The San Francisco call., 1909-09-17

industrious.
OPPOSED TO SOCIALISM
The president then referred to the
tendency toward socialism by the
trades unions of France and England.
He thought this was a great mistake.
He praised the leaders of organized
labor in this country for opposing So
ciaHstic tendencies.
REFERS TO THE COURTS
Referring to the courts. President
Taft said:
There is no subject upon which 1
feel so deeply as upon the necessity
| for reform in the administra ton OF
! both civil and criminal laws To sum
! IL all up in one phrase, the dlf1culty IN
both is undue delay. 1t is not too much
to say that the administration OF crimi-
nal law in this country is disgrace
TO our civilization and that the preVa-
lence OF crime and fraud which here is
pean countries, is due largely to the
failure of law and its administrators
to bring criminals TO Justice
am sure that this failure is not due
to corruption of officials 1t is not due
to their negligence or laziness, al
though of course, there may be both
the system against which IL is i'm,
possible for an earnest prosecutor and
an efficient Judge to struggle.
We inherited our system of criml-
nal prosecutions and the constitutional
provisions for the protection of the
accused in his trial from England and
her laws We inherited from her the
jury trial All these limitations and
the Jury system still remain In Eng
land. but they have not interfered with
an effective prosecution OF criminals
and their punishment.
THE ENGLISH JUDGE
There has not been undue delay in
the English criminal courts In this
country we have generally altered the
relation Of the judge to the jury. In
England the Judge controls the trial,
controls th" lawyers, keeps them TO
relevant and proper argument, aids the
Jury in its consideration of the facts,
not by direction. but by suggestion,
and the lawyers in the conduct of the
cases are made to feel that they have
an obligation, not only to their clients,
but also to the court and 10 the public
at large. not to abuse their office in
such q way as unduly TO lengthen the
trial and unduIy to d:rect the attention
of the court and the jury away from
the real facts at issue.
AMERICANS FEAR JUDGE
In this country there seems to have
been on the part of all state legislators
fear OF the judge, and not Of the
jury. and the power which he exercises
in the English courts has by legisla-
tion been reduced from time TO time
until now and this is especially true
in western states. he has hardly more
power than the moderator In re-
ligious assembly
A murder case in England VIII be
disposed of in a day or two days. that
here viii take three weeks or month,
and no one can say. after an examina-
fion of the record in England that the
rights OF the defendant have not been
preserved. and that justice has not
been done
ABUSE OF APPEAL
There is another defect of our pro-
cedure. No criminal is content with a
judgment of the court below, and well
reversals is so great as TO encourage
il in every case and 10 hold important
judgments in appellate proceedings
sometimes for years. | don't know
when the reforms are to be brought
about in this country. Until our people
shall become fully aware and in some
concrete way be made 70 suffer from
the escape OF criminals from just judg
ment the system may continue.
The trial here is game in which
the advantage, is with the criminal, and
III he wins he seems TO have the SYM
pathy of the public.
DELAYS FAVOR THE RICH
But reform in our criminal procedure
is not the only reform we ought to
have in our courts. On the civil side
of the courts there is undue delay and
this always works for the benefit of
the man with the longest purse. The
employment of lawyers and the pay.
ment of costs all become more expen-
sive as the litigation is extended
1t used to be thought that a system
by which cases Involving small amounts
could be carried TO the supreme coart
through two or three courts of inter-
mediate appeal was a perfect system,
/ becaus 1t gave the poor man the same
right to go to the supreme court as
| a rich man. Nothing is farther from
| the truth.
What the poor man needs is prompt
decision of his case, and by limiting the
appeals in cases involving small
| amounts of money so that there shall
| be final decision in the lower court
an opportunity is given to the poor
| litigant TO secure judgment in time
TO enjoy 1T and not after he has ex-.
hausted all his resources IN Iftfga tion
! 20 the supreme court.
WANTS A COMMISSION
But I conceive that the situation is
now ripe for the appointment OF
commission by congress to take up
| the question of the laws delays In the
| federal courts and to report a system
| which shall not only secure quick and
cheap justice to the lftfgants in the
| federal courts, but shall offer model
! to the legislators and courts of the
| states by the use of which they can
| themselves institute reforms.
OF all the questions before the
American people / regard no one as
more important than Improvement of
the administration of Justice We must
make it so the poor man will have as