Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-02-07
BY DUKE WELLINGTON

- AAhAA1bNi VI aO1il6 HELL anu ablAAt
old ones as well, have been noticed
for the past couple of weeks busily
engaged in the court-rooms at the
Court House taking notes and data
of the proceedings. When they are
not engaged in doing this they are
bothering the life out of the court
attendants and newspaper men with
questions as to the duties of court
criers, court attendants and other Of
1cials.
Here is the reason. A civil service
examination for candidates for court
attendants is to take place within a
few days while little later an ex-
animation is TO be held for the posi-
ton of court crier in the Supreme
Court to fill the vacancy caused by
the, death Of Charles ". Ougheltree
a few weeks ago.
The men, young and old, who are
hanging around the court-rooms these
days are booming" up for the exami-
nations. From the present outlook
the number taking both examinations
will be large. For the position OF
court crier many OF the present court
attendants will take the examination,
as the position pays $500 per annum
against s1,092, the court attendant
salary
One of the principal points that
seem to bother the WouId-be court
attendants and criers is as to the
duties OF the respective positions.
Another thing that is worrying them
is the names of the different courts
of justice in this city. There is little
in those two questions that should
cause any trouble in answering
The duties of the court attendants
are to preserve order in the court
rooms, to look after the safeguarding
of prisoners on trial and to act as
messengers for the judge and court
clerks as occasion requires.
That in brief constitutes the duties
of the court attendants. OF course
there are other specific duties such
as the doormen Of the different court
rooms are called on 10 perform, but
| these matters are arranged by the
judges by way of assignment of GER
tain of the officers attached to his
court to specific duties
The position of court erier is con-
siderahly in the nature of a sinecure,
as his duties consist in attendance
on the judge at all times while the
latter is on the bench. The court
crieD makes the familiar Hear We,
Hear We" announcement at the open
| ing of each session of court. In some
of the courts he is also called on to
administer the oath to witnesses
about to testify. This is true in the
| two criminal courts but has not been
| the custom in the civil courts where
the court clerks administer the oath.
| The courts of justice in the county
consist of seven general branches.
They are the Supreme Court, Circuit
/ Court, Court of Common Pleas, Juve-
nile Court, Chancery Court, district
courts and police courts, the latter
numbering two.
The Supreme Court and the Circuit
Court handle all the civil suits, con-
domination proceedings and similar
matters These two courts are To-
Gated on the top floor of the Court
| House. The Chancery Court, located
in the Prudential building, is not,
strictly speaking, a county court.
neither is the Supreme Court for that
matter, as both are eligible to handle
matters having origin outside of Es-
sex county. Divorce proceedings,
suits in equity, injunction proceed
ings, etc, are handled in the Court
of Chancery.
r The Court of Common Pleas en-
braces the Court of Oyer and Termi-
ner, Special Sessions and General
| Sessions Court, all of which are de-
voted to the handling of criminal
matters and Orphans curt, in which
matters pertaining to wills and es-
tates are handled.
In addition to this work. the Court
of Common Pleas is called on to
handle mass of other matters, in
GLIDING the hearings of petitions for
widows pensions, liability act pro-
ceedings, the granting of liquor IL
censes in townships of the county
and various other matters.
In Essex county there are two parts
William p. Martin presiding over
part l., while Judge Harry V. Os-
borne is the presiding judge over
part III. The official title of a judge
of the Court of Common Pleas is
president judge" and that title is
used by the judges in all official doc
uments signed by them. Just at
present there is third part of the
Common Pleas Court in this county
known as Part ILL.," and presided
over by judges temporarily obtained
from other counties where the vol
ume of business is not as great as it
is in Essex county.
The Juvenile Court has jurisdiction
in all matters pertaining to domestic
relations, otherwise quarrels between
man and wife, and in the handling of
juvenile delinquents under the age of
sixteen years.
The judges of the different courts
are Chief Justice William S. Gum
mere, who is the representative of the
Supreme Court in the seventh Judi
cial district which consists of Essex
county; Judges Frederick Adams and
Nelson Y. DUNCAN, circuit; Judges
William P. Martin and Harry V. Os-
borne, common pleas judges, and
Judge Patrick ]. Dolan, Juvenile
Court judge.
The vice-chancellors who sit in
Newark are James E. Howell, John
r. Emery ana Frederick W. Stevens.
but as told above the Chancery Court
is not strictly speaking a county
court, as the business of the court
extends outside the limits of Essex
county.
The district courts have no juris-
diction in criminal matters,
and only in civil cases where
the amount involved does not
exceed $500. There are four of
these courts in the county, two To-
Gated in the basement of the City
Hall, one in Orange and one in
Montclair. Thomas j. Lintott and
Cecil II. Mcmahon are the district
coulr judges in Newark, Judge DAME
\ Dugan presided over the Orange
court, while Judge James P Mylod is
judge of the Montclair court.
The criminal courts of the city of
Newark are two in number, the