Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-06-25
ASSOCIATION FOR FIRST TIME
SELECTS COMMITTEE TO NOM
MATE oFFtcERs.
pEs MONIES AND oskALoosA
AFTER NEXT CONVENTION
Judge Jesse Miller Brings Cordial In
vitation From Capital city-Execu-
tive Committee is named - Dean
Mismore, of Northwestern Univer-
sity, Delivers Able Address.

The Iowa State Bar Association pre-
pared to close it's convention at the
morning session today by changing the
customary method of nominating its
officers and delegating this power to a
committee appointed for that purpose.
Heretofore it has been the custom to
have the nominations made from the
convention floor.
A nominating committee of eleven,
one from one each congressional dis
trict, was chosen at caucuses of the
districts. AT the same time the fol- |
lowing members of the executive COM
rnittee, which also has a member from
each congressional district, We're cho
sen: Hazen 1. Sawyer, Keokuk; John
F. Dewitt, Muscatine; A j. Edwards,
Waterloo; d. I. Murphy, El1ader; j.
w. Willett, TaIHa; H. c. Lyman, Grin
nell; Judge Jesse A. Miller Des Moines;
c. j. Lewis, Washington; c. j. Saun-
ders, Council Bluffs; W. w. Goody-
koontz, Boone, and NJ. M. White, Ida
Grove.
Des Mones and oskaIoosa Want Con-
The executive committee will choose
the next place of meeting, and also fix
the time in addition to selecting the
| standing committees for the year.
Judge Jesse Miller, of Des Moines,
| extended warm invitation to the as
| ISOLATION to meet there next year. Os-
| kaloosa also made bid for the next
| meeting.
Dean John H. Wigmore of the North
l western Law School, Evanston. who
gave the principal address of the morn
ing session, was made an honorary
member of the association, and was
! thanked in a resolution which the as
ISOLATION adopted.
B. / Salinger, of Carroll, who was
on the program this morning for pa
per on Should the Method of Select
ing Our Judiciary Be Changed?" did
not arrive for the forenoon session. A
telegram received from him said he
/ would get here this afternoon.
Dean Wgmore's Address.
| Dean John H. Wigmore read a most
l able and practical paper on Rules of
| Evidence in Criminal Cases." which
| was listened to with marked attention,
/ and which contained much sensible in
| formation by which attorneys could
profit.
In his address he discussed the rules
against impeaching ones own witness,
| rules of dispositions, rules of expert tes-
| timony, oath of witnesses, order of
| evidence, the privilege of physician and
| patient and others.
Regarding the rule of impeaching
ones own witness, he said: II never
could see much sense in that rule. We
do not practice that way, so what is the
use of having the ruler"
In his discussion of the rule of depo-
sitions. he took up the statements of
1 deceased persons, arguing that it was
very unlikely that a person would die
| just for the sake of getting his evidence
| into the records.
Need of Official Records.
Dean Wigmore said there was per-
| sistent need for official and authentic
records of births, deaths, marriage ane
| divorce. He said the litigation:
which fail to get at the truth because
of the lack of these records are enor.
| nous. The keeping of such record!
should be made compulsory
The speaker initimated that the oatl
as ordinarily administered to witnesses
was little short of farce. He hold
that the oath should be made so i'm
pressive, by the manner or method o
its administering, that the witness
would feel the force of the obligation
and be touched by it. He thought Thu
witness should be compelled to repea
the oath while he was taking it.
He said that he was no friend of tn
rule that you could not cross examin
your own witnesses. He said that b.
such cross examination it was posi-
BILE to get at the truth by the shortes
and quickest way.
Thursday Afternoon Session.
The annual address of President Boil
linger opened the Thursday afternoo
meeting. He referred, with muc
praise, to the work of the other Off
GERS of the association, and how thr
their efforts the association had grow
so steadily and it's financial conditio
had become so satisfactory, with sue
substantial cash balance in tn
treasury.
He said the steadily growing deman
for a higher code of ethics of practic
and conduct, which the public and tn
bar itself was demanding of It's law
yers, has the result that the tren
of the profession in this respect wa
steadily advancing upward He argue
that high standards in the professio
were necessary to the upholding of tn
bar on a plane of high level.
Canon Of Ethics Adopted.
After discussion the canon of profes
sional ethics of the American Bar AS
ISOLATION was adopted bodily, and with
out change. Only one of dts parts, thu
relating to contingent fees, brought o,
any prolonged discussion. The othe
articles of the canon were adopte
with little or no debate.
The canon contains thirty-two art
cles exclusive of the oath of admissio
to the bar. These articles refer to til
duty Of the lawyer in court, selectio
Of judges, the defense for prosecute
Of those accused Of crime, negotiation
with opposite party, acquiring intere
in litigation, dealing with trust prof.
erty, contingent fees, suing client fl
.! fee. how far may a lawyer go in SUI
porting clients cause, appearance OF
lawyer as a witness for his ellen
newspaper discussion of y1endinp lities