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Show THE CITY BOOKS. Chief Justice McKean Sustains the Law. And Foils the Designs of the "Committee of Forty Five." The three several cases ol C C. Clements, for himself and tbc "Committee "Com-mittee of Forty-fire citizens of Salt Lake," Hg.iinut l'aul A. Sjhettler, City Tre;k;urcr; Itobert Campbell, City Uccorder; and John K. Winder, City Assessor, were beard in Chamb- cry ycsb nliy before Chief Justice Melvean; and after arguments by Judge Sutherland, nseccintcd with Attorney General Snow for the city officers, and K. K. Baskin, Esq., for Mr. Clements, the alternative man-damns man-damns in each ease wns dismissed, for the -reason that the defendants had net declined or refused to exhibit tlio lunik mid records of the city since tho order was Uaiicd, nor in fact nt any otlur lime. Judgo Sutherland, Suth-erland, as is his wont exhausted tho law uion the subject, and then presented the answer o( the defendants. defend-ants. Justice McKenn arrested the argumenls, and took until " o'clock to consider the case, and thereupon reluacd to grant the peremptory mandamus; man-damus; consequently tho proceedings were dismissed. Thus ends, for the present, at least, by the immutable! principles of the la'v, another trick of, the "ring" jn:is(crs to annoy and vex the olhctrs ol this city. As we stntcd in the outset, the city officers have always been ready and willing to permit any citizen to examine ex-amine nil the public books under their control for any proper and legitimate legi-timate purposes; but to permit any man or set of men In carry their books away, to take them out of their offices aud custody, to copy, possibly to mutilatoand alter, they have and ill decline, until cum pel led to do ;c, which wo never ejspect will be the case. Indeed, when Cliief Justice McKeau listens to the final argument ou this subject, aud analyzes all the Ameri-'caii Ameri-'caii and English cases cited on Judge Sutherland's brb'f, he will find that the rule ut" law on this subject is perfectly per-fectly settled: That in all cases where an examination of municipal books is rpnnirrtt fill 1 1 hiMiolit nl thr ritiPtiK of such iMrpyralii.il, the proceedings must be carried on in tbc name of the Attorn y -General or local prosecuting attorney; and that no iwliruhtaf member ur :i:i-,'.n ol a corporation can ever demand the right of examination exami-nation of the corporate books, unless he has some individual benefit cr interest therein fo be subserved, aside from bis general membership. If this self-appointed " committee of lorly rive," or any member ot it, baa tbe right lo go tu the city's, books, m,tVe eo.pies of records and handle and count the public funds for the right tn op'jn the safe a nil count the moniy found, therein is its roas-onable and jn.-L nt is the oilier . lias any 1 . . j itt. a ire eij idea is preposterous, and to attempt anything ol the kjnd is an exhibition of presmnptio'i whif.h might vi expected ex-pected from a certain ulas in Utah, but nover be dreamed of elsewhere. Chiel Justice McKean is entitled lo credit lor deckling these ccs on the law and testimony; and disregarding the clamor and swagger of this self-constituted self-constituted " committee," whose capacity ca-pacity for mischief is only equalled bv thoir sjioilatiun aid tiouble-crcat-iilg dfcfigps. |