Show FOUR VALUABLE PAPERS At the Closing Session of the State Bar Association ADMISSIONS TO THE BAR HAKKNESS THINKS EXAMINATIONS f i EXAMINA-TIONS TOO EASY I I i Judge Judd Discusses Through Freight Rate and the Interstate Commerce Layr Desirable Changes Chang-es in the Di 01 co Laws by udge Eart Judge Grant E Smith Gives Some Account of the Work of the Code Commission The State Bar association closed the two sessions of its annual meeting last night In the absence of the retiring retir-ing president Judge Boreman the new president Mr C S Varian presided and papers were read by Mr Harrie Harkness Judge Judd Judge Hart and Mr Grant H Smith The subject of Mr Harkness paper was Admissions to the Bar Mr Harkness explained that the object ob-ject of his paper was to introduce anew a-new law to the notice of the legislature in regard to admissions to the bar Amore A-more stringent examination was advisable isable in order to maintain the standard stand-ard up to a high degree Lawyers were in fact the rulers of this country and i was so in most civilized countries coun-tries In early and less cultured times lawyers were not held in very high esteem Notably was this the case in the early history of our country I is very necessary that competency in lawyers be assured for the legal gentlemen gen-tlemen who make mistakes cannot cover them up In this respect they ale not so well oft as medical men for the latter are usually able to bur their mistakes Mr Harkness thought the standard for admission to the Utah bar was too low He thought a term of residence ought to be prescribed and also a term of study of not less than two years that admission to the bar of other states should not be a passport to admission in this state and that the supreme court should pass upon the qualifications of candidates for admission ad-mission to the bar of the district courts Mr Harkness outlined a bill for an act which Mr AVilsonwas going to introduce into the legislature regulating regulat-ing admissions to the bar on the lines indicated JUDGE JUDDS PAPER Judge Judd read a paper on the decision i de-cision of the United States supreme court in the case of the Texas Pa j cific Railroad company vs the Intel state commerce commission This decision de-cision I said the judge if nit becomes I the law of the country would have a farreaching effect on the inland states I and would greatly add to their pros perity The Texas Pacific railroad had a line of railway running from New Orleans Or-leans to San Francisco with various branches Over this line the company I was in the habit of carrying goods I shipped from London Liverpool and i other foreign ports to San Francisco at I a through rate for some classes of goods of 107 1 while on the same kind of goods which commenced their journey I jour-ney at New Orleans they charged 2 SO This was alleged to be a violation of the interstate commerce law in that it was a discrimination against the I New Orleans shippers and the interstate inter-state commerce commission ordered the railway company to range trieir freight schedule so that the goods in transit from foreign ports should pay the same proportion of I freight as the goods shipped from home points The railroad disregarded I the order and proceedings by injunction injunc-tion were instituted It was argued on behalf of the railroad road that it was proper under the law I to charge a lesser rate on goods billed through to San Francisco because the freight rates to the Pacific coast were controlled by sailing ships going from European ports to the Pacific coast ports and that if the railroad was debarred from making charges to meet these rates they would be prevented from competing for the business at all The case went through the various courts with varying results until i reached the United States supreme court and that tribunal decided by six to three in favor of the railroad company holding that the interstate commerce law was intended to protect equally the interests of the traders the shippers the communities shipping the goods and the communities among which they were sold The importers of New York Boston I Philadelphia New Orleans and other cities rame into competition with the I I manufacturers and the latter said I j Judge Judd were by the tariff lavs I I enabled to obtain a higher price for their goods from the people In the I inland states The effect of all this was to accumulate vast wealth in the east at the expense of the rest of the country By the cheap through rates the merchants in Chicago St Louis Omaha Denver and the west and middle west were enabled to buy their goods delivered at their places of business busi-ness cheaper than the same goods could be supplied by either the importers im-porters at the seaboard or bv the eastern east-ern manufacturer and the action against the railroad companies was instigated in-stigated by those Importers and manufacturers manu-facturers so that they might continue con-tinue to charge the western people high prices for their goods and hold a lucrative trade The decision of the United States supreme court simnlv meant that the inland merchants and consumers would be put on an equal footing with their brethren on the seaboard which II is eminently proper The result will be that the west will grow in wealth and will not b compelled to pay tribute trib-ute to the east Mr Justice Harlan who wrote the dissenting opinion however thought that according to the opinion of the majority of the court the interstate I commerce act should be entitled an act to injure home l industries and protect pro-tect foreign manufactures Judge Judd however thought tHe majority of the court was right and I that if the decision which the power and wealth of thecast was conspiring i did fact and in to overthrow in practice prac-tice become the law of the land it would Inure greatly to the benefit of the west DIVORCES IN THE UNITED I STATES Judge Hart in his paper on divorces In the United States referred to the dlvergancy In the laws of the various states and also between the laws of this country and of Europe such diverg ency being likely to create great complications com-plications He compared the grounds for divorce in the various states time of residence required and so forth the latter varying from three months to three years Some features of our divorce law have been a scandal to our civilization civiliza-tion A unity In divorce laws would the judge thought be an exceedingly good thing In the matter of residence Dakota and Oklahoma which required re-quired only a 90 days residence worked an Injustice on the other states where a longer term of residence was required In the states requiring a six months residence resi-dence there have been no particular abuse of the divorce laws but if those states icqulring a three months residence raised it to a year then the i h six months states would have the same reputation as Oklahoma and the Dakotas have now One years residence resi-dence was the speaker thought a short enough period and If the states could come to a uniform practice In the matter of residence and in ail l matters I pertaining to divorce it would be an eminently good thing Yet the laws of divorce were not so much to blame as the manner in which they were administered admin-istered and here Instances of the loose manner In which divorce were granted in Oklahoma were referred to One case was mentioned in which an appeal had been taken In Oklahoma and the ing the decree and this ruling I hading had-ing the decree and this ruling it had been stated would invalidate 12000 serious Oklahoma divorces quite a matter in view of the complications sure to arise from remarriage by the divorced parties Many Instances of the peculiarities and anomalous conditions con-ditions arising from the variety of the divorce laws were mentioned From the year 1S6S to 1SS6 in the United States 32S71G divorces were granted an Increase of 157 per cent as compared with an increase of 60 per cent in the population In two I thirds of these cases the wives were the plaintiffs Judge Hart suggested that the legislature legis-lature appoint a committee to meet I with a similar committee from other states with a view of securing uniformity uni-formity in the divorce laws of this country THE CODE COMMISSION Judge Grant H Smiths paper on AVhat the code commission has been doing brought the business of these the-se sion to a close Mr Smith said the commission had I carefuly revsed the laws of Utah dl vided them into appropriate sections eliminated obsolete laws changed the I phraseology in some cases and will make recommendations to the legislature I legisla-ture of needed changes and additions to the laws I Quite a number of the states had I I recently completed the codification of their laws and this commission had ex I I amincd many of these and had the ad I i i vantage of the experience of those i fn I states in making its recommendations I to our present legislature I This commission had arranged the code alphabetically and divided it into chapters and sections all of the law i outside the criminal and civil oro cedures is so ararnged Mr Smith i went Into a detailed explanation of the I system pursued by the commission In I its work I A new chapter on adoption will be recommended to the legislature and changes in the act about domestic animals ani-mals that a law be passed not requiring requir-ing chattel mortgages in all cases to be recorded such a procedure being too f expensive in cases where the amounts are small and It would do just as well I to file the mortgages with the recorder i The repeal of all private charters Is i recommended and that all such be i I brought under the general corporation act actThe i I The commission also l will recommend tnat a uank examiner with authority to examine private banks as well as others be appointed Under the head of elections the abolition of the house to house canvass and changes In the system of voting are recommended Many of the old laws it was found absolutely necessary to rewrite the phraseology being bad and the punctuation punctu-ation abominable To give anything like an adequate Idea of what the code commission had done would Judge Smith said require a whole day and as the hour was late he did not deem it advisable to do more than make the general remarks as above P A Dix was elected a member of the association and an adjournment sine die was taken |