The Columbus journal. (Columbus, Neb.) 1874-1911, 1909-11-10

COURTS OF JUSTICE"
The people are much displeased
with tho manner in which court bust
ness Is often conducted, but We doubt
If they will ever aceomplish reform.
The people grumble great deal, but
steadily neglect public afiaiA There
i really no reason Why the people
should not have public affairs sensi.
bly,, economically and expeditiously
conducted, except that the politicians
always manage to split the people into
factions, and nothing Is done.
Almost every noted lawyer has con-
feaed that the courts are too allow and
too expensive, and that they encourage
litigation that Is extremely discredi.
table in it, character, if not positively
dishonest. Yet nothing is done, ex-
cept to grumble. A writer in Allan
tic Monthly calls attention to grim.
" humorous illustration of one Of the
results to the litigant found in New
York Law suit which reached . final
chapter recently in the Court of Ap-
peals. It was . complex case against
IN insurance company on some poll.
cies of insurance, and each time it was
tried it took from . week to two
weeks attention of court and jury.
Owing to reversals and new trails Or
dered BY appellate courts, it had to be
tried nine times. It was'in the courts
from 1882 to 1902. The plaintiff be-
came at last 90 sick and dishearten.
ed with his interminable law suit that
he abandoned it, refused his law.
yers to consult with them about it or to
appear when the case was being tried.
Thelavyers had themselves spent over
forty-five hundred dollars on fighting
the case, and had worked on it 70,
nearly twenty years. Their client
having abandoned them, they settles
the case for thirty thousand dollars
and took the money themselves 70
their fee. The last chapter Of th
litigation WAS IN unsuccessful attemp
by the receiver in insolvency of th
plaintiff to make the lawyers give q
some of their fee to their clients cred
itors. How much the twenty year
delay in the law suit had to do Wit
the insolvency it is impossible to 80
but such IN outcome, to the lay mint
seems hardly satisfactory Is . result
twenty years of litigation, Of min
trials, and seventy-two days time
over q hundred jurors.
In one of the fairly recent volume
of the New York Court of Appeal
Reports is contained the last chapte
of q famous and extraordinary cas-
which is gross illustration ofthis in
"REMINISCENCES, and IN extrem
though characteristic example off
results. The court record of the Ia
chapter of this law suit is curt an
obscure; hardly what one might e,
pect for an extraordinary case.
consists of eight words: "Judgmer
and order affirmed with cost. N
opinion" These eight words mal
! the close of . simple accident case ir
? volving no difficult questions of lav
which has been in the courts contin
uously for twenty-five years. 1t ha
been tried before juries seven time
{ It has been argued in appellate cour'
ten times. The final bill of costs j
the case, not including lawyer
charges or the cost Of printing seve
different volumes of testimon,
each of from two or three hui
dred pages, Is required in appel
ate courts on the various appeals, an
: not including any Of defendants e,
penses whatever, is over two thousan
dollars. A conservative estimate
the expense of this litigation not il
GLIDING lawyers fees probably woul
be five thousands dollars.-Atchiso
! Globe.
> Fint-class printing done at tho Jou
nal Office.