The Paducah evening sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1906-1929, 1909-07-09

quit in disgust, satisfied that there is
no Justice in America, and the last
hope of human liberty is clogged with
foolish precedent, and lazy courts.
The legal fraternity is at fault in
one respect. They make the laws,
and they have honeycombed the
procedure with subtle means OF
avoiding the direct consequences of
an adverse decision. Lawyers canrem-
edy the defect in our higher courts.
It has been done in England, where
appeals are decided often in two and
three weeks, and II behooves MEM
bers of the bar to look to this in the
interest of society.
Another evil effect OF our antequat-
ed civil procedure, is the bitterness
It engenders in a community. In or
binary civil matters. when two men
disagree over a simple contract
or money. the element of human
nature enters into the situation.
Each looks at the issue from his own
point of view Average men under
such circumstances require only a
fair-minded, disinterested third party
to hear the facts and decide between
them. He need not even be a law
yer. Sometimes, we think II would
be better IL he were not versed In the
refinements Of legal learning. Two
men thas presenting their issue to a
court. Of record and method but of
less formal system, would appear in
the attitude Of seeking an arbitration
of differences.
BY the decision of the court In
nine cases out of ten, both sides
would be required to make some con-
cessions; for most disagreements are
at the bottom but misunderstandings,
and in nine cases out of ten the OPP
posing parties would leave the court
better friends and with a better un-
Outstanding of each other than when
they entered.
How different is our modern pro-
cedure. Two men disagree, and one
seeks a lawyer and presents his side
of the case. The lawyer Is employed
TO defeat the other fellow, and enters
suit The other party seeks a lawyer
and tells his side of the case. Then
two skilled players at the game of
law go into court, each acquainted
only with the facts as his client sees
them.
The lawyer is employed to win his
case If possible; but at all events to
defeat the purposes of the OPP
posing party, even though the court
may decide the purposes are proper.
No matter what the result of the
trial, the parties leave the court room,
each convinced that the other is a
liar and a person to be watched,
while both may be partly right and
partly wrong, and each laboring un-
der misunderstanding of the mo-
tives and views of the other.
The social atmosphere Of Padueah
and every other city today is charged
with hate and distrust generated in
court room, where two parties
went, each thinking himself right and
each seeking reparatlon for a griev-
ance that never existed.
We recognize, as we'll as do the
members of the bar, the necessity for
order and regularity in court proceed
ure. Justice must not be left to
chance; but, on the other hand, 1t
must not be smothered in a system of
absurd distractions; by which MUIR
derers may surround their crimes with
conventional circumstances that con-
stitute an absolute defense in a
court of law; and that enable de-
signing persons to reduce the prob
ability of retribution for their con-
duct to a risk commensurate with
tho ,~oate