The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1913-09-30
The impeachment rrlal at Albany

One of the unfortunate aspects u
the Sulzer impeachment trial is that
So i1pny people OF New York state ap-
bLa7 TO have no confidence in the jul
.liclal quality OF he New York Sen
ate. whose membe 3 are heavy ma
J0liiy OF the judges now sitting in the
Cisc There are mira Justice; from
the court OF app9tls and the appp.la; e
division headed b. Chief justice Cul-
Ter. VINO is presldi1S. But they will
have Cniy nine vo.' q, on the question
e. the governors gull. or limo tence.
The senatorial part OF the court num-
bcrs As and 80 votes are enough to
convict the impeached official.
This il the sam, Senate that Only
a fcw months ago acI1itted, or vindi-
caied Senator Sulwell, who was
charged with legislative blacNmail
and wno was later IN convicted OF
the same crime III the criminal - Z rs
and s,Hi to Sing Spe. The Stl'well
cas-" SIS a convincing dcmonstra OF
that he New YORK Senate was con-
rroled Ly a sinister exterior influence.
II Is notorious that tfis outside irfiu-
ence i'll pred va,i - charges against
GCv. Sulzer which failed to impress
pa lie opinion, b. ore precipita, Ing
,lc scandal over tn tontributi1as to
the 10Y errors cdmgIlgn fund. ! is
not necessary to rive the esta5 50
ed fact that there vas q campai IN 70
destroy the governo: engineered by
the Loss of Tanmany hall, these
charges now being held by the court
Of IN eachment bs,;g its culmilst' on
o." Cannot fail to consider verv so
berry the cireums 3rce that am0ng
Suffers judges in t4Is impeachment
court tre numeron5 rien who were
in hot pursuit of him III the open sea
son To- undertaking lis past career.
SIT ,cr's counsel, Nj. Herrick, has
already objected &C The presence u
some ol these men as members % the
trial court on the & ound that they
cou not participate without unGCp
bias. The objection may not be valid
under the constitutions oyisions
creating court of impeachment, but
it is staring fact that the objection
Is well founded when viewed in the
light of actual conditions. If any OF
those considerations affecting the pro
priety of judges participation in q
case in which he had previously act
ed so as TO raise a presumption OF BIZ
as against him are to have weight in
the Su,zer impeachment trial, many
of the senators who have been promi-
nent in framing the indictment and
zea.ously gathering the evidence to
sustain IL would necessarily be bar
red from further participation.
There seems slight chance of es-
cape from the conclusion thai unless
the judges can be indisputably purg-
ed OF the element of bias the i'm
parchment trial system, as exemplifl-
ed in New York in the Sulzer case.
breaks down utterly. Those who, in
the earlier formative period of con
stitutional government, provided for
a court of impeachment could not
have forseen how completely legis.
latiye body like the New York Senate
may be under the political control of
a politician outside of its membership
In New York state. The later inclusion
of the justices OF the court of appeals
among the judges in an Impeachment
trial reveals an effort to rescue such
a court from the faint of a political
domination prejudicial to the impair
TALLY which is essential to the dis
OF Justice but it is highly
questionable that the effort succeeds.
One New York newspaper meets
this criticism by declaring that the
members casting As votes |
will be mere ciphers. II is curious |
statement it makes;-
In the case of Gov. Sulzer the real |
court of impeachment is composed of |
he judges of the court OF appeals. |
headed by Edgar NJ. Cullen. What |
hey say is the law will be the law. |
What they say is competent evidence |
will be competent evidence. Their
iecisicn will be the decision of the |
curt OF impeachment No coterie of |
Murphy senators will try to override |
heir rulings.
Such a condition OF affairs, If true,
s its own condemnation of the i'm |
leachment court as actually consti-
uted. If the As senatorial members |
are to vote on all questions as the
nine judicial members dictate the /
constitution would do much better to !
make the court of appeals the sole
of the power to Try officials
by the Assembly.
These considerations are palpably |
nvilyed in the present proceedings at
Albany; they are in mems minds. |
they raise issues that are distinct |
rom the personality OF Gov. Sulzer |
and would press upon public attention |
regardless of his guilt or his limo
'ence of the charges preferred agains
him. In the court of public opinion,
he impeachment court itself is on |
rial no less than the governor whose |
'ailings have brough, him TO the bar
Of iudgment.-Springfield Republican |
Makes 1t Possible
We have business arrangement |
with one OF the largest growers of
4 ,rfnop nannftr Rogac aud N thor |