Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-04-25
Federal Judges Should be Better
Paid.


dietary, for obvious reasons. Accord
ing to a Chicago Tribune Washing
ton dispatch, most of the judges in
the federal courts are compelled to
/ live from hand to- mouth, many are
| in debt, and some when they die
leave their families in actual want,
all because the niggardly salaries
provided.
This is the substance of revelations
made TO members of congress, before
which the Moon bill to increase the
| pay of the federal judiciary is pend
ing.
1t has developed that two striking
object lessons of the need of raising
judicial salaries have been given with
in the last few weeks.
Associate Justice Brewer of the Unit
ed States supreme court, who died re-
Gently, left his widow without funds.
The vacancy was offered to Governor
Hughes of New York, who has declin-
ed, it is said, because he was unable
to afford the financial sacrifice. The
president is trying still 10 induce Mr..
Hughes to reconsider. But if Mr..
Hughes finally declines it will be be-
cause of the financial sacrifice that
would be involved. He is not 4 rich
man and he has expressed his need of
providing for his family.
The pay of the judiciary has not
kept abreast OF the increase in the
cost of living, nor has it been main
tanned on a level with the pay of state
judges.
The grades of the federal judiciary,
the present salaries, and those pro-
posed in the Moon bill are:
Present Proposed
Chief justice, supreme
court ... $4,000 $4,000
Associate justices, su-
preme court .......... 10000 1880
Circuit judges ......... 1000 10000
District judges ........ 5000 5000
The judiciary committee has had a
hearing on the bill and has referred it
to a subcommittee which has taken
no action.
Although there has been much SEN
timent favorable to the bill in both
house and senate it is regarded as
doubtful whether the measure would
become a law even if it should come
out of the committee with favorable
report, Members Of congress have
been greatly impressed by the story
of Justice Brewers financial condition,
which has become widely circulated
since his death a few weeks ago.
When the juctice died, 1t appears, it
was found that he had no bank &C
count and that there was less than
SO in money in the house. The only
cash actually available for payment Of
his funeral expenses was his salary
due for a little less than a month of
actual service.
The estate consisted solely of the
family residence, a modest structure
in Sixteenth street, which was fully
paid for, and $4,000 life insurance, all
Of which was payable TO daughters of
Justice Brewers first marriage.
All that was left the widow was the
residence. Efforts are being made by
friends of the family to sell the house
and put the proceeds out at interest
for the support of the widow during
her declining years.
The Tribune says: Justice Brewer
lived with great simplicity and yet his
salary of $4,000 was completely swal-
lowed up by tie expenses of life in
Washington on me most modest scale
permissible to Il member of the sU-
preme court. He and Mrs. Brewer en-
tertained little and they had no ex-
pensive tastes. They did not even
keep a carriage, Mrs. Brewer making
her social calls in hired equipage.
THE salary he received as a mem
Der of the supreme court was so in
adequate for his needs that Justice
Brewer for many years was compelled
to add to his income by lecturing in
law schools IN this way he managed
to add to his income from $4,000 to
$4,000.
Justice Harlan is another who finds
it hard to make both ends meet on his
salary. For many years he, too, has
been a lecturer on the faculty of
George Washington university. Chief
Justice Fuller and Associate Justice
White have opulent private means and
Associate Justice Holmes is not en-
tirely dependent on his salary. The
other members of the court, however,
appreciate the difficulties of keeping
up their position in official life on the
salary fixed by law.
According to hundreds of lawyers
and the bar association committee
that are deluging congress with argu-
ments in favor of the Moon bill, the
time has come when it will be neces-
sary to pay higher salaries if the peo-
pie expect to get the highest grade of
lawyers for the federal bench.
AT the hearing before the judiciary
committee on April 3 Attorney VIII
liam B. Hornblower of New York said
that 'underpaid judges are called upon
to decide cases involving millions of
dollars and are expected to keep spot
less their judicial robes from even a
suspicion of corrupt motives
THAT the federal judges almost to
man have remained untainted, he
said, was a matter of constant amaze
Il