Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1920-11-17

clerks of court are concerned. For
number of years it has been frequent
~ suggested that clerk of court should
be an appointive Office rather than
. elective. the idea back of this being
! that more competent officials in the
clerks office thus could be secured.
II has always been argued in support
OF this that judges were tar better
qualified to determine the Qualifica-
tons of man for a clerk of court
than either a convention or voters
taking part either in a primary or a
direct election. Upon the efficiency
of clerk of court rests in very
marked degree the smoothness with
which term of any court proceeds.
A good clerk makes for smoothness
and is great help both of the judge
and the attorneys in the trial of cases.
1t is equally true that an inefficient
clerk greatly though Internationally.
of course. hampers the workers.
Same Salaries for All
According to the statement Of those
interested in the bin it will provide for
an equal compensation. so far as sal
airy is concerned. The first draft of
the bill will provide. it is said, that
each of the 16 clerks of court receive
the annual salary Of $4,000.
On its face this would appear to be
an injustice to clerks of courts in
counties like Cumberland, Kennebec
and Penobscot where the work is
much greater than in such counties
as Lincoln and Waldo. But the meas
ure will provide a means of equalizing
this. There will be a provision that
in addition to this salary each clerk of
courts will receive all the fees Incl
dent to the Office. This would make
rthe clerks in the big counties receive
practically the same salary they now
get.
This plan. of course, if carried
through, will mean n return to the fee
system as far as the clerks of courts
are concerned which was abolished by
the legislature in 1905. That year the
SO called Stetson committee made
complete investigation of all salaries
and fees received by State and county
officials and as a result thereof. the
legislature took the fees away from
all officers in this State and placed
them on fiat salary basis.
As to County Attorneys
The reason for including county at
torneys as appointive officers is ex-
planned in this way by one of the
friends of the proposed law.
| THE sentiment has been growing
in Maine for some time that the
method of selecting county attorneys
was wrong. The county attorney is
one of the most important officials of
a county; he is more than county
official, he is State officer because all
prosecutions are made by the State of
Maine and not by an individual or a
county. The feeling has, constantly
grown that men to be prosecuting Of
ficers should have poise, judgment and
understanding. that they should be
men devoid of sympathy and Yet they
should not permit either their preju-
dices or their sympathies to run away
; with them.
! There has grown up Il tendency in
Maine to elect as county attorneys
newly admitted members of the bar
the young lawyers. The theory has
been that this would help to get them
established in their practice. Tn,
Cfuestiona.bly this is very good ar
rangement for the young attorney but
is 1t best for the State and county. is
it fair to the person accused of crime
or to the one who has suffered from
the commission of the crime? On the
one hand the accused may pe unjustly
prosecuted by such an inexperienced
person and on the other hand the
same lack of experience may result in
the failure properly to investigate the
crime.
I Under the plan proposed by this
bill, there Will be little danger of an
inexperienced man being named. The
court from it's position is able to form
correct opinions as to the ability of
members of the bar. When a major
ity of the members of the court should
settle upon man as best fitted to oc
cupy the position of county attorney
in any of the counties there would be,
it seems to me, good reason for be-
lieving that such a lawyer is thor
oughly competent for the position"