The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-08-15
PRIMITIVE COZ RTS.
How Justice Was AdninIst-rcri In Rude
SURROUNDINGS.

F,--l Csss 1rf C5--.u
In tie dA,- Of which | writ" tie judicial
7 system. like the country. VAS IN - infancy
/ Tho circuit court wH- composed 81 press
dent Judge elected bv tho legislature aud
who presided a. all the ruurts IA the cir
| CU.'. and two associate Judgea elected IN
each county bv the people Tie president
Judge Was alwAvs a LAWYER ~ some expert
1 en,e The associate Judges we're not
| laNver- and they made NJ claims to legal
| AnowicIg- A. rule they Wrre typical
| reprezsutatiYe- Of The li,L woOIsn,eu and
| very ilfe-ate. N"F the. tad tie pOv er 70
| override the prr-,dtnE iuds" and Etvs the
| opinion % a.. court. aId they often did
| so In such instances their reasoning va.
| liksly 80 10 81 = most Wdi'rou- vhAraCter
However. they made ~ Va honesty what
they lacked In other q directions anl the re-
suits were NOT a. bad a. might ue mag ned
| They we're usually elected he, aGss Of their
| popularity and the we'll Known integrity
and Though they occasionally went wrong
rher constituents did not strongly censIre
them because Of Their mistakes
The clerks ~ the pioneer courts were
seldom qualified for the,r duties aud many
old time records are the living proofs Of
this statement Ihev we're ureduCa'ed. and
some VI them barely had tho ahiluy 10
| scrEWl their own names vet they did not
lack native shrewdne-s There vas clerk
IN one u the pioneer settlements OF central
Indians VITO h01s'ed - his superior quail
| fcltions by declaring thRt he had been sued
on evs-v $40 on at tho statute. and there
! fore knew tie law. while his opponent had
never been sued ana therefore could not
know he Law lie was elected on this
| platform
The sheriff. we're ,hosen nv the people
/ ami Tho man Who could send h. voice
! faTihes' IN the woods from The cour' house
] @ - "a N..N.
\ steu'orian voice. physical strength aud
red outrage we're the principal dullifcl-
tons Tor This ImpUT' ofi'e When the
court desired the presence 81 John smith
a. q petu Juror or "a witness y was mo
~n"r.1 duty 70 stand outside the court
house or poke his hcad oui 81 window and
eye three '.'''~ and With all he power 81 his
lungs. Iuhu smith come 20 court and
fohn generally heard the call and olcved
{, hs huuueu-d - b" 80 remote 'hl' hs did
mo- he'r here were ALWAYS plenty Of hotter
rTs who esteemed u an honor o., 90 after
hun written summons Vas seldom re-.
sptted -. II u.s. regarded Hs waste Of
material aud time. - say nothing 81 the
-,upendou- task which the preparation Of
such a documen, would place upon a clerk
Who could hold a plough handle or a rife
much more effectively than n pen
Bv far The most important men Who al
tended the sessions % Tho courts we're m.
vNerS especially n" younger ones But
nobody called them lawyers They Nere
sduire- To see a young squire With aueue
three feet long dangling down hts back and
tied With an e-l skin. s'ru'tinR backward
and forward over the rough hev sla ~ 'ha,
formed the noOr ~ he ordinary log court
no l-e. brought The NoOds men from near
end far aud To hear him plead was worth
a csrIsoms foot journey over Ice and snow
across sWollen rivers and creeks. through
an int cTminabe forest