8223. SUPREME COURT, Individual opinions.—
A most condemnable practice of
the Supreme Court to be corrected is that of
cooking up a decision in caucus and delivering
it by one of their members as the opinion
of the Court, without the possibility of our
knowing how many, who, and for what reasons
each member concurred. This completely
defeats the possibility of impeachment
by smothering evidence. A regard for character
in each being now the only hold we can
have of them, we should hold fast to it.
They would, were they to give their opinions
seriatim and publicly, endeavor to justify
themselves to the world by explaining the
reasons which led to their opinion.—
To James Pleasants.
Ford ed., x, 199.
(M.
Dec. 1821)
