consis-
ted of a chief judge, and two assistant judges, appointed expressly
to those offices, and was independent of the Supreme Court. In
November 1824, the Legislature passed an act reorganizing the
Supreme and County Courts, and providing, that the Supreme Court
should consist of a chief judge, and three assistant judges, and
that the County Court, "from and after the third Thursday of Oc-
26 HISTOllY OF ADDISON COUNTY.
tober tliennext," should consist of a chief judge, who should be one
of the judges of the Supreme Court, for each circuit, and two as-
sistant judges, appointed as before required by law. And the Stato
was for that purpose divided into four circuits. The number of
Judges of the Supreme Courts and of the circuits was afterwards
increased to five. To the County Courts, by this act was given
"original andexclusive jurisdiction of all original civil actions,
except such as are cognizable before Justices of the Peace," "and
appellate jurisdiction of all causes civil and criminal appealable to
such Court," and " original jurisdiction of all prosecutions for crim-
inal offences, except such as are hj law made cognizable by justices
of the peace •" and in such cases the jurisdiction of the Supreme
Court extended only to questions of law, arising out of the trial in
the County Court. The clerk, to be appointed by the County
Court, was to be also clerk of the Supreme Court.
At the session in October 1849, the Legislature made a further
alteration in the organization of the judiciary system. The act
passed at that session provided, that the State should be divided into
four judicial circuits, and that, one circuit judge should