The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1913-04-09

ed for four years and his
compensation fixed by law"
Section 81 States attorney is "eIig-
ible" to this position.
Section %. Such court may be
abolished by the Legislature
This. in brief, is the creation and
Jurisdiction and officers Of both courts. |
The objects TO be attained are pri-
marily economy and humanity and, |
while not accurate TO a dollar. we may
take last term Of circuit court and it
will serve as reasonable basis Of call
culation.
AS TO the civil docket: There were 49
! civil cases on the docket. OF these.
seventeen would be triable in county
court
AS to the criminal docket: There
were So criminal cases on the docket:
eight murder and rape cases-so that
45 of this number would be triable in
the criminal court of record. OF these
SO eases there are two misdemeanors
that would be triable in the county
court.
As TO the matter of expense If some
one with inclination and some dill
gence would get the pay rolls, it would
not be wholly a matter festinate, as
have made. Another important mat
| ter is the time" of holding circuit
court in Marion county. Experience,
| by many. clearly proves that the week
| before Christmas you cannot accom-
/ plish much, and Immediately following
/ this is New Year holiday and ii is hard
for business. We tried TO correct this
and after three meetings by the at
torneys in the fve counties, and a bill
/ agreed on it was sent TO the legisla-
/ ture for 1909, and the representative
from Sumter county, it is stated, out
witted our statesmen, and it failed---a
fearful miscarriage. but we take 1T as
we find it.
Assume that the grand jury investi-
gate thirty cases, and an average of
FIVE witnesses to each case, and an
average attendance on grand jury five
days, and live an average distance of
ten miles from the courthouse, for each
witness to travel, the result is: Wit
ness, per diem, in one case. Ave witness
es, five days at 81 per day, $25; and
thirty cases. $3.50: mileage five wit
Inesses, 20 miles in one case and thirty
leases, is 5000 miles at five cents per
mile, $50. We say now of the thirty
eases, twenty indictments are found.
and we then have in part the same for
trial of case. How many days await
ing trial? Our average term is five to
six weeks, and increasing. We take
the six. and discount increasing time.
An average attendance after grand
jury find Indictment is fixed at seven
days. So, you have FIVE witnesses sew
en- days, $40 Tor one case, and twenty
cases, 500. Now, the grand jury cost,
| and We Will average ten days, and in
creasing. You have eighteen jurors at
SO per day, s54 per day for ten days
$40; mileage, Is men, 30 miles each
$50 miles at five cents, SIS. This mile
age is not enough. and perhaps all the
estimates should be one-third more.
Summoning witnesses before the grand
jury; 80 eases, five witnesses each case,
$50. average of 5000 miles at 10 cents
per mile. $500 for sheriff. Feeding
lprisoners: Take an average of Is cases
average three months, at 40 cents a
day, $12 a month one case, and 15
cases, $3.50 per month, for three
months, $540 How many false aff1-
davits for absent witnesses and cases
continued and much of this cost re-
peated incurred again, and this is
: omitted from this statement. Bear in
mind this is not near "alr' the cost,
for no account is made of clerks cost
. bringing prisoners to and from jail
and attachments. mileage and cost of
service and it is a considerable sum.
This statement will grow to such
4 | proportions that one communication is
too murdensome and it is based on es-
Inmates largely, and at best only a
basis to consider and invest gate the
matter more thoroughly Did it ever
occur to you that one judge had all OF
this. and in five counties mot one
III n0 Wy
then this not one-half of what he
does Add to this estimate the esti,
mate of four other counties, and ther
add the many hundreds of chancery
+ cases, bills for injunction. receivers
4 habeas corpus, divorce, clouds on title
/ pleadings of all characters and, abov,
all, the inestimable privilege 90 o
HAVING to listen to arguments with
out law of the many learned advo
Gates, barristers, counselors and law
4 YeFs, and don't you see what fin
thing he has? 1t is fine ESQ I hav
heard.)
have not gone into the expression o
y any opinion and as I have no time t
get up exact data, and no one to do
for me, 1 should not care to enter int
- discussions in the public print of tn
matter in the absence of data no
wholly estimates.
The great evil is that when the con
ditions are sought to be connected, i'm
mediately politics. wire-puIling an
personal advancement get into it mo.
prominently and that which is realI
best is lost sight Of
IN I am willing to aid in getting dat
and discussing it. if desired.
w S. Bullock