Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1911-03-30
Arguments Advanced in OPP
position All Fail to Stand
Scrutiny
IS BUT WISE PRECAUTION
Elevation to the Bench Does
Not Alter The Nam
Elevated

down the judiciary. and hose who
suggest this ought to know better.
Judge has no right, except as the
law gives it to him. and the people
make the laws. The judges right
to declare a law unconstitutional is
not an inherited right. 1t is grant.
ed by the constitution, and the con-
stitution is made by the people. In
fact. the constitution is distinctiyely
a popular instrument. Individual
rights are protected, and the people
who make the constitution want those
rights protected, and the people who
make the constitutions can be trust
ed to deal as fairly with judges as
with other officials. The argument
that judge can have any power
not conferred upon him by the people
or can rightfully exercise power con.
trary to the wishes of the people is
either relic OF past monarchy from
which we have departed, or fore
shadowing OF the plutocracy which
some seem to desire.
Ii is argued that the purpose Of
the recall is ITO make the judiciary
SubServient to the popular will" To
what will ought the judiciary to be
subservient? Not unpopular will?
We have had enough evidence that
! judges are human 10 enable us to
/ Withstand the appeal now made to
us to put our judges in a class by
! themselves. Have we not seen III
! iluential criminals escape just punish
ment through their power to touch
the sympathies of the court, and have
we not seen judges decide political
questions with just as much political
bias as the ward politician? What
state has not had it's examples of poll.
tical judges-and judges are just az
| likely to be partisan when they Sc
cure an appontive judgeship through
a pull as When they obtain an elec,
tive judgeship through their push.
Have We forgotten the electoral COM
mission of 1876? Did we not have
five supreme judges on that commits.
sion, and were they not the senior
judges in length of service, and did
they not decide according to their
political bias just as the senators and
representatives do? It so happened
that three of the judges were republi.
cans while only two were democrats.
therefore Hayes was seated. Had
there been three democrats instead
of two In the judicial group of the
electoral commission Tilden would
have been seated. 1t all depended
upon the vote OF one Judge, and his
vote depended entirely upon his party
affiliations. He voted just as he w..
ed at the polls, Notwithstanding tha
tact shat great constitutional aues,
lions We're presented and mighty in
terests hung upon the decision
Nothing is to be gained by shutting
our eyes to the fact that judges are
made Of the same kind Of clay that
was employed on the rest Of US, and
1t is just as we'll that the judge should
have before his eyes constantly the
possibility of rebuke if he goes con-
trary to the sense of justice in the
hearts of the people. A Judge will
u9 respected as long as he deserves
respect. and why longer? If judge
batravs HIS trust it is better to let
his sin fall upon himself that to have
1t rest upon the Judiciary. There
Will be more respect for the court
rather than less when the people
have 1t in their power to remove an
unfaithful servant. Now, if a judge
rests upder suspicion the distrust ia
apt to spread to his associates, but
when the people have the right in
their own hands their failure to use
1t is an answer to the criticism of
an official
But suppose a mistake should be
made OccasiOnally-that is not a suf.
flcient indictment against the syn-
TEN. Mistakes are to be expected
Just is our constitutions contemplate
the possibility of officials, even Judges
proving false to their trust. Why is
the power of impeachment lodged In
the legislature except upon the theory
that judge may deserve impeach-
ment? The recall is a form of i'm.
peachment in which the people act
as a jury. and they can be trusted
much better than any senate, even
the senate of the United States. Az.
ter the seating of Senator Lorimer
who will claim that the United States
senate is better body to try an Off.
cial charged with corruption than the
people themselves?
The recall is coming and when /,
has come We shall have a higher stan.
dard of integrity and a more Jealous
regard on the part of our officials for
justice and the public welfare