we have lived under so long, to remedy them. I want to give

one little illustration. I have had a number of illustrations in my own practice, and among others I had this: Proceedings were commenced against a client of mine to foreclose a mortgage of $150,000. A judgment was obtained against him for $138,000; and it was decreed that the property should be sold. He was unable or unwilling to give a bond that should be sufficient to stay the proceedings, and the property was sold. We took an appeal to the General Term, and the judgment was unanimously reversed. A stipulation was given, and they went to the Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the General Term decision. (Clapp v. Hawley, 69 N. Y. 625.) The property had been sold. A third party had bought it whom we looked upon as a mere cover for the plaintiff in the matter, and that property which had been mortgaged for $150,000 had been sold for $75,000. moved to set aside the sale, and immediately when that came into court we were met with the section in this present Code which forbids the court disturbing the title. But the court, I will say, did not accept the strict language of the present Code, and ordered a reference to determine whether it had been bought by a third party in good faith or whether it was the plaintiff who bought, and the report is now before the court that it was not bought in good faith. I could keep the floor far beyond the limit of my time citing other illustrations. I ask to amend the resolution by striking out all after the word "resolved," and inserting:

We

"That the State Bar Association hereby recommend the Legislature of the State of New York to repeal the Code of Civil Procedure as the same now stands, and that the nine chapters not adopted be rejected.”

Mr. HENRY SMITH, of Albany - Mr. President: I will make a motion that this question as to the Code be reserved to some future day, to which this Association shall adjourn, early in January. It is evident that it is a subject of greater importance than any other to the great mass of the Association who are engaged in active practice.

To repeal it now, involves very serious questions on which

members of the bar would very much differ. Those who have learned it well I suppose would like to keep it, and those who do not know what it is, are very certain that it is wrong because it would save them the trouble of studying it. It is impossible now, here, with the light that we have, I think, to make any proper expression upon that subject, any intelligent expression that will convey the idea of the members of the bar of the State. In the whole history of legislation in our country I do not believe any thing has occurred that has been such a fraud upon the people of the State and the bar, as this pretended revision of the statutes. (Applause.) A commission was raised to revise our statutes. Nobody had any more idea that they were to commence by revising the Code of Procedure, than that they were to lay out a railroad to the moon. Instead of going to work at what we needed, and what we supposed was to be done, the commission, holding on as long as it was proper to hold, and then as one crumbled away and another taking his place, and then another, went on with installments and pamphlets of their Code to the utter surprise of everybody. There was an attempt, I believe, which was indorsed by the great mass of the bar, to stop that thing, but it has not met with very much success. First, there was an attempt to stop the appropriation, and then it was left to run over for part of a year. Last year, to state it in brief, the appropriations were stopped. There was no appropriation made to pay the salaries and fees of these commissioners, their clerks and attorneys. It was the manifest sense of the Legislature that the manufacture of this Code was to be stopped, at any rate that it was not any longer to continue to be run in that mill. What was done? A gentleman in the Senate moved a select committee of three-after this plain action of the Legislature—a select committee of three to examine the Code and its amendments, and report upon it. There was added to this another resolution, that the committee be authorized to employ a clerk and counsel. That resolution was passed, and I am informed that under that resolution this committee have appointed three commissioners as their attorneys, and they have been continuing their work through the year, and we are to have another edition of the report next winter. Now, if it is the judgment

of the bar, and the public interest requires that such a course be carried on, let it be done openly and paid for, and with a view of getting an expression of the bar on these subjects, I believe it would be for our advantage, and I hope it will meet with the sense of you who are here, to have a meeting early in January. Let this report be sent to the members of the Association, have a meeting early in January, and let those who are interested in a good Code of Procedure convene and deliberately examine the question when you are all here, when you can speak to the members of the Legislature who will be here at the same time, and thus make the bar, as it ought to be, effective upon this question, and stop this fraud upon the bar and the people. (Applause.) I make that motion: That the resolution of Mr. Arnoux be amended by striking out all after "Resolved," and that the following be substituted therefor: "That the consideration of the report of the committee on revision be reserved, and be considered at an adjourned meeting to be held on the third Tuesday of January next."

Mr. CHARLES HUGHES, of Sandy Hill-Mr. President: I had not the pleasure of being present and hearing my friend of many years, Mr. Field, and I know not how this question arose; but I feel it due to myself to say a word on this occasion. As has been well said by the gentleman who just had the floor, it will be known to all members of the profession that thirteen chapters, constituting a Code of Procedure, were adopted by the Legislature. Last winter the judiciary committees of the two houses proposed to amend that Code in certain particulars. Those thirteen chapters passed the Legislature, but, as is well known, were. vetoed by his Excellency, the Governor.

Nine chapters which where requisite to perfect this scheme were left unenacted upon. In the very close of the session it was proposed to have a joint committee appointed—a committee of the assembly appointed by the speaker, and a committee of the senate appointed by its presiding officer, to take this work under these circumstances and in this condition, and see if, out of the chaos that existed some form could be wrought out. This failed. Nothing was done by the assembly. Upon

the last day and last hours of the sessions of the senate, a committee was named and a resolution passed saying that the committee might take these nine chapters and go through with them, take the amendments in which defects had been pointed out by the Governor, and see if some good thing could not be wrought out of the whole for the benefit of the profession and the people of the State.

When this committee got together they found that they had not one dollar to work with so there was nothing to be done but for the committee to take those nine chapters and go through with them as well as they could.

They caused notice to be given to members of the bar in the State, "if there is any thing in this Code that has been adopted by the Legislature that is wrong, will you send up to this committee and point out those points." That was published in all the legal papers of the State, and generally throughout the State. We reached out our arms, and we said simply "in your interest, and the interest of the people we would like during this summer vacation to make this Code as you would have it." Gentlemen all over this State sent to us their views; and we have had meetings, and, so far as possible, under the eyes of the profession of this State and with the idea of doing nothing but what was right and proper to get this great organic law correct, we have been doing some work. So much for the Code that is adopted; and I believe, with those amendments, so far as I know, at the recent meeting of the committee we have brushed away all the objections of His Excellency, the Governor; and we have adopted, so far as the profession have set out to us, such suggestions as they say would make that Code, the chapters now in force, more perfect. As regards the nine chapters, my most excellent friend said he supposed the committee had not looked at them; we met, and although ours was simply a labor of love, those were assigned to the members of the committee, dividing up the nine chapters among us to see what could be done to perfect them. This work has been done as thoroughly as it could be done under the circumstances; I am free to confess that I had not time this summer to devote to this work, and I am as free to confess my utter incapacity for the work; nor should I compare myself for one

moment with that gentleman who tells you that with his hand he has written the laws so perfectly for almost the whole world, that the sun neither rises nor sets upon a spot where laws written by his own hand, and emanating from his brain are not now the law of the land. When he says that, or if he should say "God bless us," I should say Amen. (Laughter.)

We are working as my friend worked, spending our money and our time without a dollar of recompense, reward, or the hope thereof; and if our work shall prove to be imperfect when we have it printed and submitted to our brethren, then you will but say to us, as has been said to others time and time over, your work proves a failure. I only say these things, sir, for the reason that I do not desire to be misunderstood in this matter, and I know as well as anybody that my friend, Mr. Field, would not put me in an equivocal position in regard to it. I would have been very glad if there had been an appropriation; if there had been any thing that I could have taken in my hand and asked: Mr. Field, in your leisure hours of this summer, will you give us your views on this matter; we have a little fund, and we offer it to you if you will do so; but, when there was no fund, when gentlemen had to come forward as volunteers, I did not feel like calling one of the most eminent gentlemen of the State to the rescue of this committee. (Applause.)

Mr. HORACE E. SMITH, of Johnstown-Mr. President: Will the gentleman from Albany (Mr. Henry Smith) allow me to suggest that the amendment he moved might be accepted by the gentleman from New York, (Mr. Spencer), and added to his resolution-"report at an adjourned meeting of this association," instead of the Legislature, and that would then accomplish the whole thing, and embody it in one motion.

Mr. HENRY SMITH-Mr. President: I would acquiesce in almost any thing; but that would cut off the amendment of the gentleman from New York (Mr. Arnoux).

Mr. W. H. ARNOUX-If that amendment is accepted by Mr. Spencer, I will withdraw mine for the present.

Mr. JAMES C. SPENCER-Mr. President: I will accept that