The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1911-08-25
"THE RECALL OF THE JUDGES

LII LuO AOl lnallOl vi LAlS SOfCA
the three departments: Legislative,
executive and judicial, were made CO.
ordinate and co-equal In fact our
fathers endeavored to found a govern
ment of exact equality. 1t was not
until rather late period that the
judiciary was set upon a higher pin
nacle than the other branches of
government
Every day the judiciary is being
made more and more imperialistic.
President Taft vetoes the statehood
bill admitting New Mexico and Ari-
IONA into the union because of the
recall of the judges" contained in
the constitution of the state of Ari-
IONA. Apparently it is all right to re-
call the executive and the legislative
offices, but the judiciary, like the
king, can do no wrong and must be
given unlimited warrant
1t may be we'll to state that this pa
fper is opposed to the Initiative, ref
erendum and recall" While it is oeau-
tiful in treory, put into practice
seems impossible to CARRY out the
good intentions of the measure
But our opposition to it does not
arise from the recall of the judges
any more than the recall of any of the
other officers. This paper, catching
and breathing the full spirit Oh ,Ae
| founders of our government, would
put them all on an equal dignity. At
the time the government was found
to make the judges of higher dignity
than the other officers of government
but Mr.. Jefferson was not one of
those persons. He opposed this ten
dency toward Imperialism in our sys-
tenn of government with all the ardor
of his nature.
In letter to his friend Hon. Thos.
Richie in 1920. he spoke of it as fol-
lows:
ga judiciary, independent of king,
is good thing-but independence OF
the will of the people, is a solecism
in a republican government"
Just few years prior to his death
he wrote similarly to his friend, Hon.
William T. Barry. He says:
Before the canker is become in.
4 veterate, before it's venom has reach
ed so much of the body polite as to
get beyond control, remedy should be
applied. Let the appointment of
judges be for four or six years. This
will bring their conduct, at regular
periods, under revision and probation
We have erred in this point by copy.
ing England, where certainly it is
a good thing to have judges independ
ent of the king. But we have omitted
to copy their caution which makes a
judge removable on the address OF
both legislative houses. That there
should be public functionaries in
dependent of the nation, whatever
may be their demerit, is a solecism
in republic of the first order of alb
surdity and inconsistency"
OF the three coordinate branches
of government as contemplated by
himself and other members of the
convention who stood with him, while
he was yet president he tells his
friend, Hon. George Hay:
THE constitution intended that the
three branches of government should
be coordinate and independent Of
each other. AS to acts, therefore
which are to be done by either, it has
/ given no control to another branch.
| In September, 1919, he wrote tc
Judge Roane of Virginia:
'In denying the right the member!
, of the supreme court usurp the power
of exclusively explaining the constitu
ton. go further than you do, if | I'm
derstand rightly your quotation from
the federalist, of an opinion that the
: judiciary is the last resort in relation
: to the other departments of the gov
eminent, but not in relation to the
rights of the parties to campact undel
which the judiciary is derived L
l this opinion be sound, then, indeed
:, is our constitution a complete felo d.
se. For intending to establish three
departments, coordinate and in de
pendent, that they might check ant
balance one Another, it has given, &C
cording to this opinion, to one o
them alone the right to prescribe
rules for the government of thu
4 others, and to that one, too, which il
. unelected by and independent of thu
nation. For experience has alread.
= shown that the impeachment it ha
iprovided is not even a scarecrow.
i The constitution on this hypothesi
4 is a mere thing of wax in the hand
: of the judiciary, which they ma,
= twist and shape into any form the,
please. 1t should be remembered, a
an axiom of eternal truth in poll
e ties, that whatever power in any gov
+ eminent is independent is absolute
8 also. Independence can be trustee
- nowhere but with the people in mass
They are inherently independent o
all but moral law. My construction
l. of the constitution is very differen
e from that you quote. 1t is that eacl
!, department is truly Independent o
= the other, and has an equal right t
decide for itself what is the meanin!
of the constitution in the cases sub