It is grossly unjust and unfair to compel citizens in the Cumberland Mountains to travel 250 miles, from the border of Virginia practically to the border of Indiana, in order to present to the court bankruptcy matters and common-law and criminal cases demanding expedition and where litigants wish to appear before the court, which is not at that time in session elsewhere. The 250 miles mentioned is approximately the same as the distnace from Washington to New York, or from Washington to Pittsburgh, or from Washington to Elizabeth City, N. C. These problems can be readily solved by dividing the State into three districts as proposed. The distance and burden of travel will be reduced to the witnesses and the citizens, and the traveling expenses of witnesses reduced to the Government possibly $20,000 or $30,000 annually. This will in a large measure take care of the additional expenses attached to the creation of a new district. However, the question of justice to the people is paramount to financial consideration. The present judge has been honored with long service on the bench and as the work now grows too extensive to be judiciously handled within the single district or by any single judge, this bill will permit him to preside over the court of the ideal newly proposed eastern district and thus enjoy a partial relief from his strenuous duties.

9. While the western district of Kentucky handles fewer cases than the eastern district, yet, in view of the size of the western district, the latter could not be feasibly enlarged if to do so requires the annexation of mountain counties in eastern Kentucky, where the great inconvenience of travel would render such an enlargement of the western district impracticable.

10. The proposed bill (H. R. 5624) is the result of careful study and survey of the Federal court requirements in Kentucky. The division of the State into the three proposed districts has been most appropriately made upon the consideration of the volume of court business, area, population, and sections which are to be embraced. The places for holding court have been named so as to meet most efficiently the requirements of the districts in conformity with the new boundaries. The western district retains its same places for holding court, the eastern district is to hold court at Covington, Lexington, Frankfort, and Catlettsburg, with such additional places as may prove advantageous. The southern district is to retain Jackson, Richmond, and London, to which are added Pikeville, to handle the recognized large business of that section; Pineville, to meet the recognized need within that section; Paintsville, to handle the necessary litigation of the several adjoining counties practically without railroad facilities in the northeastern section of the new district; Somerset, to meet the needs of the isolated territory in that vicinity, whose business is handled at present in the distant city of Lexington; and Hazard, to meet the court requirements of the section lying between Pineville and Jackson, on the one side, and Pikeville on the other.

From the foregoing it is respectfully submitted that the recent industrial developments, new conditions arising, inconveniences of travel, increased eriminal litigation, and justice to the people, demand the division of Kentucky into the three districts with the accompanying requirements, as set forth in the proposed bill, which should be enacted into law.

The criminal and civil cases to which United States was a party disposed of in the eastern and western districts of Kentucky for the years 1925 to 1929, inclusive, are as follows:

The number of civil cases disposed of and pending in the eastern and western -districts of Kentucky to which the United States was not a party, common law, equity, and bankruptcy, are shown by the following figures taken from the published reports of the Attorney General for the years 1925 to 1929, inclusive: Civil cases to which United States was not a party

In the provisions of H. R. 5624 the counties in the State of Kentucky would be grouped into three judicial districts, as follows:

For the purpose of showing a comparison between the work in the eastern
district of Kentucky and other districts there is also submitted herewith data
showing the number of civil and criminal cases to which the United States was a
party in the various districts for the years 1928 and 1929:

BRIEF IN RESPONSE TO BRIEF FILED BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES IN SUPPORT OF H. R. 5624

The argument advanced centers around two propositions: The size of the business in the eastern district of Kentucky and the injustice done to the mountain sections by existing conditions. I will deal with each separately.

1. It is to be gathered from the brief that the business of the district is growing and that the industrial development in the southeastern part of the State is such as to cause it to continue to grow. Neither is in accordance with the fact. The business of the district is decreasing. The number of private civil suits brought in 1923 was 214; in 1924, 205; in 1925, 201; in 1926, 185; in 1927, 189; in 1928, 160; and in 1929, 125. There is a fall off here of 89 cases in the seven years.

The industrial development of southeastern Kentucky is a thing of the past. Its main industry is the coal business. That has been greatly overdeveloped. The result has been that that business has been in the doldrums for several years. Many coal companies have been liquidated in my court and the process is now reaching its end. Several years ago there was oil development in Lee and Estill

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