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# The Corrupt Judges. Some of the evidence in regard to the misconduct of Judges Barnard and Cardozo of the New York supreme court, of which only hints have heretofore appeared, was disclosed in the report of the committee of the bar association, and published in the New York papers of yesterday. The catalogue of their offences is long and dark enough to warrant their immediate remova from the bench; but we suppose they are in nol more danger than the other exposed rascals there. Their reputations cannot be damaged by any disclosures, and their places are probably secure enough. To the narrative of their corrupt practices they may respond, like their patrons, Hall and Tweed, "What are you going to do about it?" The investigation has been made by a committee of the legislature with a view to their impeachment, if the evidence should warrant that measure. We do not learn that any one is hopeful of so much justice from the present assembly, which, though elected as a "reform legislature," conducts itself very much like its predecessors. If the majority of its members are reformers they are extremely cautious and conservative. They have neglected to do some things which were confidently expected of them, and have done some things which to most people have the aspect of anything but reforms. They were very considerate of Mr. Terwilliger, who exacted commissions on the public printing bills; they mildly declared that taking bribes from Tweed, as practiced by Senator James Wood, was "censurable," but was not cause for expulsion; they passed the Erie railroad directors bill, it is true, but only after the obnoxious directors had been ousted by other means, and they have not passed the reform charter for New York city, the chief purpose for which they were elected, although they have tinkered it with amend-ments until its own parents, the committee of seventy, cannot recognize it. But to return to Barnard and Cardozo. The report of the committee to the bar association relates numerous instances of the judicial usurpations of these corrupt magistrates, as specimens of those which were proved in the course of the inquiry. In one case, a plaintiff, with a judgment unsatisfied, had obtained an order to examine an alleged debtor of the defendant with a view to require the debt to be paid in satisfaction of his judgment, and to prevent its being paid to the defendant. Without notice to the plaintiff and without any proof that he ought to be deprived of this legal remedy, Judge Barnard not only vacated the original order, but made a new order ex parte in the interest of a personal friend, commanding the debtor to pay the debt forthwith to the defendant under pain of imprisonment, and this, although the person thus threatened owed no debt which had been judicially ascertained, and was not a party to any suit or proceeding in which the judge had any jurisdiction to make the order. Some of the cases where receivers were appointed were as transparent and outrageous instances of oppression as can be conceived, causing great loss to the corporations subjected to this tyranny, besides the exorbitant fees they were compelled to pay the receivers for the privilege of being robbed. In the case of the Gold Exchange bank the receiver was in possession forty days, and his fees were $15,000, besides $5000 paid to his partner for legal services. In another case the receiver had $5000 and his counsel $2500. These receiverships were often nothing more or less than blackmailing operations. A man named Owens bought ten shares of the stock of the Mercantile insurance company at noon, and at three o'clock of the same day, Mr. Gratz Nathan presented himself at the company's office to take possession of all its property by virtue of an order from Judge Cardozo, appointing him the receiver on a petition of Owens as a stockholder. The petition bore the marks of having been drawn up in anticipation of the purchase, but was so hastily done as to contain no allegation which could afford a color of justification for the order, which was vacated as soon as an application for that purpose could be made and heard. The object was accomplished, however; the receiver had been in possession, and, of course, exacted his fees. This man is a nephew of Cardozo and his favorite receiver and referee. A series of remarkable coincidences between the sums of money drawn by Nathan on his own checks, and deposits of equal amounts in similar bank bills made at corresponding dates by Cardozo, tend to prove that the favorite shared the plunder of his victims with his judicial patron. From the frequency with which Cardozo found easy and profitable craployment of this kind for this beloved nephew, "Gratz" came to be the slang term in the judicial ring for the receiver of such patronage. Each of these accused judges had his "Gratz," and for a young lawyer not over scrupulous, nor particularly learned, who likes ease and luxury, and is not fond of work, no more fascinating prospect would be likely to open than the favor of a ring judge. The report contains plenty of other instances of venality, partisanship, favoritism, and judicial insolence. As an example of the latter, Judge Cardozo once said to a lawyer who applied for a writ of habeas corpus in behalf of two women then in prison, charged with no crime. "Do not touch this case. If you do you will displease me. If you take this case you need never expect any favors from me while I am on the bench." Judge Barnard appeared.
