Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

Ihief Justice Gary Delivers Address bounty dedicated her new to participate in the exercises, the se yesterday, the opening distinguished Chief Justice Hon. i Court of General Ses- Eugene B. Gary of Abbeville, was l among a score of promi- chosen to make the principal aders, representatives of all dress, which we have the honor to e State, who were invited publish as follows: CHRISTIANITY AND LAW. earliest history even to the present time, there has been a strong tat there is a close relation between divine morality and the adn of justice, arising from the fact, that the people throughout believe, that in the beginning the laws, not only for their spiritr their temporal guidance, came directly from God, or were sent rough His messengers. rst law which man was commanded to obey was when God placed a- J.L. he garden of Eden afid said unto him: "Ui every tree ox me u mayest freely eat. But of the tree of knowledge of good and shall not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou 7 die." yard, God not only delivered to Moses tablets of stone, upon lad written the ten commandments, but gave the people through >de of laws for guidance in their secular affairs, and told him nents should be rendered when its provisions were violated. larkable discovery was made in lyui. An expedition unaer me bernment while making excavations on the site of Susa, the anjpolis, which was once the capital of an Elamite monarchy, >ck of didorite which had been broken in three pieces, but when iher they formed a monument rrearlv eight feet in height, into columns of the ancient Babylonian wedge-shaped hieroglyi inscription purports to have been made by Hammurabbi, who out 2300 years B. C. The upper part of the monument con>resentation of Hammurabbi standing before Shamash, the sunsvas supposed to be the god of law, his right hand at his mouth, |>n his waist and clothed in a long tunic hanging down in folds ted cap upon his head. Shamash with flounced robe and swathed ing, is seated upon a raised dais. In his left hand is a wheel blamatic of the sun, as are also the rays behind his shoulders, right hand an object which has been variously regarded as a stylus, this representation nas oeen gvupiaiiy anu yivuauiy nterpreted as intended to indicate the sun-god at the inspiring lie code of laws recorded on the monument, which have been and are now in existence. iws of the Spartans which are described by later writers as the 'curgus, were believed by the Lacedoemonians themselves, to be by Appollo. me, the earlier customs, it was thought, were formulated by further, that they were dictated to him by the goddess Egeria. vho restated the Civil Law, claimed that he was enabled through from God, to write his pandects and institutes. elieved that while Mahomet was in the cave of Hira, engaged in leditations, the angel Gabriel came to him by night as he slept, i him an open volume bound in silk and gems, and compelled i he could not read, to recite a text which was written therein, which Gabriel thus taught him, remained deeply graven upon his sy were the first of a long series of revelations brought down n by the angel Gabriel, and delivered in the-same way. Ma elf could not write; but the words of the Divine revelation relim, were recorded by his disciples on palm leaves and shoulder rotton; and the pages, without order or connection, were cast ; in the custody of one of his wives. Two years after his death, volunme?the Koran?was collected and published by his friend or.Abubeker and was subsequently revised by the Caliph Osman. 'ormans claim that an angel of God came down from heaven th him certain golden plates of which the workmanship was curilcient in appearance; and that the writings on these golden n translated, constituted a code of laws for their spiritual and lance. ws of God were so interwoven with the laws made by man in itration of justice, that Archbishop Norton who was a chancel;ime of Henry VII rendered a decree in which he said: "I know hat every law should be consistent with the law of God, and rbids that an executor should indulge in any disposition he may ste the goods of the testator; and if he does, and does not make he is able, he shall be damned in hell." Let us hope that the did not find it necessary to enforce his judgment by an execu I the body of the executor. llesmere thus commenced his judgment in the Earl of Oxford's The law of God speaks for the plaintiff. Deut. XXVIII. (2) and good conscience speaks wholly for him. (3) Nor does the ind speak against him; but that and equity ought to join hands ng and restraining all extremities and hardships. By the law hat builds a house ought to dwell in it, and he that plants a - j-r. - i-L r. J U I gilt to gainer Uie grapes uieieux , emu it was a tuioc upuxi uic they should build houses and not dwell in them, and plant nd not gather the grapes thereof. Deut. XVIII, 30. ret here in this case, such is the conscience of the doctor, the that he would have the houses, gardens and orchards which he t nor planted; but the chancellors have always corrected such sciences, and caused them to render quid pro quo." George Sharswood, in his lecture on the subject of the Relation foral Science, thus speaks of the divine law: we regard ourselves as ministers at the altar of divine law, however trifling, there performed, will in our eyes be a coni holy service. Then we shall feel what is absolutely necessary eel. that there is no department of human or divine knowledge It. important relations to practical as well as theoretical juris0 field of fancy which does not yield flowers to adorn its chapie of science, however, deep, from whcih the precious ore can to enrich it. st pry into the recesses of the human heart, and become well tvith the whole moral world, that we may discover the abstract 1 laws. Till this happens the profession of law will scarcely >e ranked among the learned professions." I [lowing prayer was composed by Chief Justice Ryan of Wisfound among his papers at his death: [ of ali truth, knowledge, and judgment, without Whom nothor wise, or just; Look down with mercy upon Thy servants sufferest to sit in earthly seats of judgment to administer Thy hy people. Enlighten their ignorance and inspire them with nts. Grant them grace truly and impartially to administer to and to maintain Thy truth to the glory of Thy name. And of I mercy so direct and dispose my heart that I may this day fulaty in Thy fear and fall into no error of judgment. Give me it patiently, to consider diligently, to understand rightly and stiy. Grant me due sense of humility, that I may not be ly wilfulness, vanity or egotism. Of myself I humbly acknowlti unfitness and unworthiness in Thy sight and without Thy dance I can do nothing right. Have mercy upon me, a poor, sinner, groping in the dark; and give me grace so to judge others now, that I may not myself be judged when Thou comest to judge the world with Thy truth. Grant my prayer, I beseech Thee, for the love of Thy son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen." A most unique instance of reliance upon divine law was when verse 5 chapter 24 of Deuteronomy was cited by a newly married St. Louis man,j in his appeal for exemption from military service. It is as follows: "When; a man hath taken a new wife, he shall not go out to war, neither shall hej be charged with any business; but he shall be free at home for one year, and shall cheer his wife which he hath taken." There are decisions to the effect, that Christianity forms a part of the law of the land. Not in the sense that its precpets have the force and pffent of Statutes from that fact alone, but that it must be taken into consideration in determining, whether those duties heretofore classified asj mere moral obligations, may not be of such a nature, as to create a legal | liability when they are violated. Laws prohibiting certain acts on Sunday, i are to be construed with reference to the Biblical commandment to rem-| ember the Sabbath day and to keep it holy. It is also to be taken into consideration in cases where it is necessary to determine whether a viola-J tion of the common law is of the crimen falai and whether an offense is j malum in se or malum prohibitum. This feeling is so strong that it evenj finds expression in our Constitution which provides that*.' "No person whoj denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office under thisj Constitution." Ferero in his book entitled "Greatness and Decline of Rome," says: "Since the houses at Rome were mostly built of wood, and the Aediles had so far failed to organize efficient measures of prevention, fires at this time were exceedingly frequent. This suggested to Crassus a very ingenious j idea. He organized a regular fire brigade from amongst his slaves and es-| tablished watch-stations in every part of Rome. As soon as a fire broke rut, the watch ran to give notice to the brigade. The firemen turned out, but accompanied by a representative of Crassus, who bought up, practi-| cally for nothing, the house which was on fire, and sometimes all the! neighboring houses which happened to be threatened as well. The bargain j concluded, he had the fire put out and the house rebuilt. In this way he | j secured possession of a large number of houses at a trifling cost, and became one of the largest landlords at Rome both in houses and land 1- - j.' -'.-I- \ . 11 J u ~ I waiun ne was uiuii uuie ui cuuibe cu excnangc, uu sen aiiu lu uu) up again . almost as he chose. Having become in this way one of the richest, if not j the richest man in Rome, his power steadily increasing with every rise, in the price of money, Crassus soon became a dominating figure in the Sen; ate and the electorate, and indeed among all classes of the community. ! His conduct in this respect did not affect his popularity nor was it regarded as imposing upon him the legal duty of charging only a reasonable amount for his services." This illustrates the Pagan idea of man's duty to i his fellow man. The language of Mr. Justice Story in the case of the j Schooner Emmulus, 1 Sumn. 207 involving a similar principle reflects the spirit of Christianity when he says: "It'is true that contracts made for salvage services, are not ordinarily held obligatory by the Court of Admiralty upon the persons whose property is saved, unless the Court can ! clearly see that no advantage is taken of the parties' situation and that | the rate of compensation is just and reasonable. The doctrine is founded j upon principles of sound public policy as well as upon just views of moral | obligation. No system of jurisprudence purporting to be founded upon : moral, religious, or even rational principles could tolerate for a moment I the doctrine that a salvor micrht avail himself of the calamities of others. ! to force upon them a contract unjust, oppressive and exorbitant; and that ! he might turn the price of safety into the price of ruin; and that i he might turn an act demanded by Christianity and public duty, into a trafj fic of profit which would outrage human feelings and disgrace human ! justice." FOR SALE: j On the First Monday in October, 9 I after the regular' sales, I will offer B V W 1 oeiore tne uourt iiouse in ADDe- ? a g { ville, S. C., a tract of land lying in g llflllQPnl i Abbevlile County, containing 98 B llvilvvH' i acres, more or less, bounded by the I lands of Robert Bowie, R. L. Winn, j| J. C. Pressly and Long Cane Creek. 1 Terms of Sale:?One third Cash. R *] Balance in notes due in one and two |l years bearing seven (7%) per cent, fi TWO DE i annual interest and secured by I ' mortgage on the tract so sold, pro ! B ! viding for attorneys fees for collce IE ? j. s. moffatt. g Th? ladies of Abb = I the ruling or agreem NOTICE, TEACHERS EXAMINA- 1 adopt j The regular fall teachers Exami- tj The rules are ironnation will be held ii the Abbeville i|j favoritism County Court House on Saturday, In Oct. 5, 1918. Examination will be- g The scarcity of lal gin at 9 A. M., and close at 4 P. M.j| (;0 COlltend With haV( All wishing to take the examina- H _ _ ' tion will please take notice and $ rCeaCl tHem. J: aSte come on this date.^ j| First: We can ma 9-i7-3t. lw. Co. supt. of Ed. jfl home. IM All IVIASTEK'S Lt. k1 1111 V1UV/ !$ not later than ten o'c i STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA, . I County of Abbeville; f cenes to you m time Court of Cammon Pleas. | Third! Ol'derS J)1 By virtue "ot M order of the | 0nly St OUT.COnVenfc Court of Common Pleas in the case 8 FoUVtll! "THUSl .of R. E. Wilson, Plaintiff, against J foUf o'clock if VOU W George Pressly and Building & Loan m * ; Association of Abbeville, Defendants ?' Fifth.! Please Ord< I will sell to the highest bidder, at|2 t0TOOOn before, it is public auction, within the legal hours a of sale at Abbeville Court House, onjfl SixthPlease do Monday, the seventh day of October, || We will be fOTCeC tne ionowmg aescriDea pro- yi perty, to wit: J We ao not wish to All that lot or parcel of land situ- j| jr) tum expect them t ,ate, lying and being in that part ofi| operate with US dUIT , the city of Abbeville, known as Har risburg, containing one half acre, I ' more or less, and bounded by lot of I j Allen Sanders, estate Robert Harris, j 1 T. M. MILLER estate of W. Carter and others, be- I . . _ _ _ _^_ H A MAC D MAC ing the Phoebe Carter lot and upon u# 1 _i_ iv _ i !Ui l II a v v * t wmcn is ine Duuaing Known as wie H^XSl^lLLJ Palm Garden. TERMS OF SALE?CASH. Pur- THE L. W. m chaser to pay for stamps and papers. p TUfiMQ^ THOS. P. THOMSON, fc. K. I rHJMOV 9-20-3t. Master Abbe. Co., S. C. Some time ago a member of Congress introduced a bill to make th? Golden Rule a part of our statute law. That Rule, as you will recall, is as follows: "Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you that do ye even so to them." This is practically the same as the principle maxum upon which the system of equity jurispru4ence is founded: Live honestly; injure no one; render to every one his due." A bill was also offered in the Legislature of one of our States to adopt the precepts of the Bible as a part of the law of that State. We have cited these instances for the purpose of showing that the human heart demands that justice be administered in accordance with equity, good conscience, sound reason, and divine morality, in order that it may reflect the spirit and meet the requirements of a progressive civilization founded upon Christianity. Having reached this conclusion, we shall attempt further to demonstrate that the failure on the part of the courts to respond more fully to this demand, is a cause of dissatisfaction with the administration of justice, and of the growing and widespread effort on the part of the people, to change the fundamental principles upon which our renresentative government is established. Two of the most frequent criticisms are, that justice and ' progress are being defeated by technical constructions, and that the trial of cases upon the merits is being unduly delayed, and justice in large measure practically denied. In order that you may fully realize the nature and extent of these criticisms, we quote from a contributed article in the May-June (1918) --- ? I-?? AmA?i/inn T nnr PnviftW " KtT 1 + CJ Alllv lflW AT* ATI - IlUIUUCl U1, x lie /luicntau juan ucntn, uj vmj ?; u?vwv...v., ... titled: "A Layman's View of Law Reform." "We live in a day of criticism of courts and lawyers. Even the very essence and nature of law, is being scrutinized anew. In this critical stage, if never before, it behooves the great lay public, and the powerful legal profession, to get their bearings towards each other. And in what other way can this be accomplished, but by utilizing every available avenue, to get the respective view points. The layman believes that the courts and the lawyers, are on trial . To-day. He has listened to the murmurs of disapprobation, that trickle through the common walks of life, results of the disheartening contacts, which common men everywhere have encountered, in the pursuit of justice. He has observed the press, and noted that practically all the great organs of opinion, are a unit in merciless criticism. He sees both Capital ?nd Labor sullen and frowning, at the tortuosity and length of the pathway 1 i l? ?i . i_ _ n l_ to justice. In cartoon, in editorial, ana in special article, ne xinus uie pxesa which voices the views of wealth, at one with the press that pleads the cause of poverty. Here the conservative, and there the 'radical vie with each other, in enumerating defects and prescribing remedies. Democrat, Republican, Progressive, Socialist Party lines are obliterated in the universal disrepute, which all alike perceive as the heritage of the courts. The layman complains of the high cost of justice. He complains of the tardiness of justice. He complains of the miscarriage of justice" The conclusion of the article is as follows: "I hope that the best and wisest of lawyers, will join hands with the best and most competent laymen, to give * -*? J"?* ""J Affontiva mo/iliinorv nf instipp whifh is America mat siuipic, uuci^i anu entv-mv j , ? destined to contribute so vastly, to her spiritual and material welfare." We also quote from a contributed article in the July August (1918) volume of "The Lawyer and Banker," entitled: "The Coming Legal Interpretation." "From the highest executive to the humblest citizen everyone in America knows, that there is something wrong with our process of administering justice. As a matter of fact it often happens, that it is not justice that is administered. Even the chief officers of a court often realize both this fact, and their own powerlessness to prevent the outcome. When it is justice which is administered, the process is too long, too uncertain, and too costly. x The trouble is not with our legal talent, for we have the most highly I KLo; nn Maiat !-j cqjcid nuutc?new y rocery Rules I LIVERIES ONLY EACH DAY. 1 1 ' /?-_H? 1 3 X ? ^ $ evuie are respecxiuuy asKeu iu i<me nutc ui ent which the grocers have been forced to -clad. There is to be no exceptions and no rmrl fVin ryior>tt firm ore ornopt*q s JUI CLiiyx unt- vwivi *-? ~ e? > forced them to insist on these rules. | them up in your kitchen. g l'" "Ui-i-4- 4-iTTrt /IrtlitTAvirtC' o rloTT f A "fVl O C-QTYIP fl UUl LWU UCIlVCi ico a v,ictj m\j unv ' . "rrv* I ' rs wanted for dinner must be phoned to us jjj lock, and we will do our best to get your gro- | for dinner. g loned to us after ten o'clock, will be sent out 9 >nce during the afternoon. | ; have your afternoon orders not later than $ rish them sent out that afternoon. | sr the things you want for breakfast the af- ? impossible to deliver them before breakfast. I not ask us to deviate from the above rules | I to say no. I work a hardship on our customers and , we g o have some consideration a^ci a ctcsire to co- g ng these trying times. ((( MBmBMMnnMnMmnBmDBMHHifff rr~"* * ?jr tv in HMilwmi gjft P I MARRY I i\l JUI ATM* I*. Mr. tSE CO. A. M. HILL CO. ; L L. W. KELLER & BRO. IITE CO. S. J. LINK )N J. ALLEN SMITH JR. ' ...... , ' ... r- . ... . ?