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expenditures are made. If we depart from the reasonable rule we have established, the small non-navigable lakes would become the private waters of riparian owners, pertinent to their lands, with exclusive rights thereon as to boating, fishing and the like, from which the body of the people would be excluded—a principle inconsistent with and not suited to the condition of our people or called for as a rule of law."

This was undoubtedly the announcement of a sound and salutary principle of law. If the law were otherwise, any person going upon any of the small navigable lakes so common in the Northwest, even though he got there without actual entry upon the land of any shore owner, could neither bathe, nor skate, nor boat, nor fish there without being a trespasser.

It is true, possibly we sometimes exaggerate the influence of a member of a court of last resort who happens to write the opinion in a given case. We would not detract from the share to which each member of our Supreme Court is entitled for whatever of merit the decisions especially referred to may possess. But the form and color of a decision are largely what the writer of the opinion makes them, and he is particularly identified with their doctrine in the minds of the profession and of the public.

We will not further review the judicial record of our departed brother. It accorded well with his life and character. His was an upright, free, ingenuous nature, incapable of fraud or deception, possibly not sufficiently suspicious and distrustful of those of a different character who might be thrown with him. He had the courage of his convictions. While he was not one of those critical censorious judges disposed to carp at and find fault with everything, and always eager to find some reason for reversing a judgment, particularly if it had nothing to do with the merits of the case; neither was he one of those timid and intellectually slothful judges, always ready to take refuge behind the judgment of the Court below and affirm, rather than master, apprehend and decide a difficult case.

Judge Phillips was an interesting and picturesque figure; tall and erect, with full and piercing eye, his long black hair falling to his shoulders; his was a presence that commanded attention at once wherever he might be. He was a man of affable, agreeable and popular manners, of a courteous and hospitable disposition. He had many friends. It does not seem that he could have had many enemies. He was a natural soldier; and yet in his ordinary intercourse with men he had nothing of that irritating aggressiveness and assertiveness which sometimes mark judges who have no better proof of courage than is

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afforded by playing the bully from the bench.

Like his great predecessor, John Scholfield, although of a different character, he belonged to a former generation. We shall not look upon his like again.

His was a life of conflict and of stress. Such as he was with whatever of good and of ill there was in him, he manfully fought the battle of life and played a not inconspicuous part in the history of his country and his State.

It is pleasant to dwell on these memories of his patriotism, his young valor, his fidelity to public trusts, his strong defense of popular government and of popular rights; to recall his kindly chivalrous nature and cordial and friendly bearing. In his long record of useful and varied public service he has left us much to contemplate with sincere satisfaction, much to emulate, little to regret.

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The next order of exercises is a paper by Mr. Horace K. Tenney, on "A Rule of Law which is a Credit to the Bar." (The address will be found in Part II.)

PRESIDENT HOLDOM: The next order of business is the report of the Committee on Legal Education; Prof. Blewett Lee is the chairman of that committee.

PROF. LEE: Mr. President and Gentlemen: The committee has no formal report to make. The sentiment of the committee has been that the present rules of the Supreme Court of this Stafe ought to be fully tested by trial still further before any changes are made in them and they think that the conditions of legal education in this State and the rules for admission to the bar will compare favorably with those of our sister states as they now are.

PRESIDENT HOLDOM: The report will be received if there is no objection.

The next business is the report of the Committee on Judicial Administration; Mr. Lessing Rosenthal is chairman of that committee, is Mr. Rosenthal here? Mr. Moses, do you know of any reason why he is not here?

MR. MOSES: I do not.

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PRESIDENT HOLDOM: Well, we will pass it. The next matter before the Association is a discussion of the question, Should a Convention be called to Frame a New Constitution for the State of Illinois? Mr. Wallace Heckman has kindly consented to open this discussion in the affirmative, and Mr. Keithley in the negative. It is desired that as many of the members as possible take part in this discussion, it is one of the burning questions of the hour, of great interest to all the good people of this State and to our well being, and whatever is done here, whatever is said here by you gentlemen representing the lawyers and the judiciary of this State will have a marked effect whenever that proposition shall be submitted to the people of the State in the usual way. Mr. Wallace Heckman:

MR. HECKMAN:

I desire first to be acquitted of willingly undertaking to open this important discussion on a notice so short as ten minutes before the opening of this session, but— PRESIDENT HOLDOM: I will confirm that statement, Mr.

Heckman.

MR. HECKMAN: But the subject is one of sufficient importance. We have noticed in our harbor here that very small tugs can start the commerce out upon the open lake; if we can get a discussion open in this body of lawyers of the State upon whom the responsibility of it must ultimately rest, and by whom it must be decided, we will have accomplished enough. Experience has undoubtedly demonstrated that a change in the constitutional law should be made with great deliberation; for this reason it is that various methods have been adopted to secure that deliberation. In some states the matter has to be passed upon by two successive legislatures before being presented to vote by the people; in others, it must be passed upon by the legislature with certain large majorities, with certain officers of the State concurring. In others, as in this, in addition to the submission to the legislature the matter has to be submitted to a convention. In our

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State we have exceeded even that limit. The constitutional convention which formed our present constitution provided a still further limitation,-that only one subject,-that only one article should be amended at one time. Now that has cre

ated the chief difficulty that has been met, taken in connection with the fact that legislation must be general, that no special legislation shall be had in the State. Of course there is danger in submitting the question of a new constitution to a constitutional convention; various subjects are necessarily, or at least usually brought up for discussion, so many, indeed, so multitudinous and so diverse in character, are submitted to that body, the time of which is limited, that it is impracticable to give all of them the consideration that is requisite. For instance, I happened to have occasion to note some of the subjects that were presented to the last constitutional convention; among them were these:

That all private corporations accept rights and franchises to be conferred upon them subject to subsequent legislative control.

To empower the State to cause railroads to be condemned and seized and operated directly or indirectly by the State.

To forfeit the charter of any railroad that should offer any pass to any legislator or judicial officer; to punish by confinement in the penitentiary any such officer accepting a pass.

To make ineligible to a seat in the General Assembly or on the bench any attorney or counsellor who is, or shall have been, in the employ of any railroad within one year next preceding his election.

Disqualifying for legislature, judgeship, or state's attor neyship, persons accepting a pass from a railroad.

Limiting amount to be received from all sources by any county or city official to $5,000.

For an annual session of the legislature and an annual salary to legislators-no per diem.

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Prohibiting sumptuary laws, by which personal liberty of any class of citizens may be abridged or interfered with. That cities containing a population exceeding 300,000 may be erected into a county.

To abolish the State Board of Equalization.

To prohibit convict labor.

To abolish grand juries.

Giving women the right of suffrage.

(At first provided

the proposition to be voted upon by the women of the State.) To make masters in chancery elective.

That a verdict of five-sixths of a jury shall be received in civil cases.

Limiting amount of land that may be acquired and held by any one individual.

Requiring question of levy of taxes to be submitted to holders of property situated within the district to be taxed.

Among new provisions that may be urged, new theories of taxation may be proposed, but present public opinion is not likely to tolerate any radical change. The memorial to the legislature adopted by the Chicago common council urged some matters on which it is safe to say public opinion is not yet settled; the proposal to incorporate compulsory arbitration seems an admission that it would infringe rights now guaranteed.

Nothing in present conditions, or in our history, warrants a presumption of violent change. The constitution owes its present form to a gradual, continuous development. Its early beginnings contain many of the general principles embodied in it now. The gradual advance along lines laid down at first by the pioneer men, is suggestive. It is a modest, but sturdy refutation of prophecies of revolution sometimes heard.

At the time of the adoption of the present constitution in 1870, the population of the State was 2,500,000; that of Chicago 330,000. At present the population of the State is 4,800,000; that of Chicago, 1,700,000; assessable property of

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