The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1908-05-07

The public sometimes say that men
with wealth and influence go unwhip-
ped OF justice, while men without
wealth or influence are punished.
There may be a grain of truth in
this. Attention is called to this only
to impress upon the grand and petit
jurors that they are to a very large
degree responsible for this, but,
knowing you as do" said Judge
Lynch. Il do not lay the charge att
your door," The popular notion isl
that all these failures are attribut-
able to one person and one alone.
The very first criticism is that the
court Is largely responsible for any
failure In the administration OF jus
tice. Public officials are only ser
wants and agents Of the public. Not
In ones private business would all Of
that business be entrusted to clerk,
and when one fails in business mo-
one says It was the fault of the clerk.
But the owner gives the business his
imemdiate oversight and directs the
business. II the clerk is remiss in
the. discharge of his duties, the en-
ployer reminds him. The business
man observes what his clerk does and
takes an interest in the business.
And, so, is the public interested in
what the grand jury does. The
public Is also Responsible and has no
right to shirk its duty. as the grand
jury can not act successfully unless
informed. Information must be
gotten from witnesses. 1t is the
duty of every private citizen to help
obtain evidence and Sc that it goes
before the grand jury, If he knows
1t is the. duty OF those who know Of
violations to complain to magistrates,
have warrants issued and the Offend
ers arrested, thus setting the wheels
of Justice in motion. But, instead,
many of them censure the public Of
ficials because they are not doing
what they think they should do. If
the public and the court would CO.
operate there would be state of af-
fairs from what obtains in Harrison
county now, especially in some parts
of the county.
Duties Not Complicated.
The administration of Justice is
not intricate nor are the duties of
the grand jury complicated, but
plain, simple and easily understood
and determined.
The law is an expression of COM
mon sence-an ingredient that lies
at the basis Of all successful bust
ness-plain and common sense. No
man succeeds without fair supply
of 1t. Those who have studied our
constitutional law, know it grew out
OF the ordinary transactions between
man and men in the earliest stages
of development. 1t started out from
that period when might made right
and one man was entitled to anoth-
er's hat because he had the physical
strength to take 1t from him. That
was not common sense and 1t did not
and could not last long. The orig
inal idea as advanced by Moses was
who SO sheddeth mans blood,
by man shall his blood be
she'd" Out of What grew the
idea that the family of the in
jured person had been injured and
had the right of redress to punish and
to seek damages. Then the idea ex-
tended to the tribe, then to large
bodies, then to the government, I'M
til today an offense against a per-
son is an offense against the state.
An assault is an offense against the
state and so with all other crimes.
Early history OF the law was that
damages. called blood right, could be
had, so much for an arm, SO much
for an eye, SO much for leg. This
has not been entirely eliminated as
the offender can be punished and
damages can be sought against him.
This is mentioned merely to show
that all laws grew out of common
sense dealings between man and man
in the earlier stage of our develop
ment. The fundamental idea of JUS
tice is fair dealing or as the Presi-
dent of the United States puts it, a
square deal.
License Laws Violated.
Judge Lynch said the licenses
granted for saloons in the county
were within the city of Clarksburg.
In every license granted and every
bond given there is provision that
the person granted license will not
sell to persons in the habit of drink
ing to intoxication, and not to per-
sons under age, or whom he has rea-
son to believe is under 81 years of
age. nor sell on the Sabbath day.
Judge Lynch said he had every rea-
son to believe, though he did not
know 1t to be fact, that each one
of these persons violated the law
every day in the week except Sunday
and with that every seventh day in
the week, in the city Of Clarksburg,
and, perhaps, by all engaged in the
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