[99] Such suits may also be brought in the state courts but may at the option of the defendant be transferred to a federal court for trial. Many lawyers prefer to bring their suits in the state courts even when they have the privilege of suing in the federal courts, because of their greater familiarity with the procedure of these courts.
[100] For a description of the comparative merits of the various methods of selecting judges, see pp. 113-114.
[101] For a list of federal judges who have been impeached see p. 194.
[102] Baldwin, "The American Judiciary," p. 106.
[103] In most of the countries of continental Europe there is a special class of tribunals called "administrative courts" to decide controversies between private individuals and the public authorities. There are no such courts in the United States, although the customs court, the court of claims, and the interstate commerce commission bear some resemblance to an administrative court. Many "administrative" questions are decided by such officials as the secretary of the treasury, the commissioner of immigration, and the commissioner of patents.
[104] The purpose and meaning of these guarantees are discussed in chapter vi, pp. 118-119.
[105] The Hawaiian Islands were annexed to the United States in July, 1898, by a joint resolution of Congress after a treaty of annexation had been rejected by the senate. The senate of Hawaii is composed of fifteen members, the house of thirty; ability to speak, read, and write the English or Hawaiian language is required of voters; the governor may veto special items in appropriation bills; and in case the legislature fails to pass appropriation bills to pay the necessary expenses for carrying on the government and meeting its obligations, the treasurer may, with the approval of the governor, make such payments, for which purpose the sums appropriated in the last appropriation bills shall be deemed to have been reappropriated; the purpose being to prevent the legislature from causing deadlocks.
[106] For Porto Rico and the Philippines, see pages 374-379.
[107] Other insular possessions of the United States are Wake Island, Midway or Brooks Island, Howland and Baker Islands, all in the Pacific Ocean. They are practically uninhabited and no provision for their government has been found necessary.
[108] This is also true of the other territories and dependencies. The organized territories, however, have been allowed to send delegates to the national conventions for the nomination of the President and Vice President.