made by the legislature, as we shall find in Chapter XXIII; the latter has grown up as custom through many hundreds of years under the direction of the courts. In most of our States much of the common law is being changed into statutes by the legislatures so that it will be more definite; but it is important for us to understand that the great rules which protect our property and our other rights are not new things but were brought over with the colonists from England, where there is still very much the same private law as we have in this country.

199. What Does a Court Do? We say that the law has grown up under the direction of the courts. It is therefore important for us to understand what the courts do with it. The law is the result of long experience; but since it consists of general principles it must constantly be fitted to new kinds of cases. For example, we have the principle that one may do what he wishes with his own property; but we also have the principle that one may not make a nuisance of it. Therefore when factories began to use soft coal the question came up for the courts to decide, may a factory owner burn coal in such a way as to injure the community with the smoke? The example is used merely to show that new conditions bring up new problems for the courts to solve, not changing the law but directing its growth. To answer questions such as this judges are provided and are given the aid of such other officers as they need in serving the community.

200. Who Should Be Judges? There is no more important or more highly respected servant of the community than a good judge. In his work often lies the difference between a well-ordered society and one which is dissatisfied with its government. If men find that their private rights

are not safeguarded by the courts they begin to wonder whether the government is worth protecting. It is therefore of the utmost importance that we understand clearly the kind of man who should be a judge. In the first place, he must be learned in the law. He cannot make wise decisions unless he knows the history of how our rights have grown up and how other judges before him have decided cases. In the second place, he must be fearless. Many powerful people will have to appear in his court to have their suits decided, and they will try to frighten him into seeing their problems as they see them. In the third place, he must be known and respected in the community. All of the citizens must have confidence in the law, and they cannot have this if the men who administer it are not known to be capable and honest. The questions a judge has to answer are so difficult that the average citizen cannot know whether they are correctly answered or not. Therefore the judge must be the kind of man who will give complete confidence to the average citizen.

201. How Shall We Select Judges? Opinions differ as to the best method of selecting men to do the important work of the judge. Some would have them elected; others would have them appointed by the governor. Those who favor election say that the judge should be one of the people and that popular election is the only way to secure such a man. Those who favor appointment say that the learned and great men who should be judges are often not willing to run for office; but that they will serve if the governor seeks them out and appoints them. Neither method is certain to get perfect judges all the time; but it is well to know that in all the great countries of the world except America the judges are all appointed, and

that all of our United States judges are selected in this way.

202. What Is a Jury? It is more important for the judge to be learned in the law than to be a man of the people; and it is generally difficult to find some one for the office who is both of these. Because it has been thought best to keep the decisions of the courts near to the average citizen, the judge is assisted in many trials by a jury of twelve citizens. This jury sits with the judge throughout the trial, hears all the witnesses, listens to the judge's opinion about the law of the case, and then helps him to arrive at a just decision. A jury is not needed if the facts are not in dispute. If both sides of the argument agree about the facts it is only necessary for the judge to decide how the law fits the case.

203. Other Officers of the Court. When important cases are tried a record is made of the entire conduct of the court. This record is kept by the clerk. If it is necessary, stenographers are employed to take every word that the witnesses or other persons say. The judge must also have under his direction one or more officers to preserve order in the court-room, and to assist him in other ways. Strictly speaking, the lawyers who try cases for clients are also officers of the court, for they are present to assist the judge in arriving at a just decision. If a lawyer becomes so anxious to win a case that he is guilty of improper conduct the judge has a right to refuse to permit him to appear in his court again; and if his conduct is extremely bad he may be disbarred, or forbidden to appear at the bar of the Court. This penalty takes his profession from him.

204. The Parties to a Suit. In every suit at private law

there are two parties on opposite sides of the argument. The one who thinks that his rights have been violated is called the plaintiff, and he makes the complaint. The one charged with the violation is called the defendant, and he must answer the complaint. It is an error to suppose that those who go to law are always enemies. They may be good friends who wish to find out what are their rights against each other. They may have made a contract and they do not agree as to their duty under it. It is much better for them to go to the court and secure a friendly settlement than to have a secret grudge against each other. Unfortunately the law is now so complicated and expensive that citizens sometimes fear to try to settle their differences in the courts.

205. The Lawyers. Because the practice of law is now so complicated, those who wish a question settled by the courts employ lawyers to present their arguments to the judge for them. These lawyers are persons who have studied the principles of the law and earlier decisions of courts in cases similar to the one to be tried. The object of every lawyer should be to see that justice is done; but dishonest members of the bar often try to trick the court into mistaken decisions. It is unsafe to employ such men, for the court distrusts them; and furthermore they are as likely to cheat their clients as to deceive the court. The better lawyers and greater statesmen are doing all they can to simplify our law and the work of the courts; but their task is difficult and we must not be discouraged by the fact that little is accomplished.

206. Witnesses. If the parties to a suit do not agree about the facts, witnesses must be called to help the judge to discover the truth. When this must be done the ability

of the judge is tested, for the courts have complicated rules of evidence and it is necessary for him to apply these rules impartially but strictly. The witnesses must be kept from wasting the time of the court by telling unnecessary things, yet they must be given an opportunity to tell fully everything that bears on the complaint. The lawyers generally claim that evidence has been admitted which should have been excluded, and that facts have been kept from the jury which should have been given. The judge must bear the whole responsibility for the fairness of the trial. If he makes a mistake in any part of it the attorney for the side which is not successful asks for a new trial.

207. Courts of Appeal. It is important that all the law of a State be administered in the same way, but this could not be done if each of the courts scattered over the State could try cases independently of any superior authority. Therefore, in every State there is one supreme court or court of appeals to which attorneys may go and ask for a new trial when they think a client has been wrongly treated by one of the lower courts. The attorney who makes an appeal goes up to the supreme court, shows what he thinks are the errors of the judge in the lower court, and asks that the case be sent back to be tried over again. The higher court examines the petition and if it seems that the judge has made any important mistake the case is sent back and all the work has to be done over again. Therefore, not only great injustice but no little expense to the public results from judges who are ignorant or otherwise incompetent for their positions.

208. The Citizen's Duty. The wise citizen knows that judges are only human and that therefore they must make some mistakes. He also realizes that many suits are so