There has, probably, never been a legal jury, nor a legal trial by
jury, in a single court of the United States, since the adoption
of the constitution.
These facts show how much reliance can be placed in written
constitutions, to control the action of the government, and
preserve the liberties of the people.
If the real trial by jury had been preserved in the courts of the
United States that is, if we had had legal juries, and the
jurors had known their rights it is hardly probable that one
tenth of the past legislation of Congress would ever have been
enacted, or, at least, that, if enacted, it could have been
enforced.
Probably the best mode of appointing jurors would be this: Let the
names of all the adult [male] [9] members of the state, in each
township, be kept in a jury box, by the officers of the township;
and when a court is to be held for a county or other district, let
the officers of a sufficient number of townships be required
(without seeing the names) to draw out a name from their boxes
respectively, to be returned to the court as a juror.
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