Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1911-10-26
Impeachment for Erring Judg-

If there is one thing above an
other that Taft has said on his
campaign tour at the expense of
the people that brands him as
jokesmith of the first magnitude,
it is his declaration for a more
liberal use of impeachment in
disciplining judges instead OF in
voking the recall. But recently
attention was publicly, through an
incident, directed to the fiasco
which resulted in the attempt to
impeach Judges Philips and Nc
Pherson of this judicial district for
their persistent interference in the
enforcement of Missouri laws on
maximum rates and two-cent fare,
and because the judges named had
gone off ON fishing trip to Mexico
with number of railway officials
LII private car.
Since then attention has been
directed by the press to the case
of Judge Swayne, of Florida,
which most of the reading public
recall. Swayne was a federal
district Judge. In 1905 the legis-
lature of Florida in joint session
adopted resolution declaring
that he was ignorant, corrupt, OPP
pressive, and a disgrace to the
state. and demanded his impeach-
ment. AS a result he was tried
before the United States senate
upon charges of stealing expense
money, with being a nonresident
of his district, with unlawfulIuse
of the private cars of a railroad
which he had thrown into the
hands of the receiver, with tyran-
nical and corrupt use Of his power
in Epunishing for contempt and
with various other offenses.
1t was proven by the govern
ment records that he had collected
$40 a day alleged travelling ex-
penses when he was not travelling,
his absorption of government
funds in that way amounting to
thousands of dollars, and board
ing housekeepers were introduced
to show that he had never paid
more than $40 month in that
time for board and room rent. 1t
was also proven by the conductors
that he always rode on annual
passes.
Judge Swayne himself admit
ted that he had used private cars
Of a 'jerk-water" road for the
transportation of himself and fam
lily and friends from Florida to
New York, and from Florida to the
Pacific coast, and admitted that
everything was charged to oper-
ating expenses of the road he had
placed in the hands of a receiver,
excusing himself upon the plea
that the general manager of the
road had told him that it was
"better to have the car running
than standing still" 1t was proven
that when a private car OF rail-
road company is used even by an
officer of that road on a iunket the
cost of the trip cannot be charged
up to operating expenses.
In proof Of the charge of his
abuse of power in contempt pro-
ceedings, it was shown that there
was a suit pending in his court
involving large tract Of Florida
land, and that just before it came
to trial attorneys discovered that
Judge Swayne had acquired a
large interest in the land in dis
pute, SO that his title would be al
fected by his own decision.
Thereupon the attorneys demand
ed that he get off the bench during
that trial, and to make their de-
mand emphatic they made him a
party to the suit in their plead
ings. Whereupon he procured
their arrest and fined and impris-
oned them, and in doing SO abused
them in vitriolic language.
But because two-thirds Of the
senators would not vote for his
impeac chment, Judge Swayne was
acquitted. Perhaps it is the con-
temptation of such cases as this
Swayne case that leads President
Taft, in his favorite capacity S.as
a Judge, to prefer impeachment to
the recall st. Joseph Observer.