The Detroit times., 1914-02-23
COURTS GIVEN.
HARD SCORING
BY WANAMAKER
Guilty Of Too Much Delay and
Lack Of Commonsense,
Says Ohio Jurist
DELIVERS ADDRESS AT
PROGRESSIVE BANQUET
George Fitch Foxes Heap of Fun
at the Republican
Party

1
at the Republican
Party
About 800 men and women attended
the banquet Of the Wayne County
Progressive club. In. the Hotel Point.
chartrain, Saturday evening. made
fun Of the Republican party. cheered
Roosevelt and drank toast to Presi.
dent Wilson.
Among the prominent Michigan
Progressive present were L. Whitney
Watkins. candidate for governor In
1912: Judge w. d. Gordon. candidate
for Acknowledgements; Chairman
Charles p. O'Neil and Secretary
Charles Hoffman, of the state central
committee; Otto c. Sprunk. vice
president Of the Wayne County Pro-
gressive club, and DR.. Eugene r..
Shipper. who presided % toastmaster.
Henry r. Pattengill. Of Lansing;
George Fitch, of Peoria. Ill; Con-
gresham Willus J. Hulings, of Oil
City, Pa: Congressman w. H. Hine-
baugh, of Ottawa. H.; Congressman
Roy o. Woodruff. of Bay City, and
Justice r. M. Wanamaker. OF the
Ohio supreme court, were the speak
ers.
George Fitch had lot of fun with
the Republican party.
The Republican party freed the
slaves In 1852" he said. ut hasn't
freed any slaves since. The party
machine has been stripped Of every
thing except Its reverse lever. When
you start II going, 1t runs right back
to 1858 and stays there.
"The Republican party. In 1912.
wrote: All men are free and equal,
subject to the will of the national
committee At this point the Pro-
gressives moved out where the air
was better and the company not so
mixed"
Judge Wanamaker advocated the
election Of United States supreme
court Justices by the people. He said.
In part:
Bench and bar have not yet gen.
orally wakened to the fact that this
III the year 1914, and that the people
are today demanding twentieth cen.
fury Judges to administer twentieth
century justice.
1T IL unfair, to say that this feel.
Ing Of unrest and abstraction with
the present day administration OF Jus.
tice 10 the work Of 2 few asitators. or
the radical part Of the press or ., few
ances are widespread and deep-seat-
al ~ ~
recognized by our body polite. They
among most OF the members Of the
bar"
Judge wanamaker presented an
indictment against the courts" In
nine counts. He accused them Of too
much delay. too long vacations. too
much expense, too many trials and
appeals, too much medieval law. too
much judge-made law. too much un.
certainty because of forms and tech.
nicalities. too little common sense.
and many other defects.
"The laws delays are the judges
delays" he said. "Of the cases con.
sidered In the mist prius courts. more
than half ought never to be tried at
all. The proper administration Of
Justice demands an early settlement
rather than long trial. Petty DIFF.
ferences between the parties ought to
be avoided for the sake Of the dignity
OF the court, no less than for simple
Justice. II has been my experience as
common pleas Judge that one-half Of
the cases put on the active trial could
be settled BY the friendly help Of the
court.
"The lawsuit has degenerated into
% personal controversy between The
lawyers. The rights Of the parties
have been lost sight Of, and the ques.
ton is az to who 10 the wittiest or
'cleverest lawyer"
Judge Wanamaker gave several II
lpstration Of defects IN court proceed.
IRE. and praised the Canadian method
TIe advocated allowing the trial Judge
To examine the Jurors, turning them
lover 70 the counsel for peremptory
challenge only when he IL satisfied
that the men In the box can try the
case fairly. He urged that after coun.
sci have made Z statement Of both
sides Of the case, the Judge ought to
be able to pick out the issues and
insist that nothing extra be consid.
cred. He criticised the present tedi.
GUS method of taking evidence.
"One Of the chief reasons for loss
|of confidence In courts among the
common people," he concluded, els
that for some years the most ardent
defenders Of our Judges have been
the oficers and counselors Of the big
trusts and syndicates."
FORMER SENATOR
MTv4 T YSn n MAN