Jacobs, Oscar Cushing and Warren Olney Jr. was appointed for this
purpose by the Citizens' League of Justice. The Commonwealth Club
appointed Beverly L. Hodghead, Orrin K. McMurray, Alex. G. Eells,
Fairfax H. Wheelan, Sidney V. Smith, Lester H. Jacobs and Joseph
Hutchinson. One would go far before finding more representative or more
public-spirited bodies of citizens, or more able exponents of the law.

The labors of the several committees resulted in what may in a broad way
be regarded as two sets of bills being prepared.

The first, known as the Commonwealth Club bills, were sixty-five in
number, and were introduced in the Senate by Campbell, and in the
Assembly by Butler. The second set was known as the Bar Association
bills. They were introduced in the Senate by Burnett. They were nine in
number, and while apparently covering much of the ground of the
Commonwealth Club bills, were in no respects so complete as to method or
detail. The Bar Association bills pin-pricked an abuse; the Commonwealth
Club bills drove the knife in deep.

The sixty-five Commonwealth Club bills were readily divided into three
groups, those dealing with Grand Juries and indictments, with trial
juries and verdicts, and with appeals to the higher courts.

The general purpose of the measures dealing with Grand Juries was to
make those bodies purely accusatory, to make their findings conclusive
and not subject to attack. The basis of the proposed amendments and
additions to the laws governing Grand Juries was that Grand Juries are
primarily required to investigate secret offenses, and should be
regarded as purely accusatory bodies. On this theory the Commonwealth
Club bills made the indictment of a Grand Jury as binding as the action