Mr. HEBB submitted the following amend-
ment to the section:
Strike out all after the word "the," in the
first line, and insert :
"State shall be divided into thirteen judi-
cial circuits, in manner following: The
counties of St. Mary's and Charles, shall constitute
the first circuit; the counties of Anne
Arundel and Calvert, the second; the coun-
ties of Prince George's and Montgomery the
third; the county of Frederick, the fourth ;
the county of Washington, the fifth; the
county of Allegany. the sixth; the counties of
Carroll and Howard, the seventh; the county
of Baltimore, the eighth; the counties of
Harford and Cecil, the ninth; the counties of
Kent and Queen Anne's, the tenth; the
counties of Talbot and Caroline, the eleventh;
the counties of Dorchester, Somerset and
Worcester, the twelfth; and the city of Baltimore,
the thirteenth.
Mr. STIRLING. I shall very cheerfully sup-
port this amendment. I have all the time
opposed giving to each county one judge;
but I am decidedly in favor of increasing the
facilities of all parts of the State tinder the
present system. And I think this amend-
ment, putting not more than two counties
together, except in one instance, and giving
the large counties one judge, very properly
meets the whole difficulty. It puts the
smaller counties in a vastly better position
than they are in at present, and I hope will
be accepted by them. I think it will to some
extent ameliorate the difficulties of our pres-
ent system; and I hope it will be adopted.
Mr. BILLINGSLEY. Does that give to each
county in the judicial district ajudge?
The PRESIDENT. No, air.
Mr. BILLINGSLEY. I thought the question
of one judge to each county had been de-
cided?
The PRESIDENT. No, sir; it was carried
last night and rejected this morning.
Mr. PETER. The great object to he attained
by having one judge for each county was that
there might be some remedy for the system as
it existed in our courts. At the same time
I thought it would be a great advantage to
the people, not only residing in our counties,
but throughout the State, to have their busi-
ness attended to at once, especially in the
chancery practice in our courts. How is it
now in our courts? We have two chancery
courts appointed in the year. Our judge has
more chancery business than almost any two
judges can attend to. The consequence is
that we have but one chancery court in the
year and the disputed cases occupy the time.
The court cannot get a trial and at decision
for two years. Our judge labors; I will ad-
mit, almost day and night under the necessities
of the case.
Now I appeal to this convention whether it;
is right to designate certain counties of this |
State, and give them the advantage of a judge,
and give their lawyers this advantage in their
practice, that they can always have a judge
sitting at their elbows, while in other por-
tions of the State the lawyers have to travel
forty to sixty miles to get a little order passed
in chancery.
Gentlemen seem to forget that it is not
merely in chancery or in the common law
business of our courts that there is a great
advantage in having a judge present; but the
orphans' court is pressed with business. Once
if a gentleman thought proper he could go to
that court to get business transacted when it
was a plain matter of the settlement of an ac-
count. How is it now? Very often an or-
phans' court is so crowded, meeting one day
ill the week, that business is postponed week
after week until it hangs for years before we
can get even a simple account adjusted.
1 thought the great object to be attained
by this one-judge system was to have a judge
in each county that could transact the busi-
ness of the orphans' court; that it would save
time; that lawyers throughout the State might
have equal advantages in the transaction of
their other business, I do not see the fairness of
the gentleman's proposition at. all. If Frede-
rick county is entitled to one judge, why not
Montgomery? Why not have the same sys-
tem throughout the State?
1 admit that the city of Baltimore is so
large that it would take one judge to transact,
the whole business; but if the judge is not to
attend to the business of the orphans' court,
why nut put Frederick and Washington
county together? One judge could probably
transact the business of those two counties.
How is it now in our judicial division. We
have Howard, Calvert, Anne Arundel and
Montgomery, all combined. I will admit that
one judge is not able to transact the business
of those counties; but I unhesitatingly say
that if the judge is not to transact the or-
phans' court business of the counties, let us
divide up the State and bitch on Frederick
to Washington, or put Allegany and Wash-
ington together. If that is to be the plan,
that the judge is not to transact the orphans'
court business, let us put the lower counties
together. If we are going to bring down the
expense, let us bring? it down where it ought
to be and give the judge as much as he can
do, or as much as he ought to do. If we are
not to derive benefits adequate to the increase
of the expense, let us curtail the expense as
much as possible.
Mr. DENNIS. I move to amend the amendment
by transposing Dorchester county from
the twelfth circuit to the eleventh circuit, with
Talbot and Caroline counties. I make that
motion for this season. Worcester, Somerset
and Dorchester are put together. I take from
the census the total free population of those
counties. |
