The Legal World

peals was 2.13, of reversals 0.518, onehalf of one per cent, or one case in 193.04. In New York county there were in 1906 in criminal cases 5,265 jury trials, where everything favors the criminals. There were 93 appeals and 5 reversals! This was the work of Mr. Jerome, shortly afterward so villain ously assailed. In the five years ended with 1906 there were disposed of by the magistrates and the courts of record in this county 81,000 criminal cases; appeals, 281; reversals, 27. In Ver mont in that year not one case was reversed. In Alabama not one per cent, in Indiana one-third of one per cent, in Washington 1.08 per cent. " In 1906 the federal courts dealt with a total of 50,926 cases; of 358 appeals to the Supreme Court of the United States 67 caused reversal, of 1,204 in the Circuit Courts of Appeal 327 were reversed. The percentage of efficiency was 99.23."

A legislative commission has made a report on the inferior courts of Suffolk County, Massachusetts. The commis sion, after investigating the central municipal court of Boston and the courts of several suburban districts, recom mended a consolidation of the inferior courts of the county, by the extension of the central court, the abolition of the remaining courts, the creation of a juvenile division having jurisdiction throughout the county, and an appellate division for error of law in civil causes; the court to consist of one chief justice, fifteen associate justices, ten special justices, and one associate and two special justices for juvenile work. The commission also recom mended larger and more specific au thority in the court, by majority vote of its judges, to make rules and orders

165

for the transaction of its business and regulation of its practice; centraliza tion of executive authority, to secure efficiency and uniformity in the tran saction of its business, and to promote co-ordination in the work of its depart ments; the adoption of a system to prevent duplication of trials on issues of fact, in civil causes; and permissive authority for the court to appoint salaried interpreters.

The Sherman Law The National Civic Federation has made public an analysis of sixteen thousand answers received by it to a series of questions concerning the Sher man law. The analysis of the answers is summed up by the Federation as follows: "The replies indicate little sentiment in favor of the unconditional repeal of the Sherman law. On the other hand, it is shown that there is practically no desire to abolish large combi nations. The public have no desire for government ownership, on one side, or unrestricted and unregulated private or corporate control on the other. They will accept large combinations ade quately regulated. Eighty-four per cent of the answers pronounce the Sher man law neither clear nor workable, or workable without being clear; but only some twenty per cent declare in favor of its repeal. Of these latter the larger number add that 'If not repealed, it should be amended,' etc." Louis D. Brandeis of Boston told the House Committee of Congress on Ju diciary Jan. 26 why he thought the Lenroot-La Follette bill now pending in Congress would adequately supplement the Sherman anti-trust act and relieve the business situation. "This bill," he said, "takes a middle ground; it rests