three trials in the county court. It was attended
to, and that faithfully, by the counsel.
Now, that was the way in which business was
delayed in the Baltimore county court by the ac-
cumulation of cases. And yet gentlemen get up
here and say we ought not to have three judges.
He would say, looking at the court of chancery,
and to the number of cases that passed through it.
if this Convention abolished it, one judge could
not do more than attend to the chancery business.
And the common law and appeal cases on our
docket would require, alone, two judges to at-
tend to the business. It was, also, a remarkable
fact, a lamentable fact, known to the profession,
that, owing to the amount of business in court, a
number of suitors would not go into it, but pre-
ferred to settle their cases even at a heavy dis-
count. He believed that a large number of cases
were settled by arbitration to avoid the delays of
court, if the business of the court could be dis-
patched speedily, and at small cost, the people
would be satisfied.
Mr. BLAKISTONE said that when he was last on
the floor he did not get through all he had to
say. He did not wish it to be understood that he
was against having a sufficient number of judges.
He was for giving Baltimore as many as was ne-
cessary, but not too many. If they gave Balti-
more city five separate judges, then it would be
necessary that their should be five separate
clerks. Well, that would be an additional tax.
But he entertained a strong reason why he would
not go for giving her a chancery court, and that
was, because if we did not do it, it was as certain
as possible that the old court of chancery would
be re-established. Well, he did not know that,
to his own feelings, any thing more agreeable
could happen. If the Convention abolished the
chancery court, they would deprive not only the
people of Baltimore of it, but all the other por-
tions of the State. Now, he wished to show
that the district composed of the counties of
Frederick, Washington and Allegany required
quite as much time to transact their business as
the city court of Baltimore. The number of
days the court was in session in this district, ac-
cording to the gentleman's (Mr. Gwinn's) record,
was 294. The number of days Baltimore city
court was in session was 240, being a difference
of 54 days for the district composed of Freder-
ick, Washington and Allegany. Now, he pro-
posed, as a matter of justice, if they gave Balti-
more city six courts, that they should also do
something for Western Maryland, whose citizens
were equally entitled, with those of Baltimore
city, to consideration. They were all equally
as good reformers: and yet some gentlemen said,
by their acts at least, that there ought to be a
discrimination against them. They say, "You
shall have as few judges in Eastern Maryland,
and in Southern Maryland, as we can help, but
yon may pile them upon us in Baltimore city.
Now, if it took 294 days to transact the business
in the district of Frederick, Washington and Al-
legany, and took Baltimore city 240 days, then
they could claim at least an equal number of
judges. He had already mid be did not wish to |
be understood as refuging to give Baltimore that
number of judges which was necessary to enable
them to transact all the business of the city; and
the Constitution should be so arranged as to give
each portion of the State judges sufficient to do
the business entrusted to them, with us little de-
lay as could be imagined. But we must be just
before we were generous. If, then, gentlemen-
would meet him on an equal platform, and say
they would give his (Mr. B's) constituents a
judge, he would meet them. But he must pro-
test against an undue proportion of the judges
being given to one locality, to the exclusion of
all the rest of the State, why was it, he would
ask, that one judge could dispose of 782 cases,
and it took five to dispose of 1336 ? and especially
where the population was in a small compass,
and where the judge could do more than twice
as much business than if he traveled. He hoped
that, before this subject was finally disposed of,
some gentleman would move to reconsider the
vote on the amendment, and also to re-establish
the old chancery court.
Mr. MORGAN thought the question had been
debated enough. He merely wanted to explain,
because there had been some misunderstanding
as to his own views on the subject. He had
urged on yesterday the appointment of two com-
mon law judges fur Baltimore city, the appoint-
ment of a criminal judge and a judge of the
orphans' court, and also a police court for Bal-
timore, if she thought proper to have it. That
was distinctly what he had urged on yesterday.
Now there seemed to be some difference of
opinion as to how the courts should be consti-
tuted, whether with separate equity jurisdiction
or by uniting it with the common courts. His
friend (Mr. Brent) had offered an amendment in
which he proposed that there should be but one
court, composed of a number of judges of de-
tailed duties. Now, he (Mr. Morgan) had no
objection to combining the jurisdiction of the
judges together and distributing the duties among
them, if the gentleman from Baltimore desired
to have a combination of those judges—that
they were not to be separated in their jurisdic-
tion—that one of the Judges should be detailed
to attend to equity business and another to the
common law business. He had no objection at
all to this arrangement. He desired not to be
understood as throwing any impediment in the
way of giving to Baltimore a certain number of
judges; but his objection was, as to the number
claimed, it being larger than he could assent to.
With respect to the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Baltimore city, (Mr. Brent,) he
would say that he had applied to one of the most
distinguished members of the bar, and he had
obtained his views on the subject. He observed
that if the chancery court was retained there,
there would be no necessity for another judge
for Baltimore. But he added that, if that court
was abolished, there might be a necessity for
three judges. In consequence of that, he had
drawn up the proposition which he held in his
hand, and if the motion to reconsider did pre-
vail in the Convention he would move it as a
substitute for the one separating the common |
