The Ontario Scrapbook Hansard

Ontario Scrapbook Hansard, 12 Feb 1878, p. 3

The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Y, Mr. CAMERON said that with respect to the t'rrst clause of the Bill he was not aware that die judges of the higher courts, except- ing those of the Supreme Court, were not already a odhrio justices of the peace. lie believed the clause to be quite unnecessary. He thought that as the persons to be appointed were not to be professional men, and who Were not to be paid salaries, it would be ditlicult to timl competent men who would accept the positions, more especially as they would have to travel about the country; but as they were to collect fees whether they tseeatredaconviclion or not, this would be an inducement for them to make fees, and pay themselves in that way. He said the member for Norfolk had paid a tribute to the old Family Compact in speaking of the magistracy of Norfolk. He said they were appointed because they Were the men of in- telligence and inteurity in the county, and so the magistraey were respected. He did not accuse the lion. Attorney-General of doing anything wrong, but he designated itinerant magistrates, who, he said, would go about as busy bodies and stirring up strife, asacurse to the neighbourhood in which they were. (Opposition clieertO lie presumed it was one of this class of men from whom an hon. gentleman had read a letter. The result of the proposed action, he said, was a direct insult to the local magistracy. It stipendiary magistrates were necessary, let them ho appointed per. l manently and paid respectably, but without I fees, or if fees were received then let them be funded; but this was quite a (l"l'ereut thing front what was proposed, and he ex. pected to see magistrates doing the dirty work of detectives. In reference to the cause of temperance, there was nothing [ more desirable than that they should have those principles carried out, but that was a ditturoat thing from ubing these officers as engines to the promotion of prohibition. lie denounced the underhand detective sys- tem of founding charges against liquor-deal- ers as an outrage upon decency. By adopting measures of this kind they Were making room for such things to be done. The At. tornev-Gencrnl was insulting the whole Lagiitrtscy ofthe countr y by the appointment of these police magistrates. If the Attor. ncy-General Were advised of abuses or wrong-doings he should at once take steps to take their commissions from them, and not uphold the misdoings of a Conservative , any more than a Reformer. lie was entirely i opposed to that one clause of the Bill, but in other particulars he saw nothing ob. l jectionahle in the Bill. (Opposition cheers.) -- :'Invntnn -n:.l that -l~nnnunp .nlo Mr. ROSS thought as a rule the magis- tracy could carry out the law satisfactorily, but where there were wilful misinterpreta- tions of the law and dismissals of cases the ruling of the magistracy might be over- ruled. Mr. BARR repudiated any idea of any. thing unjastiiiable havvog been done by the magistrates of the county of Grey. m said that it they had leaned rather towards the aide ofjustice than law it was creditable to them. He believed the magistrates of his county were as creditable to their profession as magistrates as those of Norfolk, or any other county. He thought the proposal contained in the Bill was a step in the Pong direction. He thought the law would be safer in the hands of tho 1ocal.magitw true, than in the hands of stipendiary magistrates. As a rule they were an honour to the country. J Mr. SEXTON said that whenever ani debate was before the House the hon. mem- ber for East Toronto took occasion to make . fling at tho magistracy JSo,ety1o, but he . nun-a -- ---" - v . "ways took can to any that it was not the present mgistmcy. but the old magiutmcy of the Family Compact. He contrasted tho "non of the present Government with that of w. Sand tield 1)i,t1lee,t.1d'e,f', Monument, A . I -- _.'IJ --' "'-G.1 "6.. J Ann" "0' 01 I". "_.""'""'- ---eH -_" who, be aid, would not distribute a copy of the statute! to each magistrate without the yment ot fifty cents each. He found that mm that source tho Government had to. ceived tho magnificent sum of $271. Mr. CREIGHTON, in referring to the dismissal of certain liquor cases in the can"? of Grey, denied that the majority of the Bench of Magistrate: were Conserva- the tives. He believed the opposite was the 1 case. He said the Attorrieyulonerai had I done his best to find a proper remedy 1 for the complaints that had been made. He l did not believe, however, that the new plan 1 would work well, because it would lead to l partisan strife. Magistrates of . the , kind proposed to be appointed would feel l it to be their duty to give decisions favour- able to the persons who appointed them. The . result generally was that these sti- poudiary magistrates were appointed police magistrates. There was a danger ot parties being appointed for trpcciiio purposes. Mr. HARDY said the remarks of the hon. member for East Toronto would have come from any other member of the House better than from him. The Bill simply proposed that in rural parts stipendiary magistrates may be appointed temporarily for tspecific purposes, where the local magistrates were not doing their duty, and where the interests of justice were Indexing. This could be effected by giving to one of the county magistrates the powers F of police magistrates, having the usual authority totake charge of cases himselt, and having cases laid before them they may go on and dispose of these cases as they see tit. The argument of the hon. member for East Toronto was that the local magistrates were to be ill-treated. He had said the proposed action would completely shut out the resident magistrates. He had complained that it would tie their hands and "roll their heads into the basket." He denied that such was the intention, and challenged the hon. gen- tleman to take this statement as a. plank in the platform of his party, and go into his own county or into the neighbouring coun- tien; he could nail that Mg to their own masthead, and go to the country with it. lie ventured io bullux't', however, that it would not be the _pl-i:.'-x.'m the hon. gentle- _ man would carry with him to the Country. l, The Bill simply said that when proper w- l, presentation was "HMO to the (invertinwnt ', one prison may in: apnointcd who would l not interfere with other justices of the l "we. This person could go on will an eases laid before him Without any fear of any "packmg"ot the Bench. He denied that the representation of these men as travel- ling about looking for cases was a oorrcct one. There were 88 tidings in Ontario, and I ~, if the proposition of tho hon. member for, l East Toronto to appoint stipendiary manna. l, trates in each county, even at $;400 a year) each, were carried out it would mean an ex.? pense of about $35,000 per year,.butto carry it out liberally and pay these oflicers properly Would mean an expenditure of $60,090. The present Bill proposed only to appomt one, two, or perhaps three . magistrates temporarily, who would be paid according to the work done. He would ask his hon. friend what remedy he would offer supposing a case was being tried by one magistrate, and two or three other justices should come in, take possession, and dismiss the case as they saw fri It had" been asserted that the Bill was framed in the interests of tho Dunkin people. The hon. member for North Grev had pronounc- edit a most pronounced temperance Bill, but had said that he was a most pronounced temperance man. Yet it was found that when any temperance measure was befor.e the House that hon. gentleman had tyran- ably opposed it, at least so he was told. Mr. c1tEIGHT0N--Who said so t Mr. HARDY said he did not think he had a. right to give the authority. he be. lieved he had voted against every measure, and against almost every clause. The hon. gentleman had said that sing: the .swpotpi, ment ofa police magistrate in Owen Sound, there had been no peace at all, but singular to say that the very gentleman who was ap. pointed police magistrate was appointed upona recommendation of the town and i, council of Owen b'ouud-a Tor town i council-they were the people who had petitioned for the appointment of the police A magistrate, whom the lion. the Attorney. General had appointed. (Cheers) He said that it took Conservatives to make such disturbances as had been spoken of by

Powered by / Alimenté par VITA Toolkit
Privacy Policy