The American JudiciaryBaldwin, Simeon E. (Simeon Eben)
History
The American Judiciary
Baldwin, Simeon E. (Simeon Eben)
Courts -- United States; Law -- United States -- History
In case of those having long terms of office, a re-election comes
more easily and commonly. A man who has been ten or twenty years
upon the bench has become set apart from the community. The
people have ceased to think of him as one of themselves, so far
as the active political and business life of the day is
concerned. His position and his work, if it has been good, have
given him a certain elevation of station. Men have learned to
trust him, and to feel that his presence on the court helps to
make liberty and property more secure. If he receives his party
nomination, he is apt to secure a majority of votes, whether the
others on the ticket are or are not elected. The opposing party
often nominates him also, and sometimes, if his own gives the
nomination to another, nominates him itself, and with success.
In New York it has been generally the case that a good judge of
the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court is re-elected until he
reaches the age limit set by the Constitution. To accomplish
this, however, it has been necessary for the bar to use constant
efforts to bring the nominating conventions of both parties to
the support of the same man or men, and personal ambition and
party feeling have on a number of occasions set up an effectual
bar. Before a recent election of two judges in that State, in
preparation for which a scheme had been suggested by which one of
the outgoing judges of each party should be re-elected, a third
candidate for the succession, himself a prominent member of the
bar and an officer of the State, published a lengthy statement of
his claims, which concluded thus:
"I am a candidate for nomination to the office of Associate Judge
of the Court of Appeals at the coming Democratic State
Convention. I appeal to my fellow-citizens for their support.
While I do not believe that support for judicial candidacy should
be unduly importuned, I feel that the present circumstances
justify me in making this announcement. I have always stood by
my party in its dark days, when others voted the Republican
ticket in the interest of their business. I have assisted in
endeavors to so shape its policies as to make success possible.
Now that this has been accomplished, I do not think that my
fellow-Democrats will thrust me aside to make way for those who
neither affiliate with the party nor vote its ticket."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account