The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1923-05-15
The LAWYERS and Their Laws.


f.on, he Carnegie Corporation, for tn
purpose OF making reinstatement o
the common law"
The LAWYERS have always contribut
Cd mos, OF the lawmakers to thei
country. with results not entirely sat
i.lsc,orv even - the BlacSstoniai
f..niiy. And so their leaders came TO
ec.ae recently, and they took stool
OF the,r legal holdings. They wer'
disrisycd TO find that in period dur
inc which n.rc than o. 200 judicia
decisions vcre rendered that mor'
than 60tlc new LAYS were enacted BY
congress snd the state legislatures
And thev agreed that their brightes
men. SC, ted from their own rank:
to be judges and justices had become
so bcfuddied about what the law IS
that while one of them decides in a
certain fashion, fellow judge, or sew
eral of them. is interpreting and de-
Gliding TIE same statute from a wholly
different judicial angle. A Just Judge
and good Judge" for instance. may
pass a sentence OF two or three years
in granddaughter case. while in far
less serious case "hard-boiled
Judge" may send up some erring SIN
ner for the majority part Of his re-
naming lifetime. And even so, the
illustration is most inadequate as the
criminal statutes are more easily in
tcrpre.ed, because of their natural
elasticity. than the laws bearing upon
civil actions. The best judges are.
presumably. on the most important
benches. but that seems to make no
difference because the United States
Supreme Court very often divides. and
hands down decisions where five JUS
tices take one view, while the other
four take the opposite side of the same
case.
In this sad plight a million dollars
OF the dead iron monger's money is to
be applied to reinstatement of the
common law" Ten years are to be
devoted to the task, and we are
warned at the very beginning that only
a part of the most important topics
can be completed in that time but it
is hoped that 'the value of the insti-
tnte and its work will be thoroughly
With the object set forth to 'restate
and simplify the law" no one is apt to
pick quarrel, but the average lay
man is likely to question whether the
of the law will work as fast
as the muddlcrs in the law during the
next ten years. If the simplifers can I
even keep even, then surely it looks
hopeful for the next generation. This
3 true. because lawyers were all law
vcrs in the beginning. but nowadays
hey divide into so many varieties that
! corporation lawyer is a stranger to
patent lawyer, and he who practices
'eforc the Departments" in Washing
on looks down with scorn and con-
empt upon his humble brother who
prrars IN the lower courts A few
n.n have broken into congress and
aain;l incd reputation as 'constitu-
Ion1l lawyers but more lawyers have
chievcd very indifferent results in re-
lrning TO the practice of their pro-
,ssior after retiring IRON public life.
Even so, the law ers are 10 be con-
ra'uIated upon the pride shown in
ie,r profession. and The attempt they
re making, with the sid of the Car
egie money TO make ,ae law under /
y: is not proposed to mod I
y the law. but the attempt will be Z
ong the lines OF drafting an author
alive statement of the law in the sense
at the decisions of the higher courts
e authoritative as legal precedents.
The Water Power Act. &
Over 100 applications for licenses or 3
,rriits have been made to the Fed \
al Power commission in about two g
:ars. This means that everywhere 3
ruout the United States there is a 3
lrpose in motion to abandon to a q
ny large degree the power house" g
here millions of tons Of coal arc fed b
10 the furnaces TO make steam. A y
nerstion ago water power was 3
cful only for manufacturing plants q
ratcj Immediately alongside the dam. q
consequence all the factories not q
fortunately situated. built engine q
uses" and burned coal But fire q
wire" has been developed to such q
extent that dam generates power q
It is conveyed by electricity over a 81
ice OF 200 miles or more. By join y
, its power with other places a SUI b
'-power zone has operated in the y
Ith covering distance of 500 miles. q;
c engineers who had this in charge ~
tina, they can distribute this water H.
ver over a zone of 1900 miles. The #