Show MARRIAGE certificates THE mar late le legislative gisla tive assembly of this territory enunciated in a formal banner by means of a preamble and resolutions lut ions the doctrine that it is incompetent for a territorial legislature to duplicate add to or take from the laws of congress upon a given subject in a manner to change the effect of those laws in any way or degree in other words the lesser body cannot curtail nor ner abridge the po power over of tile the greater and when the greater has passed a law upon a subject the pre emption is that it has gone gene as far as it is willing rilling that legislation should go upon that particular lar matter every analogy of law aw re reason a son justice and common sense sustains this view but bat the assembly did not practice what it preached and confusion is the result ot of its failure so to do hoges marriage bill which became a law embraces the following section SEC 10 the person solemnizing solemn izing the marriage marriage shall within thirty days there thereafter ter return the license to the clerk of the probate court of the county whence it is issued with a certificate of the marriage over his signa siena tare saving giving the date and aad place of celebration and the names of two or more witnesses present at the marriage for failing to make such return he be is i guilty of a misdemeanor what is known as the edmunds tucker law has the following provisions relative to marriage ceremonies etc SEC 9 that every ceremony of marriage or in the nature of a marriage ceremony of any kind in any of the territories of the cited united states whether either or both or more of the parties to such ceremony be lawfully competent to be the subjects of such marriage or ceremony or not net shall be certified by a certificate stating and nature of such ceremony the full name of each of the parties concerned and the f full till name of every officer priest and person by whatever style or designation called or known in any way taking part in the performance of such ceremony which certificate shall be drawn up and signed by the parties to such ceremony and by every officer priest and person taking part in the performance of such buch cere motay and shall be bythe by the officer priest or other person solemnizing solemn izing such marriage or ceremony filed in the office of the probate court or it if there be none in the tae office of the court having probate powers in the copney or district in which buch ceremony shall take place for record and shall be immediately recorded and be at all tidies subject to inspection as other public records such certificate or the record thereof or a duly certified copy of such record shall be prima anna jima evidence of the facts required by this act to be stated therein in any pro cee dint diug civil or criminal in which the matter shall be drawn in ia question any person who shall wilfully violate any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty guilt of a meanor and shail Y on conviction n thereof be punished by a fine of not more than 1000 1000 or by imprisonment not longer than two years or by both said punishments in the discretion of the court several points lot variance between the territorial and congressional statutes relative to the marriage certificate will be observed one requires it to bear the abe signature only of the person officiating while the abe other requires it to be signed by the parties to the ceremony also one allows a mouth month in which to file the certificate while the other evidently contemplates that it shall be filed immediately the territorial rit orial law provides that a failure to file t the h e certificate or to perform certain other acts in ia relation to the marriage shall be a misdemeanor which under the local law is punishable by a fine in any sum less than W or by imprisonment not exceeding six months or both the penalty under the congressional statute tor for like offenses is a tine fine not exceeding 1000 and imprisonment not longer than two years A gentleman of intelligence who has had some experience in legal matters is perplexed over the conflict between the territorial and congressional stat utes designed desiga od to regulate marriage in id thi this sTerrit territory and writes us ua ascol as folo ws please answer in your paper the following questions by toe provisions of the ath section of the edmunds tucker law passed march 3 1887 it is stipulated that every person solemnizing solemn izing a marriage shall file a certificate of such marriage in the probate court or it if there be none in the office of the court havin having probate powers howera in the county or di district in which such ceremony shall take place for record etc if parties living in utah county a county in which there is a probate court go to salt lake county and there get married should the person officiating tile file the certificate in utah county or should he be file it in the probate court of salt lake county where he performed the ceremony when the utah law on marriage becomes operative I 1 will the person sol the marriage be required to file two certificates one to till fill the requirements quire ments of the congressional law and aad one for the utah law I 1 As to the county in which the marriage ri a ge certificate must be filed th ther ere is a variance between the territorial and congressional statutes the latter in terms requires it to be filed in the county in which the ceremony Is performed but there is in the former a requirement that it shall be filed in ia the county in which the female resides at the time of her marriage the following 1 is contained in section 8 of the territorial territorial Errit orial law no marria marriam marriage m shall be solemnized without a license lice nse issued by the clerk of the probate court of the county in which the female resides at the time this provision together with section 10 of the territorial law above quoted makes it reasonably clear that the latter contemplates the filing of the marriage certificate in the county in which the female resided at the time of the ceremony thus when a female Is in a county other than that in which her home is at the time it would appear necessary to me file two marriage certificates liae caeto to fill the requirements of the edmunds tucker law in tue the county in which the ceremony is performed and the other in obedience to the territorial law in the county in which the the bride resides when the ceremony is performed in the county in which the bride lives only one oae certificate need be filed but it must be of the character required by the ed bd munds tucker law ie it must mast bear the signatures of the wedded pair as well as that of the person officiating etc such a certificate would fill the requirements of both the congressional and territorial laws when two certificates are necessary toe the one filed in the county from which th the marriage license issued and which is sent thither with the returned license need bear only the signature of the person officiating etc te as it is filed in obedience to th the territorial law which requires less than does the congressional statute though both certificates may be alike it if they con form to the latter law whether the Legislature Utah ha had ath the right to require a marriage certificate to be idled filed in one county after congress had bad enacted that such a certificate must be filed in another or different differ Ant one is a question it would require a judicial decision to settle but it will in the mean time probably be as an won well to te take a course which will meet the requirements of both laws in order to express the results of an examination of the two statutes under consideration la in a simple manner we will recapitulate j I 1 aben th marriage ceremony is ie performed in the county in ia which the bride resides one certificate will meet the requirements of both laws provided it ic contains what la is fled in the edmunds tucker law it should be filed immediately that is as soon oen as r practicable atter alter the ceremony as this is evidently contemplated by that statute TB tae marriage license should be returned with it 3 2 when the marriage ceremony is performed in a county other than that in which the bride resides res idea one certificate to meet the requirements of the edmunds law most mast be tiled tied with the abe probate clerk of that county and another ni fiut a rt be sent with the returned marri marriane aKe licenses license to the probate clerk of the county la in which the brides honie home was at the time of the marriage 3 bott both certificates may be alike provided they conform to the congressional statute ta tute though the one filed in obedience to the territorial law need eed not be deigned beig signed ned by the bride s and d groom am and thirty days are al allowed for afif filing ing it 4 filing a in obedience to the edmunds tucker law of ef course secures immunity from the punishment prescribed therein but whether the punishment 1 unish ment named in the territorial fa law w could be enforced against a person who had fully complied with the law of congress Is an open quest question loii but until it shall be determined a discreet person will avoid all risks ricks in relation to the matter |