
without comment or self praise, but in
asmuch as Mr.. Herring, in his circular
letter, has seen fit to so magnify his own
merits, and so belittle mine, feel that
plain statement of these facts is due me.
In the near future shall try to see
you personally, but the district is large
and the time short. May take this op-
portunity of respectfully asking for your
vote and support?
Very respectfully,
JOHN G. HARMAN.