Newspaper Page Text
8
I MUM
CHARGE
Judge Sneer’s Elaborate Ad
dress to His Jurors this
Morning.
UTIOUt ISSUES DISCUSSED
Lynch Law~The Ballot—Historical
Review of the Jury System—A
Wide Range of Themes.
Judge Spor of the United States court
today deMevered his formal and general
charge :o hie jurors. There were present
.n addition thofte who ordinarily assemble
on such occasion.*-. Gen. Bates, Gen. Wil
on and a number of other prominent
men. The Judge said:
“Mr. Foreman and Gentlemen of 'the
Jury:
“In opening’ a court in Bavaria, in 1834,
u German judge used this language: ‘As
often as the day again appears on w'hich
jurors meet for the discharge of their im
portant functions, earnest thoughts must
throng upon the mind of every reflecting
person -who understands how to judge of
and Jay to heart 'the higher relations of
tb« social union. The first impressions
certainly amongst us is a feeling of joy
that wo are still in possession of an in
stitution which the freest nations of 'two
hemispheres regard as their most precious
jewel, and watch over with jealous eyes—
an institution which calls on th unpre
judge of his equal—which surrounds the
holiest rights of man—the rights of liberty
honor —with the strongest guards
which human foresight could devise. The
people who possess such an institution
F:an(i rf 'higher than those who are still
without it. A citizen, who from time to
time is summoned from the round of his
usual' avocations to the judgment seat,
must feel himself in a high degree honor
ed and elevated by the trust reposd in
him. become more conscious of his
worth as a man and as a citizen. He
gains both in experience and intelligence - .
Rightly, therefore, may a certain degree
of pride mingle with a feeling of joy of
which 1 have just spoken.’ It seerns to
me that this deliverance of the Bavarian
judge very accurately describes the emo
dons which should animate us today. You
have assembled 'to perform duties to so
ciety which, according to well-known rec
ords, have contributed to the order and
happiness of the people of the English
.-peaking race for live hundred and thirty
years, and which were doubtless per
formed substantially as they are now at
<a time so remote that die 'memory of
man runneth not to the contrary.’ The
institution of the grand jury was trans
ported to the soil of America by those in
trepid men who were the forerunners of
the teming population of our country.
Thy know how effective it had been as a
means of perserving eoelal order, in bring
ing criminals to the bar of public justice
and in protecting the innocent
tho hand of power and oppression. While
this is true no reference was made io the
grand jury in the constitution of the Uni
ted States, as it was originally adopted.
That instrument, great and majestic as it
is, was by no means satisfactory to many
fervid lovers of human freedom. Through
the efforts of these, on the 25ih of Septem
ber, 1789, the first congress proposed to
rhe legislatures of the several states ten
-unndments to the constitution. These
wre all ratified in a little less than two
years. The fifth of these amendments
provides that “No person shall be held to
answer for a capital or otherwise infam
ous crime unless on a presentment or in
lic’ment of a grand jury, except in cases
•arising in the land o-r naval forces or in
the militia when in actual service in time
of war or public danger.' From the adop- i
tlon of this amendment, the grand jury i
been that grapd inquest on behalf of
the people Vrhitfh examine and hrvesiigate
'alleged violations of that Wonderful sys
tem of national criminal laws, which as
enforced by an independent judiciary,
has guarded and fostered the great repub
lic in its mafvellouis development, and
which now conserves the high and I might
say supreme interest of more than sev
enty millions of people.
A PALLADIUM OF LIBERTY.
The institution of the grand jury is but
a part of that, system of trial by jury
which has been justly and frequently
termed ‘the palladium of liberty.’ It is
The jury of inquiry and. if «peed be of -ac
cusation. It has been happily declared
by so great a jurist a** Mr. Justice Story
that the great object of trial by jury in
criminal casts is to guard against a spirit
of oppression and. tyranny on the part of
rulers and agaimst a spirit of violence and
vindictiveness on the part of the people.
He argues that it is easy enough for a
multitude to resist the revenge or power
of a single despot, but how difficult it is,
he declares, to escape from the vengeance
of indignant people, stimulated to cruelty
by political enmities or unmeasured jeal-
Men’s Stylish
Overcoats
The business is at high water mark here. We
never owned such quantities before. Our
special buying organization chose them deftly.
You'll see designs here that cannot be found
elsewhere. They’were made by men who do
nothing but plan and think and study about
Overcoat art. The iabrics are peerless the
making and trimming and pricing are watched
with Eagle eyes.
' curies. The appeal for safety can under
euch clM»?ums‘anoe*> scarcely be made by
' innocence in any o'her manner than by
■ the sever control of ? he courts of justice
i and by the rm and impartial verdict of
| the jury sworn to do right and guided
solely by legal evedtn-ce and a sense of
duty. This great American judge and
' writer continues, ‘But to give it real effi
ciency It must be preserved in its purity
and dignity and no: with a view to slight
j Inconvenience or imaginary burdens b
i put into the hands of those who are in
capable of estimating its worth or are too
in**r; or too ignorant or too imbecile to
I weild i > potent armor.’ What high jus-
I tlflcation is there In this language for the
’ efforts of courts where judges with
proper r-onceptlon of their duty seek to ee
: < ore for their assistance in the adminis
tration of justice the best class of the peo-
I pie to serve as jurors. That illustrious
; English jurist, Sir William Blackstone,
i who. it has been happily said, ‘found the
; English law a skk’ton and clothed it with
, life and beauty,’ remarks: ‘A celebrated
i French writer who concludes that because
Rome, Sparta and Carthage have lo't
' their liberties, therefore those of England
• in time must perish, should have recol-
I lected that Rome, Sparta and Carthage at
• The jime when their liberties .were lost
! were strangers to the trial by jury.’
' INFLUENCE ON NATIONAL CARATER
I ’I think it is true that no feature in th
I English and American systems of law, in
j all fundamentals practically identical, so
much as trial by jury has strongly and
• permanently moulded the national char
| acter. Its fairnes convinces the citizen
that he, if accused, wil receive an impar
tial trial and impels him to give an im
partial trial to others. It cultivates inde
pendence of thought in the individual and
imbues each man to some degree with the
charactr of a judge. It has broadened the
national instinct of equity, for men who
are habituated to administer justice in
stinctively begin and continue to abhor
injustice and fraud. The necesity with the
juror of assuming responsibilities in
grave trials develops the cotirage of his
convictions and 'the manllne.es of his
character. IL makes him unselfish, for he
must necessarily concern himself with
the affairs of others. It is educative for
that educates the mind which calls ever
for 'the exercise of its highest function's.
And besides a juror observes the adminis
trations of tip law. If pure and high
minded himself he contributes to its pur
ity and elevation, e shares the blame in
th public mind of an ignorant or vnal
finding and cannot escape responsibility.
! We are so familiar with jury trial that
1 we can (scarcely realize how vastly it
I must influence public character.
OPINIONS OF GREAT MEN.
“The greatest thinkers have given cu
mulative testimony as to its importance.
'Said Sir John Russell in,his work on the
English Government, ‘lt is to trial by jury
more than even by rapresntation that the
people owe th shar thy have in the gov
ernment of the country. It is to trial by
jury also that ‘the government mainly
owes the attachment of the people to the
j laws—a consideration which ought to
I make our legislators very cautious how
i they take away this mode of trial by new,'
1 trifling and vexatious enactments.’
' “Mr. Hallam, in his 'Con'tituiional Lib
' ei ty, speaks of it as ‘that primeval in
stitution. the unadulterated voice of the
people, \ eponsible alone to God and their
conscience-, heard in the sanctuaries of
justice as fountains springing fresh from
ihe lap of earth.’ The brilliant, and mys
terious writer of 'the Letters of Junius
declared that ‘The pure and impartial ad
| ministration of justice is the firmest
I bond of people to government.’ Nor need
I we confine our quotations to the utter
ances of men of other lands. Said the
immortal Webster, ‘Justice is ihe great
interest of man on earth. It is the liga
ment which hold civilized beings together.
i Wherever her tmple stands, and so long
as it is duly honored, there is a founds,
lion for social security, general nappi
ncss, and the improvement and progress
of our race. And wlioevrr.s labors on this
edifice with usefulness and distinction,
whoever clears its foundations, strength
ens.its pilla-ns, adorns its entablatures, or
cqntributes to raise its august dome still
hlghe< in the skies, connects himself in
l name and fame and character with that
which is and must b£ as durable as the
frame of human society.’ It is impossible
pei haps to compass in more majestic or
truthful language, the lofty ideal of the
upright judge or of ‘the duty and respon
sibility of the juror who enters the tem
ple of justice with the holy purpose r .O do •
his duty diligently, faithfully, without
fear, favor, affection, reward or the hope
[ thereof.
A CRUCIAL TEST.
‘‘Since it is true that jury service makes
the deepest impressions upon nation char
acter so the actions of jurors is the cru
cial test of The civilization of a people.
The findings of grand juries, the verdict
of the juries cast the horoscope of a peo
ple’s future. It is neither fertility of the
soil, nor the redunancy of productions,
nor the salubriusness of climate, nor
crowded populations, nor wealth beyond
the drcams of avarice, nor luxury which
might fill the expectations of a Sybarite
which make a state. - It is the character
of the people for integrity, for sobriety,-
for righteousness, for wisdom, for moder
ation, and for justice., n material wealth
it is possibly true that our own beloved
state may for years be inferior to sec
tions more favored by the developments
of modrn life, or by economic conditions
which exjst. While this is true it is also
true that in every esential to happiness
in this life and to the premise -of that
biissful immortality in the life to come,
which is the comfortable hone of the
Christian, we may be. we can be. if we
will, second to no people on earth. We
have heard much in these latter days of
the 'Southern Problem’ and the 'Negr
Problem’ and other so-called ‘problems,’
MACON NEWS fnuKSDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 1 1898.
' the solution of which are declared by doc
', trinaires of various .and sundry kills to
' be essential to the future welfare of our
! people. My own convk-.isn u that the
solution anl he ea*y and happy solu
i lion of every so-called problem, the ob
literation and removal of every- embarass
ment which effi ts or is juppoeed to af
flict be Southern people may be found
in half a dozen words— he rigid, impartial.
• enforcement of law. If ‘the country is
' afflicted by a venal, purchasable vote we
; have laws ample for the pun - .'’ament of
1 tch venal and the cor”upt, if they are
; only enforced. If ignorance and irres
j possibility threaten the well-being of so
> ciety, let us by It. vs of equal operation,
1 fairly enforced, >weep ignorance and ir
: responsibility from the arena of political
• nfitun mi’ it be done ’..v law and
[ not by fraud or force. If brutality and
i murder present their horrid forms among
the homes of our.beau iful Southland, let
| us net meet crime with crime, but let u.s
1 emit to the law and the officers of the
I law, the duty of retribution and the task
1 of protection which society has devolved
| upon them. If these fhil—if they fail in
their duty—let taern feel by constitutional
! methods the pious rage of an indignant
people.
AGAINST LYNCH LAW.
I ‘M e can never better our condition by
Irani and violence in matters political.
1 V\e can never strengthen the character of
our manhood, or foster the patriotic and
j manly instincts of youth by throwing t
: the winds those restrictions which society
; in all civilized lands has thrown around
1 the trials of persons accused of crime.
One such harrowing life taking is (though
to print m imperishable lines on the plas
tic mind of youth a disregard for law. a
disposition to bloodthirstiness which may
neutralize the teachings of the pulpit and
the school and transform multitudes who
might become good men and useful citi
i zens into furious and uncontrollable ea
ages. Nor are the material injuries less
t apparent. The tide of wholesale immi
; gration will pass our doors and eagerly
I seek less favoring soils, less balmy climes.
• Capital will .shun, our almost untouched
lit sources. Our lands will become com-
I paracively valueless. In this rushing age
: a people cannot stand &til. We will go
1 forward or we will retrograde. And we
I cannot advance if we dojiot habitually
; obey and enforce those rules of human
i conduct commanding that which is right
1 and prohibiting that which is wrong. I
i uould not have you belive that I fear'for
toe. future of our country or for the fu
tuie of our state. We have, as a people,
easily and manfully taken that place
among the nation# of the world which
Providence intended us to 11.
ADDED EMPIRES.
I \\ e have but lately added to our ter-
I ritory an empire in .the West and another
,in the East. I he- last enemy of our in-
I stiturions, who lagged superfluous in this
1 continent, has been driven from the last
i L 15011 in the new world discovered
■ by Columbus. The imagination of man
1 cannot conceive the. opulence and varl-
I ety of the material treasures which hav
| been laid at th feet of the American peo
r E*. l1?S - v ' ‘ s^oni ou " statesmen and
; bj tnc skill and valor of our sailors and
■ soldiers. In the distant waters of the Oc
i cident we now possess the marvellous
1 Philippines, which extend in all the fertil
ity and variety of floral, arboreal and
mineial* wealtn over a territory stretch
ing as far as from the north of England
to the south of Italy. AVe may possibly,
if we and our kinsmen choose, exchange
these wonderful acquisitions for territory
nearer home and peopled by those who
speak the- kindly English tongue. Our
country may thus become as Franklin and
the fathers designed a continental power,
our ormy the continental army and cur
congress tn-e co.* linentai congrer,. While
ail this is irue and wh le our country
.now -.,1- al-hiest and probably the
strmgcK 0.1 eti'n, its cnief i.nCne? f llr
present .-• im.iL («s and .’nt u-e g:va:; t ,-;s
L in tac luui’i ;ej of Am'- ii pea
‘ pie.
TI i U '*- -0 i LE U F GEi j R GA.
Nor do I distrust the future of my
! s.cte. It is peopled with the homogene-
I ous American stock. I do not doubt
; 95 per cent, of the members of your body
j spring irom the loins of Revolutionary
; sires. Le*a than one per cent, of the
J white ccoplc of Georgia are of other des
cent. I know the sober, common sense,
1 -he &,.rong’ religious feeling, the temoe r - 1
( ance, the sobriety, the recti.tide, tho ‘pa- 1
' of this population. It has done I
! liS n d | Ky T wilenever and wherever duty
j ALL-!. J knew from long experience its
for rm law and its determination
to maintain the right when the right is i
made to appear, and few have had better :
opportunities than I to know. I repeat 1
that we have but to rigidly am>religiously 1
enforce cur laws and all the. blessings of |
life will be added unto us. As for you, ;
gentlemen. I feel sure that you will wor- 1
thily imitate the example of that noble 1
jury membership, which within my own i
knowledge for nearly fourteen years of ju- ,
dicial life, has rendered the highest and ’
niOi. conscientious services to the public i
m duties such as those which you are
nc -v called upen to perform.
“lou may retire and begin your labors.” I
Following is a 1:*: of the United States'
court grand jurors:
H. J. Peavy. M. -L. Shealy. Chas. H.
Jackson. J. A. Barclay, John S. Huge, C.
V». Leonard. Thos. H. Henderson, V,'in
ship Cabani’ss. L. A. Mitchell, T. Skelton
? Jones, J. \V. McKenzie, Campbell T. King ■
Joan Hertz, J. T. Dupree. T. H. Rutland,
M. zi. Roush. R. P. Wheeler, Arthur F
Jones, Holmes Johnson, W. H. Virgin
R. E. Sheridan.
A TEXAS STEER.
I Will be Seen at The Academy of Music
Monday Night.
A strange thing about Hoyt's “A Tejftis
Steer” is the name of the principal char
acter "Maverick Brander.” There are
many expressions used by the cow pun
chers, or cowboys, as they are called in
the east, that could never be used in or
among the 400 in New York and be under
stood the word “brander” means the man
who pn the “roundup" in the spring and
fall does the branding of the cattle. The
cattle all range together on government
grounds. Nothing is fenced in and of
course they wander everywhere, and many
and many a mile. All the cattle are
branded, some I. A. p., and some E. T.
and others with different marks or de
signs. These brands are copyrighted, and
j when the roundup is called, the ranch
i men find out about where the cattle are
| glazing and they meet near by. Then is
; when the rough riding begins.' Fires are
built and the brands are heated. The
cow punchers start. They see a cow with
their brand on, a calf following, in the
center 01 the bunch. In they start to “cut
her out. as they say in Texas, which is
very dangerous. Just think of it: out of
five or eight thousand cattle, this one
i cow is gradually forced out and with the
i calf ■ is steered or turned towards the
i brander. Os course this new calf has nor
' been branded, so, after a long and hard
’ run. it is pretty well tired out, and is
eosTiy roped, or lassoed, as they say in
rhe west, thrown on its side, the hot iron
| ap*nlied. and all is over. The rope is off
i ai»d -so is the calf. The name of the char
acter in the play “A Texas Eteer,” is as
, we have said before, "Maverick Brander.”
The word "maverick" is what they call a
stray calf. When the cos punchr starts
into the herd to cut our a cow the calf may
get lost from its mother or it may tire
out in the run, and in rhia event it goes
around just as a child would that had
’lost its mother. There are»many men of
I queer character that wait around, and as
j soon as a s-tray calf fa maverick), can be
I picked out it is branded by some of them,
and many of them, who have thousands
of head of cattle, go: their start just that
way. Xow a “maverick brander” in Texas
is a man juc; about cn a par with a
sneak ihicf in the citi-s. But of ccuive
the 'Ttfaverick Brander” in "A Ter.at
Steer” couid never have done so bad. be
i cause he is electd to congress tin the
play). All congressmen are mtn of great
standing and are never known to do any-
■ thing wrong. “A Texas Steer” will be
i given at .be Academy of Music Monday.
* December 5.
• • -
Notes Taken
On the Run.
The work of laying the brick pavement
cn Third street was commenced this
morning.
The Consolidated line now has on a
fifteen minute schedule to the eamns.
- Many people visit the camps daily and
several prominent citizens say that the
| camp of the Seventh. Immunes is decidedly
I the prettiest around the city.
A new roof has been placed on the
Guernsey building, which was burned
several weeks ago, and the building will
be ready for occupancy in a few days.
Mr. P. J. Moran, of the Atlanta Con
: stitution, is in the city today. He came
1 down to witness the tscenes at the polls.
■ ■■
It was reported to the police station
las; night by the. provost guard that some
negro citizens on oundary street had been
shooting pistols and raising a disturbance.
A policeman was sent to the scene, but
could find no trace of the negroes.
< Mr. Charles Daniels of the Atlanta
■ Journal is in the city today.
'Many people fro different sections of
the state -are here 'today to witness the
election.
It is a noticeable fact that there have
been no disturbances at the polls today.
Julius Wiles & Co. were made a party
to the petition for involuntary bank
ruptcy in the Steinheimer case today by
l Judge Speer.
There are seventy patients in the di
vision hospital at present. The surgeons
report that all of the patients are doing
well.
The Macon football team will leave for
Columbus in a few days to play a team
in 'thait city.
The meeting at the prohibition tent last
i night lasted until twelve o’clock. The
: tent was packed and it wais a very en
! thusiastic gathering.
-
The steamer City of Macon will be
i brought to the city under its own steam
i in a few days. The boat is at present in
1 the dry dock at (Brunswick, where she is
being thoroughly overhauled.
The work of laying the Belgion block
on Cherry street will be finished this
week.
Many people are complaining on ac
count of ‘the stre’t sweepers being used in
th day time. It seems that th street de
partment does not have time to go ovr all
of th streets during the night.
Weather Forecast: Partly cloudy to
night and Friday; light variable windis.
Music Lessons —Piano and violin in
strucions at reasonable prices. Miss Nellie
Reynolds, 252 Washington avenue.
Lust Dog—White pointer with small yel
low spots on ear and small yellow spot in
j center of head. Strayed from Brown
; House yesterday. His return to hotel will
| be rewarded liberally.
: Drs. W. R. Holmes and Mason, dentists,
i 556 Mulberry street, opposite Hotel Lanier.
1 Try a bottle of Holmes’ Mouth Wash for
j preserving teeth, purifying breath, bleed-
I ing gums, ulcers, sore mouth, sore throat,
j e A c .-— For salG by all druggists.
’ DEATHS IN NOVEMBER
A Good Showing as Compared With the
Same Month of Last Year,;
City Clerk Bridges Smith has made out
j the mortuary report for the month of
| November. It gives a total of thirty-five
' deaths for the entire month which iis a
I very good showing compared with the
' same month of last year. The report is
i as follows:
■ White males S; white females 6. Total
1<-
; Colored males 8; colored females 13.
i Total 21.
I Grand total 35.
USE OF SNUFF.
! Wm. E. Curtis in Chicago Record.
; Most people suppose that the use of
snuff is obselete, but the statistics pre
sented by the commisksoner of internal
revenue show' that there is a steady and
large increase in the production and sale
of that article. For example, in 1888 the
ictal amount of snuff manufactured in
the United States was 5,446,858 pounds, in
1897 the total was 13,768,455 pounds or a
pound for every five inhabitants. The in-
■ crease in the use of snuff is larger than
' that of tobacco, cigars, cigarettes, beer,
i whisky or any other of the articles which
j are involved in the “bad habits” of the
people.
There is a falling off in The manufacture
■ of cigarettes. The total for the last fiscal
year was 336.000,000 less than the previ
ous year, while there was an increase of
400,000,000 cigars. The total number of
cigars manufactured in the. United States
; in 1888 was 3,668.162,486; 1897, 4,431,050,-
509. The total number of cigarettes was
2,211,900,345; in 1897, 4,631.820,620.
REMARKABLE RESCUE
Mrs. Michael Curtain, Plainfield, 111.,
makes the statement, that she caught cold,
which settled on her lungs; she -was treat
ed for a month by her family physician,
( but grew worse. He told her she was a
I hopeless victim of consumption and that
no Inedicine could cure her. Her druggist
suggested Dr. King’s New Discovery for
' Consumption, she bought a bottle and to
her delight found herself benefitted from
first dose. She continued its us*e and after
, taking six bottles, found herself sound and
j well; now does her own housework, and
is as well as she ever was. —Free trial bot-
I ties of this Great Discovery at H. J. Lamar
& Sons’ Drug Store. Only 50 cents and ?1,
every bottle guaranteed.
READY TO LIQUIDATE.
By Associated Press.
New York, Dec. 2*— The Tradesmen’s
National bank, which suspended business
! October 4, opened its dcors today for
i liquidation.
$5.00 for $3.50 ’
This is literally what the MIX SHOE
CO. is giving you in
Men’s Shoes
The advertisement speaks the truth;
it is no catch; we are selling out.
Mix Shoe Co.
107 Cotton Avenue. A
* I
MFg hlTiMrn
TODAY!
* ♦
<
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