The sun. [volume], October 16, 1915, Page 6, Image 6

About The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916

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6
THE SUN, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16, 1915.
till
oUTlUDAY. OOTOBBIt 10, 191fi.
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a I7 gggga nii ilnmiii fur that piirptin
AH IMPEACHMENT.
To the Kditor or Tub ION Sir: At
A dtlaen of the United States, an one
atlioea vote contributed to the eleva
tion to power of the present Adminis
tration. I Impeach the Chief Kxecutlve
of my country for the tragedy of Mex
ico. In the name of humanity, I Impeach
him for the tuflVrlna tn which the
helpleoa women and children of that
on happy land) have been and are now
cruelly subjected; for the murder and
robbery of defenceless natives and for
eigner; for the failure to respond to
the cry for help from our fellow coun
trymen resident there: for the un re
sented Indignities and the unpunished
outrages upon our soldiers, sailors and
official; for the Insults to our flog,
which a policy of vacillation has In
vited . for the Quixotic invasion of
Vera Crui, and the sacrifices It In
volved, and for the abuse of the execu
tive prerogative in lifting the embargo
on munitions of war to be used by
one set of revolutionists and bandits
for the extermination of others.
I Impeach him for his failure to live
up to the moral obligation of the Mon
roe Doctrine. In that, while not per
mitting other nations to intervene for
the protection of the lives and prop
erties of their subjects, he has not
employed the ag-enr-ics at his commund
to inturc the protection "f foreigners
and lo establish and Maintain a stable
governmeni In Mexico, a land of chaos
and intrchjr, Which has been weighed
In the be lances of cIVHiSBtkHl and
found wanting, John A, wykth.
Kk' York. n-tut.tr 15.
Venustlano farrania!
A private letter iii Tiik Sr yes
ter i;iy contained an UDcpnaorad and
IMrlasa and whai wa believe to w n
trup account of rondlttoM In that
part of Mexico which C ABBA MIA by
milltury force now controls. The ei
tUtUt la aipn llins;.
It It prapoatWoni that any Ameri
can Administration should dream of
recognising such a Government or of
Inducing other American republics to
recognize Cabbanza.
This. then. Is the outcome of many
months of watchful wall lug and of
Highly idealistic protestmions; tbe
one door that seems to Woodbow Wii -bow's
ingenuity open for his escape
from continued nnd Undivided rBBpOB
aihinty for that which la deeerlbed In
spirited fashion hy bis former sup
porter Dr. Wytth In the articles of
Impeachment printed Just hIkjvp this
placex
"Tbe Cotton Future Decision.
One of the crazy peiforniauce of
the same Denim rail.- Congress which
pat the lunacy known as tbe La Foi
letto seamen s law on the statute
hooka was the cotton futures act.
This provided tn substance fur the
Government regulation of the cotton
exchanges, not only lu this country
but abroad, by invoking Federal tax
ing power to discriminate against ex
changes which did not comply with
tbe Government rules. Apparently
tbe cotton futures act has received
Its coup -de grace from the decision
of Judge BOUGH In the Federal Dis
trict Court In this city that It never
was a law because It was passed In
contravention of the constitutional re
quirement that all bills to raise reve
nue must originate in the House of
Representatives.
Oil .( I ( n-ii . from Judge llol oil the
Cm eminent w ill hardly have uny new
case lo present mi this point. The
Net Nue mi its face the Congresslona1
eeftiflcatlon IbSl the measure grift
RMlad in the Senate, and tbe Govern
meni foillld it Impossible In tbe DIs
tt-lei Conn argument to go behind
the returns. Tbe result is that not
only lias a lot of legislative effort at
Washington been wanted but some
highly InporttOl principles of legis
lation will fail to get tbe judicial de
termination they deserve, and all lw
cause of w hat certain Southern states
men regarded at tbe lime aa a clever
ruse to deal a blow at the highly or
gan I ted and scientific market main
taiued ou the regular cotton exchanges
at this country and Kurnpe.
When this cotton legislation was
pending two hills received considera
tion. A Semite bill promised to use
Government control of the malls and
telegraph and telephone lines lo coerce
the cotton exchanges Into submission
to Government regulation of cotton
trsdfng. A House bill contemplated
employ uieui 0r igxln, power
for the same end. The Senate pnssed
Its hill, hut the House bill failed he
cause tbe Ile'iresentntlves were satis
fied that It could not get through the
Senate. When the Senate bill came
to the House all but tbe enacting
clause was stricken out. ntul the House
bill was rnit In ns an amendment. By
control of tho conference committee ft
concurrence was obtained which re
sulted in the enactment of a incisure
dis larpd on : fuoe to lie a Senate
bill. aliliiMi.'i osienslbly a measure to
raise revenue.
All legislation for which the South
has agitated t'ongress In recenl yenrs
in tM-lMilf of cotton has been designed
to Impair or destroy the insurance
basis of the cotton trade represented
by the market for cotton futures. It
iiiiNise has been to facilitate bullish
sKs'ulnllon and handicap bearish spec
ulation by creating n one sided market
in the interest of the cotton grower
mid associated business against the
Interests of the cotton consumer
While, therefore. It Is not regrettable
to have the cotton futures net
kins keil out lu any point. It Is very
much to Is? wished thnt the Supreme
0Wf bad an opportunity td pass on
the merits of such n fancy scheme
for extending the sway of Federal
bureaucracy over the lives ami wel
fare of citizens.
The last Congress was bursting with
Ideas for the regulation of the busi
ness activities of American citizens,
to say nothing of the subjects of for
eign Towers. Tbe seamen's low. like
the cotton futures net. attempted to
regulate foreigners as well as Ameri
cana; and tbe logic of Nub was tbe
logic of nonsense. In the District
Court argument on tbe cotton futures
act tbe Government was driven to take
the position that the Federal taxing
s)wer could Is? Invoked to levy an ex
cise for any purpose of regulating
trade by discriminating t?tween left
handed and right banded men. blue
eycil and black eyed men. or black
haired and red haired men. It looks,
however, ns though the Supreme Court
would not hare n chance in this case
to say what It thought of a theory
of taxation which would make the
Constitution a piece of waste paper
not worth tearing up.
Mot Compromise, but Wla Prevision.
President Wilson has surprised
some of his adherents in New York
by apoiutinc to the important office
of Assistant Appraiser of Merchandise
at this port Danikl K. Finn. Tam
many leader of the First Assembly
district. Mr. Finn hud the Indorse
ment of men powerful In the Four
teenth street organization; bis selec
tion Is taken to Indicate a reversal
In the President's attitude toward
Tammany.
Tbe House of the sixty-fourth Con
gress Brill consist, according to the
figures complied after the election last
year, of 2"2 Democrats, 1!4 Repub
licans, seven Progressives, one inde
pendent and one Socialist. In it the
Democrats will have a majority of
iwenty-nine. Fifteen I NHUOOratl lu op
position to their party would render
it powarlaaa to pass its tkills. Twenty
of the Democratic members hail from
New York State: sixteen of these from
New York city.
The Administration expects to urge
a programme of legislation conceived
to be of vital Importance to its wel
fare. The nominating convention will
meet early next summer. Mr. Wil
son has often and with flue fervor
condemned compromise : but compro
mise must not. It Is plain, be confused
with wise prevision.
Mr. Moot's Designating Petition.
Soon nfier primary day on October
1. to be exact Thf: Si n printed an
article in which, speaking of the Hon
est Ballot League, we said :
"It aseerts that the designating peti
tion of the Progressive party for the
office of Oiatrut Attorney Tin Naw York
OOUtHy J are marked by 'numerous ami
daring frauds' Forgerle ar common
In thes petition, declares the league,
nnd Mr. Moss was the beneficiary of
the Irregularities."
Mr. Mobs at om e wrote to Tin: Si n
I letter, which we printed on October
2. containing the subjoined specific
statements :
"The accusations of forgery concern
ing the petition of the Progressive party
I filed prior to the primaries do not relate
to the petitions which were filed for me
The etltlono filed for me named me
alone, and I am nut swsre of any criti
cism mnde upon them
"The petition aa to which . hj-gea of
forgery have been made, as I under
stand it, doea not contain my name at
all. but th name of other candidate "
In printing Mr. Moss's iPtler Tur.
Sun gratuitously recorded lis opinion
that Mr. Moss would not "knowingly
engage in primary frauds, or willingly
profit from than," We still adhere
to that belief, but It Is of Interest to
record thnt. unless District Attorney
PtCBKIBI has unfairly used tbe power
of his office against Mr. Moss, that
contestant for Mr. PniKtNs's Job Is
an unwilling beneficiary of fruutl In
his designating petitions. Mr, Pta
kins's subordinates, we bone and are
Convinced us aides to hlin in bis ca
pacity of a fearless public servant
and not In bis avocatlonal role nf a
candidate for reelection, have caused
the n r rest of one notary "who ac
knowledged signatures on tbe petitions
designating Frank Moms as a candi
date for District Attorney in tbe He
publlcan and Progressive primaries,"
and Mr. 1'i.bkikr himself Is quoted
by thp Tribune as saying "be expected
several arrests In connection with
similar cases."
So far aa Mr. Moss is concerned
personally tbls Incident of corruption
Is of little moment, but It possesses
for the public a real ami substantial
Importance 1 udei tbe benevolent
atatfte regulating our elections Mr.
Moaa'a name, or tbe name of nf
other aspirant for office or revenge,
put on the official ballot In the prima
ries, must remain there: ami if every
designating petition filed in hla bebalf
were forged and perjured from top
to bottom no power could erase hla
name from that official ballot. After
the primary tbe falae petition baa tbe
same potency, tbe same credit, that
attaches to the honestly prepared pe
tition: a provision of tbe law ren
dered necessary, we are solemnly In
formed, that virtue may be protected
against (he subtleties of vice, and the
Innooeut may be preserved from tbe
wiles of the wicked.
Tobacco Day.
Oil account of the many days that
we are asked to observe most people
may forget, or een not know, that
to-day Is "Tobacco Day." Why to
day? Perhapa because It Is the natal
day of a saint that took the soothing
weed under his protection, the day
that Coi.t Matra discovered tobacco,
that Sir Waltlb Kalfioh smoked his
tlrst pipeful or that Jfan Xicot Intro
duced the weed to the French. At any
rate. It Is tbe day that every person
connected with the Industry recog
nizes, when the dealer mellows and
may sell you that quarter cigar for a
dime, and when the poor of the puhllc
institutions may, perhaps, smoke on
tbe bounty of the manufacturer.
Our contemporary Tobacco In a fine
number of some 2110 quarto pages cele
brates the day hy telling some inter
esting things about the Industry. We
did not smoke leas, hut we Imported
."s'W.OOn fewer cigars last year tban
we did ten years before. We got
fewer cigars, too, from our Philippine
possessions last year, but there wa
after all n gain, because "the principal,
In fact, practically all. shipments were
cigars of a higher grade." Tbe Philip
pines, by the way. made according to
the last count more than three hun
dred million cigars and fifty million
cigarettes. t!0 per cent, of the latter
going to China.
The oldest tobacco business In this
country traces Its ancestry direct to
the old stone snuff mill erected by
P. nnd G toaiii.Aan on the Rronx In
lTOO. The best library of tobacco liter
ature Is owned by Gf.obcf. Abf.nts. Jr..
of Ibis city.
The worst cigars In the world are
made In fturma ; in Slam they say.
"Offer Burmese cigars to your ene
mies." Smokers may doubt If th
Burmese cigar can hold its own
against some borne made products;
hut this I authoritative.
The old argument against the Injuri
ous effects of nicotine upon the smoker
Is knocked Into a cocked hat by a
correspondent of TohCCOO, who quotes
medical authorities to prove that an
ordinary cigar "used In the ordinary
way. containing Its usual amount of
pure nicotine, will not kill two flies."
All statements to tbe contrary are
merely an "old slander on tobacco."
The Pennsylvania Judge who held
that tobacco Is "essential to solace nnd
comfort." and that man "should not
be deprived of It on any day." may
have hit the nail on the bend. The
real smoker knows no day usu which
he should withhold his tribute: to him
every day Is tobacco day
Tbe British Gas ( loud.
Since the British began their offen
sive In Flanders Berlin bulletins have
charged on more than one occasion
that the enemy were using gas pre
paratory to an assault upon the Ger
man trenches. The statement did not
carry conviction, for was not John
BctX outraged by the German chlo
rine cloud that asphyxiated, paralyzed,
tortured and strangled to death the
simple British soldiers who did not
know bow to fight except fairly and
bora board?
Anathema was buried at the inhu
man enemy. Never would tbe British
j resort to such tactics. Neulral opinion
I encouraged them in this rlrtuoui re
I solve. It would be glorious to win hy
lighting fair to tbe end. But the
i temptation to retaliate lu kUid was
too strong to be resisted. Now tbe
British are projecting a gas cloud. As
i be, i- chemists are as go. si as any, we
may tie sure that tbe quality of the
stulT used leaves nothing to lie do
sired by advocates of the extermina
tion of the goose step soldiers by
poisonous blasts.
Now. we have no svmpathy for tbe
Germans. Did they not introduce the
novelty In warfare, unashamed and de
fiant, even Justifying slaughter by gas
as legitimate and no worse than kill
ins by high explosives which blow i
men to bits or horribly mutilate gas
at least makes an intact and placid
dead man? We should have liked to
see tbe British protest against the
use of chlorine and threaten retalia
tion, Instead of holtllug up their hands
In holy horror and vowing they would
never consent to follow stilt. Now
that (hey have made the plunge It
may tie safely wagered that they will
do as thorough an asphyxiation Job
as Is Inhumanly possible.
The Fight for Prepsreduraa.
There will of course lie opposition
in Congress to any plan for the in
crease of the army und the expansion
of the navy. It will come from the
Bryan Democrats, from tbe peace at
any price men In bulb parlies and
from those members obsessed with the
Idea that tbe F tilted Slates will be
in less danger of aggression when the
great war ends than ever before and
therefore swords can be turned into
pruning hooks, rifle barrels Into tub
ing and cannon melted down for the
arte. Already In Washington the feel
ing la that It will be an uphill fight
to obtain any material addition to the
appropriations usually made for new
construction in the navy and tbe sup
port of both services.
Substantial success In the campaign
depends a good deal upon whether tbe
American pao pea -hare learned wisdom
from the experiences of democratic
England In Increasing her army and
properly equipping bar fighting men
after tbe declaration of war. Recently
tbe tal and Military Record bad an
Impressive commentary upon the atate
of British opinion just before tbe war
and also when hostilities were well
under way and tbe worat waa known
"On th v of war a wldoaproad
campaign wu being conducted aatslnst
th cost Involved In th maintenance of
th army and nary. Those who anpphed
th needs of th rwo rvlra war d
ecrlhed a war trader nnd hetd up to
public condemnation. Whn at last war
had been declared th majority of th
nation ruahed to th conclusion that th
rresT thing wma to anllort vmry man of
military aw In h naw armla
At lost realisation oame of th otiaraa
tor nf the war being waged on th Con
tinent, and a cry waa raised for mo'-e
munition. Inatantly tho who a few
month before had danounood navvy and
army hk. and had than led an Intem
perate and inconsiderate movement ".
favor of recruiting, swung round a -id
expressed am a lament and contempt be
cause our supply of munition of all
klndo wa not superior to that possessed
by th enemy Tho who will take tbe
trouble to review th couraa of event,
political, military and Industrial, durlnr
fho post twlv month will rwHs the
full xnt or th folHoa which have
been commuted under th Influence of
an unlnstruoted public opinion led In
the main by Ignorant polttlejans."
In abort, tbe British people behaved
before and after war began very much
aa our own people would behave un
der tbe same circumstances. We, too,
have our abort sighted critics of army
and navy expenditures In time of
peace: we also rush to extremes when
confronted with war and rail Incon
sistently at what has not been done
to prepare the country; and we also
have our Ignorant politicians and oar
demagogues.
It would be a calamity for America
If tbe bitter lesson learned by England
were lost upon our Representatives In
Congress.
Well now. Dr. Oonbtanttv Thbooob
Drain, are ioh coming back at th
bead of an army?
The Seiretojy of Cramarr, whoa de
partment has Its hand constantly upon
the buslnesi pule of th notion -rrtary
McADOO at Indinnapoli
Keep it there. Much better to have
Government hands on the business
pulse than on th business throat of
the country.
Two prlva'e prison bonks, organised
by convicts after the inauguration loot
Friday of Warden Oobobnb'o system of
poyment In token money for work done
In the prison, rollopsed to-doy Th
neire from tip river.
I it at all surprising that there
should be bank wrecker In Sing Sing?
If the motion picture people must
apply for a permit before staging their
acts on a public atreet It will simplify
mattero for tho "Innocent bystander."
The latter has been enjoying holdups
because h thought them movies In
the making, and Interfering with com
edy under th not unnatural impres
sion that It was crime.
Is it the serious suggestion of the
Httintn-Zeituno that because Lord
Heap! no sat with th Justices of the
Supreme Court of the I'nlted States
on his visit to Washington, the gentle
men composing that tribunal would
not give a fair decision In litigation
concerning th loan to Rngland and
France?
Mr Koison haa been asssllrd and
violently kissed by an avalanche of
women, but In no other particular
does his rareer resemble that of Cap
tain It. P, Hobson.
At one table oat men representing
II 0d. "00. 000 Report of a puollc rfisser.
Probably discussing the merit of
the Red Sox.
If the British Government should
Indulge In the small persecution of
detulning Dr. Di-mba's valet because
the man is of military age the doctor
would become a hero to him.
From "pitiless publicity" to "Shadow
I. awn"' Facllls descensus?
The academic mind Is sometimes a
curious study Professor Calvin Mc
Clelland of the New Jersey Law
School has been exercising his Intel
lect upon the profound question.
"Who Is in possession of a baseball
after It hao left the hand of the
pitcher and lo on Ito way toward the
batter"" The professor decides that
the pitcher lo In possession of the
ball, because "when he throws the
ball It it his Intention to exclude It
from the batter." This will not aat
isfy the "fans" who saw the last game
of the world aeries at Philadelphia.
They are unit ln the opinion that
on two occasions Mr. Hoopbb of Cali
fornia was In complete possession of
the ball, and that on another occasion
Mr. liff-rv Lbwis controlled It to th
exclusion of the pitcher.
Our strength, llko that of our ailleo,
Ilea in land power. Mahaulom
or Moltkelam that lo th qurotlon
Herliner Tapeblatt.
So the Kaiser turns bis back on th
road to Calais and strikes at Serbia
to open the way to Constantinople.
The 'laorblatt Is known as an Inspired
organ Its elaborate article upon the
Halksn campaign doubtless reflects
official opinion. And yet "Our future
lies on the tea" haa been a favorite
expression of William II.
The war ln Ruropa hoa taught uo the
great lesson ot the stupendous Impor
tance of an unlimited ammunition sup
pi;, and th neceotlty of being other
wise prepared. Secretory Dantbts.
Why the soft pedal "otherwise pre
pared"? Count's two wlvoo ooy "Ttiat'a html"
at Tombt ,Vii apoper Hnadline.
What shocking grammar the noble
ladlea use'
With a Tammany leader getting a
I residential appointment, and tha city
(lovernment marking Duplet Ficlp
Mai-onb'b Jobholdlng kinsman for dia
mlasal, It is plain that there haa been
a serious break Bettwaan tho Federal
and city admlnlBtratlona.
THE HEW COHSTITVTIOH.
l aw aaatemry Arneie aaa nerorm , al,i down ln ,iie tntut.
In Proeedare Dlscassed by Mr. It provides thnt thereafter the
Wiekersbaat. I Judges of the courts shall make nnd
nTui a. mm ' ., ,. i amend tbe practice rules, nnd that
To thb Kditob or Tub Ht'N -Sir . The i . . ... . - - - - ... ,,,.
. . - . . the Degio nture ohall keep Its hands
State of New York was the pioneer in . thpractlce .ot, exwpt that., at
the work Of mpllfying procedure In (,ltervnl,,'of not , lhan nvB V.arB.
court, of J-'atlce The M a delays. filature may appoint a com
bo ve been proverbial at all times, and ' , , ronlllner an(, rPptirt what
ruiiipiainu ok undue uem v ami expense ;
In the administration of justice, some-
times well founded, sometimes unrea- i
oonable, have been heard In every age ,(1 U(.t uaofl tne r,port nf any such
But the English lawyers converted , ,.ommiHHlon by n ainK, bill, and th
the system of pleading, which orlgi- isgtalBtura Is prohibited from other
nan v was Intended tn be merelv hrtaf I . . ...
noflly waa Intended to be merely brief
statements by the respective parties!
to a lawault of their causes of action
and defences, Into a complicated In
tellectual game, in which acute legal
mind on opposite sides of a contro
versy indulged themselves In technical
subtleties until the main controversy . certify that In their opinion such leg
was often lost sight of and the Inter- ; Nation Is necessary,
eats of the client wholly forgotten ln : Tho , iVil practice act reported by
the play of wlu over the technicalities , h(. Hoard of Statutory Consolidation
inn were involved.
In IMS the Legislature of the State
of New York enacted the Code of Pro
cedura prepared by David Dudley
Flald. It was entitled "An act to sim
plify and abridge tbe practice, plead
Inga and proceedings of the courts of
thla State." It consisted of 391 sec
tions. It substituted for the Involved
subtlfties of the English system of
pleading which had been Inherited by
us from our English forefathers plain
and simple statements of the facts
constituting a cause of oction or the
defences thereto It abolished forms
rf action, sought to remove the dis
tinction between actions at law an l
suits In equity, and provided a plain
and elmpie meths of disposing of
questions preliminary to trial on the
merits of the Issues raised hy these
simplified pleadings.
This code furnished a model which
waa adopted in almost every Ptate of
the United States and finally beenme
the Inspiration if a complete reforma
tion of the system of pleadings and
practice In Rngland ln 1 873. But. al
most from the date of Its enactment,
the Legislature of the State of Xew
York began to tinker with It. and
every year Its provisions were modified
or altered by legislation. In ls78 It
waa elaborately amended and added
to at the inetance of Montgomery
Throop. who had been appointed by
the Legislature a commissioner for
that purpose, and was transformed
into the Code of civil Procedure,
Bach aucceedlng Legislature added
to the complexity of the rules of civil
i practice created by this code by amend
ments which gradually swelled it
; to enormous proportions Kvery one
i of thee statutory rules --f practice
I gave riae to legal rights which might
j not be disregarded by courts and
I which Interposed between the brlng
j lng of an action at law and the con
sideration of Its merits hy a court a
aerlea of technical obstacles creating
l delay and necessitating expense until.
1 as was the case with the Kngllsh sys
tem of pleadings, the main object of
the lawault was lost sight of in the
c-nslderstlon Of numerous Intricate
: questions of procedure growing out of
1 this complicated, ex-er changing svs
1 tern of statutory rules, and tbe civil
practice of the State of New York
grew to be a reproach CO the admin
istration of Justice. Successive com
mittees of liar associations called at
tention to this vexatious and Increas
ing evil
In 1895 an act was passed providing
for tbe appointment mf commissioners
to report ln what resperts the civil
I procedure In the courts of this State
could be revised, condensed and sim
i plifled This c mmlsslon reported to
the Legislature five years later but its
report failed of adoption
In 1899 a committee of the State
Bar Association recommended the
adoption of a simple practice act.
supplemented by rules of court Siml
; lar recommendations were made by
a Joint committee of the Legislature
In 1900 and by various other com
1 mittees from time to time, until In
1913 the Bonrd of Statutory Consoli
dates created by the laws of 19n4.
which had been engaged In a revl
, slnn of the statute laws ,,f the State,
'recommended to the Legislature the
enactment of n short practice act. sup
plemented by rules of court
In May, 1913. tbe Legislature di
rected that board to prepare and pre
sent to the Legislature such a prue
Itlce act and court rules based upon
'the present practice ln the Code of
'civil F'rocedure and the court rules,
which net should be confined to n
statement of the fundamental and
I Jurisdictional matters relating to pro
i i e, lure and Dractice. all substantive
I I 1 - l.al,,,. nllml
i IIIW H11U Bim 1,11 lH-ll in r lirma UUII
1 nated from the code of civil Procedure
I und Incorporated In appropriate con
solidated laws or In new statutes. It
further directed that such act should
I be supplemented by rules of court
' to lie adopted bv tbe courts t., regulate
(he Important details of practice. IU0h
details of practice being omitted from
the statute.
1'urguant to this legislative direction
lb Board of Statutory Consolidation
in April. 1913. submitted to the fiov
ernor Its report, containing a short
and simple practice act. a set of rules
of court and separate acts to embody
under appropriate heads the provi
sions of substantive lux nuw contained
In the Code of Civil Procedure. The
Governor transmitted this report to
the Legislature, which referred It to
a Joint committee of both houes with
Instructions to examine tbe same and
report Its recommendations with re
spect thereto at tho session of Mil,
This report furnished the Constitu
tional Convention with a basis for the
attainment of the much needed reform
In the civil procedure of the Stnte.
Something more had to be done to
secure the permanenco of the reform
than the mere enactment of such a
law as that reported by the Board
of Statutory Consolidation: otherwise
tbe history of the Field Code of Pro
cedure might be repeated and the
new revised simple practice act be
come merely a point of departure
for a new aggregation of annually
Increasing laws amending, adding to
and confusing the original.
The revised Judiciary article, there
fore, provides that It ohall be tbe
duty of the Legislature at Its next
session to art with all convenient
speed upon the report of the Bonrd
of Statutory Consolidation, and to
enact u brief and simple civil practice
act, and to adopt a separate body of
civil practice rules for the regulation
of procedure ln the Court of Appeals.
Supreme Court and county courts. It
does not require the legislature to
enact the particular practice aot and
rules reported by the Hoard of Statu
tory Consolidation, but. It does require
the Legislature to act upon the re
port of that board, and to enact Into
law a short and simple practice aot,
and to adopt a body of rule whioh
are to furnish th detail neceoaary
for the carrying out of tha broad,
slmole oiio, loies of oractlce to be
changes, If any, should be mnde In
the law and rules governing civil pro
aatuM it remilriMi the IKislutur
wise or at any other time enact
ing any law prescribing, regulating
or changing the civil procedure In
the Court of Appeala, Supreme Court
or county courts, unless th Judges
or Justices empowered to mnke and
nmeml the civil ornctlce rules shall
contains seventy-on sections. The
court rules reported with It are 400
In number. The commission which
frnmed this report consisted of ths
Hon. A. J. Hodenberk and Messrs.
John O. Milburn, Adelbert Moot,
Charles A. Collin and. until his death,
Uie late Judge Hornblower. A met
recital of these nnmes and n refer
ence to the admirable work they did
In the preparation of the Conolldsted
Laws afTnrds a presumption that th"ir
report thoUld be adopted.
The prohibition against annual
amendment by the Legislature wl'l
protect their work from the fate which
tins befallen the Consolidated LeVWB,
now so encrusted over with amend
ments that the original is scarcely
recognizable I n'.ess the revised Con
stitution be adopted the work of the
commission will have been ln vain,
for tbe meddlesome Interference of
IUbeeO,U0nt Legislatures can be pre
vented only by means of constitutional
prohibition.
Provision is also made In the new
Judiciary nrttcle for the appointment
by the Appellate Division In the First
and Second Judicial departments of
Supreme Court Commissioners, who
must be members of the bar of not
less than ten years standing, and Who
shall devote nil of their time to the
duties of their office, receiving a com
pensation to be fixed by the cOUli with
the approval of the Board of Estimate
and Apportionment. These commis
sioners are. first, to determine the
compensation to be paid whenever
private property is taken for a public
use In the Judicial department or dis
trict fur which they are appointed, ex
cept when such compensation is made
by the State. Secondly, they mnv act
as referee whenever issues are prup
eriy referred to them for determina
tion or report, and thirdly, they shall
perform such other or further duties
as may be devolved upon them by
special order or rule of court, by the
Appellate Division fir by the civil prac
tice rules.
A great, abuse exists In the method
by which the value of real estate
taken for the public use is now ascer
tained. At the pre-etit time about 220
commissi' me are enrigo.i In fixing
the vai l of r"iil estate which has
been taken by the city of New v rk
lor some public purp ae, Theae oom
missions are usually composed of
three persons Tiny hold weekly,
sometimes hl-weckly. seaBlonBi seldom
of more than three l ours dur.ition.
Under existing statutes the title to the
property taken vests In the city before
the proceedings to fix its value are
begun, and in many cases propi rty
owners are lubjected to great hardship
In being deprived of their property and
ail income from it unt.l th Blow tedi
ous and expensive pr cess of deter
mining values before a commission It
completed, always requiring month
ami sometlmei years, before the final
award Is mnde.
An act passed att the last sess.on of
tbe Legislature in recogiiitr n of this
hardship BUthorlae the Board of Esti
mate and Apportionment of the city
of New York to cause not exceeding
sixty per cent, nf the amount estlmati d
bv the city's expert" ;,s damages In
curred by the taking of property to
a . , , . . L ... I ........ ..
D IJ '"" ""'"' " ""- " "
tne una; twani miu ' ""
thereof. Thi. is. however, Wholly op
tional with the city authorities.
An amendment t.. the BUI of
Itights emlsnllcil !;i the revised Con
stitution provides that where pro-
oeedingn for the condemnation of pr.-
VBtely owned re:vl estate for pWMP i
use To instituted by a civil division) - r
the State compensation therefor I
I nlllu Kn Uni.l l.rf,,ta M iMBUtllltl 1 1 f f 1 f '
, . , . -
I HI l'
property is taken from the owner, un-
less' the Supreme Court after hearing.
otherwise direct. The exer .se of
sm li discretion by the court, or
COUrae, may be conditioned upon the I
I city making a substantial payment on
OXXOUnt to th property ow ner before
he is deprived of the possession of hla
condemned property.
The proponed amendment further
piovides that the compensation to hi
paid when private property lo taken
for a public use. except when ttiken
by the State, mav lie BBCertBjned, In
the l-'irxt or Hecond Judicial d-p.irt-nients,
by one or m ire Supremo Court
Commiaaionera, These cnmmlsalon
ers, having no other occupation than
to diliaTire tho duties of their Office,
call olt continuously ik u court would
do and nseertutn and m.iUe an uw.ird
for tho property In B very much
shorter time than under the present
system nnd at much leM expense.
The provision that they may also t
dlaoharga such duties aa idiaii be de
volved upon them by rul of court or !
by tho civil practice rule opens the j
way to the establishment "f a system
BUOh as that which prevails In Eng.
land whereby all mutters of mere pro
cedure, such as gram ln of blllg of
particular, making complaint more
definite and certain, providing for the
examination ot wltnoatea and partial
before trial, &c, may be disposed of
before the commissioners, thus re-
lleVing the Judges of the court of the
consideration of qUMtiOIVl of practice
which ROW engage a largo haro of
their attention.
tine of t lie anrumeBJIs In favor of
tb recall of Judge and other Official!
was that tbe procedure of Impeach
ments was so cumbersome as to be Im
practicable. The revised Constitution
seeks to remove all Just complaint on
that score. By section ID of Article
111. the Legislature is authorised of lta
own motion, In the manner to be pro
vided by Joint rule, which eliall con
tinue ln force until abrogated or
amended by both the Senate and As
sembly, to convene to take action In
the mutter of tho removal of n Judge
of the Court of Appeals or Justice of
the Rupreme Court. The Assembly
is authorized, In tho manner tivhe pro
vided by a rule to continue iu force
until abrogated or amended by tt, of
Its own motion to convene for the
purpose of impoachment.
Section 17 of th Judiciary article
authorizes the court for the trial of
impeachments to order all or any part
of the testimony to be taken and re
ported by a committee composed of
members of the court, thus preventing
an undue Interference with legislative
business while testimony Is being
given that can quite as well be taken
by a committee as by the full court,
while the Interests of the impeached
officer are safeguarded by a provision
that he must be allowed to testify be
fore the court, If be so desire.
The adoption of these provisions
will not only simplify proceedings In
tbe courts but thereby greatly reduce
the expense of litigation and greatly
tend to remove all Just complaint of
undue delaya in the administration of
Justice. They have been unanimously
indorsed by the Bar Association after
careful examination by a competent
committee. The best Interests of the
people require their approval by the
electorate. Gnoana W. Wickersham.
Naw Yosk, October 15.
RELIGION IN THE SCHOOLS.
A Babbl Frges Precautions Against
an Obvloa Danger.
To the EiuToa or The Kcn Sir. Th
Clary system, which couplea the public
I school eystem with religious Instruction.
is decidedly un-American and fraug.ti
with grove danger to the harmonious
relatioiia of the different races and OB
n-. initiations constituting tho American'
people.
Hitherto the public schools w ere the I
common ground on Which, the children of j
variouo parentsge met on a basil of per
fect unity of interest and learned to
understand and tolerate each other t
tTndaf the Oary system the priest of a
core or more different creeds with!
hearts full of centuries of prejudice
toward one another will wait ot the
door of every public school ready to'
BOgrgBt0 tb children into as many dl-!
visions.
The rivalry between the rep-esenta-1
fives of the different creeds and the,
methods w hich Will be employed to out- j
distance one another in the hunt for
ouls may easily be Imagined.
It may also be taken for granted that
this will prove an entering wedge by!
which relision will be Introduced Into the 1
public schools ri emoelvce, with all the
concomitant race feuds that such prac-1
tied has produced In Kuropean countries.!
Far seeing people who are zealous fori
Amerlciin liberies should do their ut
most to ward off this peril.
.Meetings of protest should be heliC
throughout the city and the Mnyor and
the Po-ird of Education should be ap
prised in no uncertain terms that re
actionary policies which 'have time and;
actio been beaten off when advanced '
in the open cannot be smuggled ln
thriiUKh a back door
if aoooaoary, a powerful organization
should be created to fight thi peril by!
legal meani on eofiatitntlonal grounds.
It AMI: I BAMtTBtl IlABlNOWlTI.
BROOKLTMi Orfober 14
THE GERMAN CONTROVERSY.
An English Krlend of America Finds'
Dl Wanting In Spirit.
To the KplTOS or The SUM Sir: An
English nobleman In high place writes;
me its follows :
rtince you wrote Duoraba aeina to have
toodo himself quit? Impallhlo. even to j
the mci.t isi-liir.t people on earth. of i
rctirne. Von ncrnjturfr nj p.iji.-h are In '
fz.v, t:y th Bars boat, iui I the laiter Will
aardly ie sola to stag aoacb long, but j
via-4 via tij (ii-rmitny. your dipt HI tit i
pOaUiOB Boom to l LAM of l.ng any
thing ;i:.t down anj watting for uio i.t
eat lie There la aot tho faintest I us
that tha Arable, Or-luna and Heeiiirian
u re all terpdod; b ii i dot nie. ap-
PtOT to nutler The II I -tminitrr 0teft ,
ha rather a -, ,i tartoea of Von Tlrpttsl
i r Ins be,uoo h- v-i r.ot BTtalUd to I
lie aa frightful" ,i v.e lhed. Th Kal- I
i-i-r i-nnei.. t html Doa't cry, Tlrpy. Yuu
.1:1 alwaro msko a mistake nn-l wa can
..- BarnsiorS to apologia
i .l.i BOI think in a.l hie- .-, there ta a t
aaa of a great I'.iwer being treated withl
the -n!, a, ' in-empt wnlch the Herman
have jiuuri-.l uji..n you fr momhe wlth
itut roeetvlal mure in ronrn than, "Heiiiiy,
If you ti lllle ogilln wo nmai regard It
aa an unfrlend'y ai t", .-ind then when I
Qnnuy dna It again In a mk or two'
the formula ta repeat, i ,n lubotaaea He-1
momberlag the outburst ag.ilnet poor, el.ly
Sai BVllle. 1 am loar In aniaaement
Th Adinlida-ratlcn ta nut maie-r in It.
OWn inula- a-ld M a.- on tolerating Pern- I
I atorH My .l.ir friend, this la u Iui .ajr
in iiiatorv, an,! I n m lr how v,.ir hia-
tonan will tune tt down. To you mini
thf fTMMMl etVMKt i f uih 'ldlnr tht rlifhi 1
without rlnklng boftl' crw. tvnd your !
rulr only Wrott nn-l talktM Th worM' '
VwTdlOt on t nation -hi.-.h. when uV-l
jMhttta to mu.t nnti Intf-rnul intrvnt!'n 1
by furtalfrn PftWftT. wiu "tAO proud To 1
' "1 wll: n0 bt natterint, anl yon wld
NMeve RM '""hen 1 eny that I feel It a.1 -
?. k'",n'y " ,?' ,n yo"t r'"r"'
( ll".M . : e ins HIliei
,.-' : waarm
22? iTLrfSt
tared, y
Naw T rk, f tabor II
What vVolM He India's Welcome?
I To tiik BOITOft 0 TUB BUM fir: The
i (ermane seem prematurely oock-a-
whoop t the start of tnelr Alexander
1 raid toward India.
Ind.a may meet them
I There are many millions of keen lances
I nnd tulwars under cre.it and amall
I feudatories loyal to the Empire of th
KaltarlHlnd. When unleashed what
i joy nm.ituc the long restrained war-
i lors !
I M .guls. Rajputs, l b liss. Mn rutins,
' Sikhs, BalUOhlOi Juts 'iiid all the Kscha
IrnJa castes, the "Old Coast Army" of
Madras, rHised hy Olive. "Without preju
1 dices." whl.-h has often crossed the kala
; BBl to victory In China, llnrnia and
pgu -the lamural of inj
Itt tratima,
S'BW Yosk, Ociobar 14.
What Will the Tale Battery Io?
To tub Editor or tkb Bum sir- w
have always felt rr.iKhty secure her In
It II ...... OsAM, , .,lta ,Ha, .
I -a ,h miiitar. em.-l.-nov ta ,.i.
nMi of ouf uovrnoiri Foot j; inni. iut
now tho Hon. John QuIUll) T!ln. th
ConffrMimAn from th T irj district of
ConnootlCttti muklnif a
(Krt city of Iforldtn. There ts conntor
nut Inn, as It It f'..rM thnt our bold
warrior may thrn bfl CAlUd uion to d
fend tli port of Morldon alp.
Jam Ed I. Prwm.L, Jr.
Nrw Havrn. Conn., Ootobtr 15.
A CuB-k War None.
Tiom ihe Ruwl.in of Frdrvr Firikl J
Th arm dPOpfl ftd tn ttM wnart,
An t th uttlo ptApn ppur
Ari'i rp'l tha fOMVMO'f lir-mjit
Anl rHl th tip of my par.
Ths prn1 r ran Ilk ta!orl
j aharpaDAd It (Stroke by atroka,
An-1 utt: Martckft 4itf.od
Iut ntVtf word itM polra.
H- Irtd ein.t dTxpp(, hla run.
And our ei'-iiH mt Ji.ift to ha.fi,
But my thrukit th rtpr on
An1 I fodt him down ani lauchad.
Th un haa fn frorm rh waat,
nut th atara at dim tii.tt wra nla.r;
And pad a r a th aitttn on iuj hri.
But i l la tha tolnt of my apr
M atbi t'l Monra.
tfMWaMO(i .1 H ,r ...
INCOME TAX PLAN
EVOKES OPPOSITION
Mills Committor to liiveiisg
Various St'homcs in Kxrrtl
tive Session To-rlnv.
NOT YET COMMITTED
as i ; , . i i 'ti in
of th legislative committee
been hearing suggestion on ho I . i
amend th tax laws In order I i ret
enough money to meet the Ittad
creasing expenditures for 00B) nf p. vtn.
mestt In city ami State. Ikis Galled an
executive suasion of the committee si hit
home, J K.ist Eighty-fourth atreet at
10:JO o'clock thn morning tn entistdei
two or three new taxation ehemee
lie said yeetorduy he wanted it under
stood that the ormvrrrlttce is Tin et .irn
mltted to any plan, but de-en -
rsiate the Information laid bafort It , ft
the intention of asking couim' 1 la it
up tentative phtns that mav ls discussed
publicly before the vimnilttee m et ,
report to the legl-sleture. The chii aug.
g nation so fax made are un LnoOTTtt UU,
a habitation tax and a cliLneillni t-r -sona.1
property tax.
Senator Mills took occasion to deny
an Inference drawn from a remark of
hi on Tliurstitty when he wnn dlsvtaa
lng some of the m ittens which the .uni
mittee Is conejldvriiig Acsril:T,if 10 on
published, account Senator Mills an
nounced thai the committee won;, I re
lieve public service UUf UOIBtrOtl IttSB
the BpaolBl franchise tax which the) -n.
pay and would ln lieu of that tmrsies
upon them a tax of I tier cent on tntlf
net earnings, a scheme which s-ouU)
me.tn the lose of several milleirie ol dot,
lar.s to the State
What he said, us matter of fc ' I s
that a suggestion had been m.-de thai a
tax of 1 per cent, he laid ott the net
earnings of WOPoBlrtlle COrpOl mj
which now pay $;.iion.ftiiO In tavi-e undot
the general fratvhlMe BCt, At 1 pel
cent, on their net earnings 11 - esti
mated they would pay about ik 11
Slwusl they be forced to pay tics i paf
cent, on re-t c.imlns they would he ,
enuited from the preeent general frm
cJiise t.ut.
Senator Mills m.i.V It plain tli it ' la
BlaliaelllSI ho nothing to do w-ith pun'.'e
setvlce diriHiratinne or the il frm-
chlse tax which they pay Tb ,..m
m.ttee Is not considering pub' . s-rv s
BtarpotBVtlOlia at all.
it ts practically certain that -
for the committee will be asked to .ir.f1
an Income tux bill and that it Will make
provision for a flat rate on all liiennii
above l,5on. Although the great
Jorlty of witnesses before the con
have urged an income tax. and m if
them a graduated income t.ix. it ni In
said that members of the oommlttet ft
sceptical about getting even a tl.it
1 n . "in i- tax tlimugh the Leglslal in
A. C. IMeydell. secretary of Iht
Reform Association, who was in
stand yesterday, is practically the
Tn
tht
only
w-.tii-'ss who declared his i. pp. i-i to
an Income tax, but it Is known tb Ii
throughout the State there la i well
defined opposition to this form of taxs,
tion. In tbe opinion of committee mem
h.-rs any Income tax bill is going to h -n
hard time getting through the i.. g
luture, and they reg.ird -i graduate. I
i ome tax as an linpossibil'ty. at leal
for the pres. nt.
Mr. I'll ydell was also nbotit the nn"
witness who maintained that real 1 1
late an bear additional tax burdens n-
lie refused to at pt the assumption f
the committee that New Tork City n
make provision to meet addit onal '
get.-iry rxpetidlturea of about IS!, OOi UK
during the next dei oda He said it A
Impossible tn consider new scheme '
taxation without constdarinfj sons
means uf keeping down BXpanset Vs
ganator Mills pidnted out to blni -MW
Vork city must meet iti
charg! and must provide for the r- n
tnent of bonds Issued to pay for pul
Improvements Mr Pleydell sail -
real estate benefited by public Improve
mentB and should bear the addt
pense.
former city comptroller Herman a
Metz denounced the corporation tax ' i
as unfair and then proceeded to she
unfairness by citing his own case M
said lie hnd the office of two if
companies located n Bsopua so be -
s.-.iiie the higher tax that h w u I
forced to pay if ho had them In N
York city. He urged that th I It
turc make It impossible for h'tn to I
htfl taxes In this way .
The n-xt public hearing of fie real
mlttee will tie held lO:S0 o'ck) k
day morning at th Mer -han'.s A
lion.
INCOME TAX ARGUMENT
ENDS WITH U. S. PLEAS
.1 list ices Make Mnny lniiii
on Collect ion ;ii tie
Source."
WAanivuTON, Ot. Ifi At: - '
bafora the ip rem a Court i" the
tax caaea olotod todfty, lh Q
mnt oounsol making th i p Intu
quaHtlons w-ro MkCtl from Uli b I
th "withholding tnuao."
BoUoltor-Qerural Davis oontai r
the tMk Whloh thf Unvprnmri.t I -posed
on ooftnln Torporatlom
h. himg Uio in vme t.i ".it th
and thn axpenat. and trouble thai
posad mads "burden of cltln
Whloh tii Uovarnmont had
tionut right to impose on cofp
and ttMbt oompgnlofl Tha .''i--
parent ly took a different View,
from tli interrogation! from tl
Those who are fighting the la
most strongly on the prob.l1 II
the court will hold that tl
constitutional power to in r
poratloni tit ttinkH at t .1 x
SnUUllng expense uml r lib I
it amounts to t "tailing i
Of the corporation Wit hoi
tsatlon and without due priMe
STATE CANALS CLOSE NOV
Order for Krle. bsnipin
io and Hln .-u River W'Btrrni
albant, o.-t. r I'ntraa
by le. the Krie. I'hampiali 1 1
Blaok Kiver eanalt will '"
nuvlBatlon t"r t'w oeaton or v
3d. ln orilfr iliat tli rui
free of oil l.oats by the
the issuing -f clearancei
Imalo will renaa lit canal
Collowi I
Mr! CanaV -Horse iir.i"1
nielli November ia. otoan
boat.-, November -i Chan
AH bi'Htu, November -''' oe,
November 2T. Blaoli Uimm
November
llanqaet far tionilnlr.
DBTBOITi n' I 11 ii
iiooii.i, one of Ih ',-!
tVi-a'ri.-al erltlca( Who '
flftli'lh yi'ar ni ,i it;. -, in
t'rre I'reat staff, : I
honor to-morrow niRhl
th La.:ihs Club, W
la a memher.
nlrd
Dr "
1