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Show Itjrliarous Jury Custom. Altered circumstances, resulting from the march ol Jirugresi) and the dcvcloj incut of civilization, should ro-ult 111 appropriate changes of le-gi-Iatioti. Olll) iu Uie matter of Iheaduiinislratiouof the law do we standstill. eh.no given ujithe lurliaruus jincticc. 01 suliectiiig jurowliilcdelilieratiug.toliuugcr, thirst and cold, wh) not give uj tlut oilier relic of bu ban-in, thu senseless ruleuf tinaiiiiuit)? Tiie jirojTrietJ of the rule of uti-auimitS uti-auimitS h isLeenasjIject of r.ive doubt for more than a ceiilur). hml) n, as early as IT ), in Ins jir-face jir-face to the second edition of Howell's 'otate Trials," m-ikes an eloquent appeal for the abolition of the rule Jlallani, iu the sujq It nient.nl Holes to his "Middle Age- " designates, j, a jirejxMcrous relic of lorbari-m " The i-.ugli-h Common Law Com-im-sioi cr- of IbSI condemn the rule iu vcr) iltive language, aud j ro-joso ro-joso tint the jurv shall not bektjt in deliberation longer than twelve hours, unless at the end of that Jieriod they unanimouslv agree to appH for further time, and tliat at thecxjiiration of twelve hours, or of such prolonged time for dcliben-tlun, dcliben-tlun, if nine of them concir iu a verdict it shall be taken Dr. rnnc!I,icbcr, In his "Civil Libert) and self (Jovcrnnu lit," and ; iiiorejnrticularl) in an article in the 'A1n1Tlcnnl.au Itcgister" lor lb7, ' Is outspoken in his condemnation jftlie jiractice of resjuiring unaul- ' mous verdicts. Ileutham, iu his , "1-va) 011 the Art of Tacking Juries," says it could not have been the work of calm reflection, working by the light of exjierieuce, aud calls ifiiolessextraordinar) than Iwr-I Iwr-I barous." Judge Coole), iu his edition of lllackttone. cliaracterizes It as "rejsjginnt to all exjierieuce of human conduct, jiasslou, and un-deistaudiug,"atid un-deistaudiug,"atid further fa)sthat "itcouid hardly iu an) age hive U-en Introduced into jiractice by a deliltrate act of the la-gitpiture " Kx Governor Koerner, of Illinois, calls it the illog'cal unanlmitv system, which has Isssome a great MirceofccrrupUou a id conseijueut denial of justice." In 1ST6, Governor Gov-ernor Carpenter, of Iowa, In a message to the Legislature ot that State, called it "an antique absurd-it) absurd-it) which has too long fettered the administration of Justice." In the same ) ear, a committee of the Wisconsin Wis-consin Legislature rejwrted in favcr of submitting to the jvople of that State a constitutional amendment eniioweriiig a less number than twelve to return a verdict. These few selected from innumerable miliar cxprex-ions will sullice to give an idea of the development and strength of theojijosltion to the iron rule of unanimity. Sigmund Zcttlcr in tlc rm.ni. |
