Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 23, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 January 1915 — Coroner's Ancient Nuisances. [ARTICLE]

Coroner's Ancient Nuisances.

Somebody invented coroners three centuries before Columbus discovered America. It was a job of much distinction and there were no fees attached, says the Philadelphia Ledger. But even when Oliver Cromwell was a lad, folks in England began to abuse coroners and call them grafters, or whatever it was they called folks .in that day who got something for nothing. And Blackstone, whose name is often used as a synonym for common law, declared that coroners were not only an unnecessary nuisance but that they often stood in the way of justice. Several states are now trying to abolish coroners, but progress is slow. If It were as easy to eradicate an old office as a new one, I fear no coroner would survive the slaughter. When I aSked an eminent judge what coroners are good for, his reply was: “To draw salaries.”