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Show C0VEi;()R"S MESSAGE. Oentlkmkn of tub Coukcil and hou3e of rki'kese.ntatives: Siuce the mt-eting of the laM LeyiulaturH, the aOaira of Territory Ter-ritory have c-JNiiiiutd, in mot re-sptcL, re-sptcL, saLidfactory. Thouyb cvr-taiu cvr-taiu eatrpriaea have heeu retarded to some degree, from var.ous causes, everthele.-s uriruistukable prugrei ha-s becu made In the settling up of the country uud in the develuputenl of lla resources Tlie general health of the people has bt-eu good, and peat-e aud o.der have prevailed throughout the Territory. Agricultural crops have been abuudaiit, aud the husbandmen have been amply rewarded for their labor. No causes of diatrtts from poverty h ve exnted where an honet elluit haa been made to obtain ob-tain a livelihood. The laboring claxses have been furuiahed-with steady employment, and well leuiu titrated fur their aervicfp, and in lliU refpect they have been tu'jie foituuate than oLlmrd of their fellow men lu many p.irtious of the country. The ininea in their further development devel-opment have increased iu positive value, aud where energy and skill have been disulaved In workiue them, promise large returns to their owners. Many which, but two yeara since, were regarded as meie prospects of doubtful worth, have, grown Into well developed mines of great' value. The facilities for milling aud dtneltlug have kept pace with the product of Ihe mine.-. Several extensive establishments have been eroded for the reduction of ores, all of which, I bflieve are iu ucces-ful ucces-ful operation, aud alTuid additional employment for a large number of men. Already attuliou ij bring directed direct-ed to the vnst coal fields of the Ban-pote Ban-pote County, where are to he found immensi veiui of bituminous coal of superior quality for coking aud ordinary uw a. The day appears not distant when these mines will furnish fuel for the smelting of our ores ata cot probably of one-fourth the money now paid for Pennsylvania Pennsyl-vania coke. This event will mark a new era, giving fresh Impetus to our mining and smelting enterprises. enter-prises. Although mining H"d its c Misequent industries are ai yet in their infancy, they nevertheless furnish a largd uumborof citizens wilh employment aud a ready market for home product"; beside, they are the ruiuey-producing interests in-terests of the people, and it is reasonable rea-sonable io txpect that within a short time they will bd sources of great wealth to Utah. When we n-flect upon the material ma-terial resourci-s of the Territory-rich Territory-rich iu agrlculluie, gold, silver, lead, copper, zinc, sulphur, mlt, iroiTand coal, with a climate unsurpassed un-surpassed by any other In America we can realize the necessity for correct legislation aud such as will nmtunt. I lln hllrnLIpHt (itizfill In ll 19 rights and guard the interests of all legitimate enterprises. FINANCES. The reports, of the Territorial Auditor and Treasurer for the two years ending December 81st, 1877, have been received, and I herewith submit them for your information, these reports exhibit no treat Indebtedness In-debtedness pg'iitiHt the Territory which it cnuuut liquidate, provided the money due from theCouotles is paid into the Treasury; however, these outstanding accounts aud Auditoi's warrants present a condition con-dition of athiird relative to the flu-aucep, flu-aucep, which cannot be regarded otherwise than unsatisfactory. Evidently Evi-dently Home plan should be devised whereby the Territory can be relieved re-lieved of Us embarassmeiit in this particular. COMMON SCHOOLS. A revision of the law relating to schools, po that it shall he more in accoid with tho progress aud spirit of the lirui-s, ami tun re acceptabl to the entire people, is Lgeded, aud trust will receive ymir a teution. Underits present provisions every religious denomination In Utah dooms It necrss'try to furnish schooU for its children, while but una of these leuoniina'innsreceiv..-s any as-istanco fiom the Public Treasury. Iu this city alone tnoia than thirty thousand dollar? are auuually expended for private tuition, tui-tion, wnich is no ininnuiderable lux, and by many hard to bear. This amount of money should furnish fur-nish schooling for nearly the whole number of children in the pity; whereas under the present arrangement, arrange-ment, it procures imtrue:ion for only about one-fifth of the ei,tire number of the school age. It wmld be wisdom to divide this citv into say, six school districts, with a high school a near tho centre as mtiy he convenient and to furnish each district wilh buildings devoted exclusively to school p"ir-pofe, p"ir-pofe, and to provide, all of tnem ; with teachers selected for their ' moral worth ami qualifications as toAcheis, regardless of their religious religi-ous bin. A grail id system of in-1 strucliou In keeping with a place of this size, should tluwi bp inaugurated, inaugurat-ed, which will mret the rcquirw-meulM rcquirw-meulM of the chi-dien who arf to le educated Suuh a system, whi-n once established, would give th greatest watlsfactlon to Mil whu are iulvrested, and L am conMilent could ue niMintined lor I-m mui.ey thriti H no v yearly t-xpendtl for schools. Any sval.-ni of pubiiV iii-struction iii-struction which will te leneficiil to this city. iil) lie adopted by al; the cith-s and town-. In lite IYni-tory IYni-tory with hki- g "d result-. No State orTernt iry hi the l-nion Is better cih-ui iled to matiitiin giad-cd giad-cd cht)ls th in IJtih, as in ui ly Iht eullit' popuialion rifiiie wuhtu cr-pnrate cr-pnrate limitu and towns. An p-pmpiiMtiou p-pmpiiMtiou choold be made by the I.ettisliiluie amply f urticiwit for eilucati-n-tl purjO-es, and the money fhoul I r rai-ed by a direct t.ix levie i ui on the laxabh- property proper-ty of the IVrtttory, in the t;uue I m:Ti tier : funds aie r.iled for other j Territorial ex ,'ftiM..-. The lnw now hi force leaves the di.tricl!- to decide for themselves 'whether ei not they will raise by taxation the money necessary to maintain Bchools. This provUiou vir tually leaves the question of schools-or schools-or no schools to the respective districts, dis-tricts, inatvad of to the Legislature, where it prp-rly belongs. Public schoo's should iw uniler no sectarian sectari-an iorlueuce. Morality, integrltv and tli other virtues bboul 1 he iu culcaUd in all int-ti tuiioua uf learning, learn-ing, but if. igluus teaching shoulu be le't lu the parents, the Sabbath rt'hools and to Ibe churches. 11 a child 'm reiiwiuus traiuiug under these influences will nol titaud the josJe of public hchools. It will oe 'Itile practical ute to him in after life. 1KK1UATJON. While I realize the difficulties of iu tiitemt to rrgulaie the water in in arid countiy t-o as tn yjve ihdi-v ihdi-v id tut I their exact prop irlioo, aud while it cu hardly be expected the mattr will evt-r b ko adjusted as to give entire i-atlefcij n, yet I am ovnfideut a system can be devised which will come nearer lo it than the present one. 'I he statutes make provision for irrigation di-trhrts, the election nf flic. Tf, etc., hut fall to define ths rights or individuals, or give them any permaueut privileges. The law is so meagre in Its provisions that a supply of water depends more on the good-will of netglibor than upon any rights which cm he enfoned. Neither will ihe people of the Territory have auy snflicieut guaranty against serious difficulties until Ihfcir individual i uteres ts to tbe water are more specl(ie-lly de-flned de-flned ly law. We should bear in mind that in the absence of Terri torial legislation ou iHissunjecr. ine common law prevails, and is wholly inapplicable to countries which have to depend upon the water courses fora sufficient t-upply of water, not only for ordinary uses but (or the purposes of irrigating the soil. A well comddcitd law would be of great servb.-e, e-pecially to agriculturists, agri-culturists, and prevrnt litig-ttion, which mustgrow out of the present system. Legal title to wa;er is quite a essential iu this Territory as leal title to land, mid as miiju as acquired It nhould be a part of, aud to with, the realty nnd mide a m ilter of record iu the piime m inner in-ner us real estate. i SECBIIT B.VLLOT. I desire to call attention to the law regu hit i ng elect i jiip, and request re-quest that it lie so aiUt-uded as to relieve it of an ohjertiouable feature known as the "marked ballot." That portion of the s'atute relating to the regis! i ut ion f votes as a precaution pre-caution agsinst fruud, is acceptable to the people mid is considered amply am-ply sufficient us a safeguard, without with-out tho accompanying provision requiring the name of the elector to be written in the poll-hooks, and opposite to it the number of his vote. This Is regarded as espionage, enabling the Lfllcers of election, If so disposed, to lelt how aud for whom each person voies. E also suggest the propriety of piovidiog for two judges of election iu every pr cinct iusle'id of one, nud make it the duty of lh Counly Court to appoint the officers, and to select one from each of the political par- , ties, thereby giving to each a friend at the polls. A Ion, thai every ballot bal-lot be sealed up in an envelope be- i fore beiug deposited; the envelopes to he of uniform color and size, and to be furnished to Judges of election by the County Ouurls for free distribution dis-tribution at ihe places of holding the elections. This, it seems, would afford to every citizen entitled to vote an opportunity to do so In accordance with his own wishes. Tbe right of suffrage allowed to citizens should carry with It the right to exerci-e that suttrage in a manner satisfactory satisfac-tory to himself, without the possi bility if being called to account for his choice of candidates, or of experiencing expe-riencing unpleasant consequences. The duty of the Legislaiura to "guard the purity of the ballot box" Is unquestioned, hut It would be an abuse of power to so eutangle it as to thwart the wishes of the people; otherwise sufJruge, which nas been given as a high constitutional constitu-tional privilege wherewith to protect pro-tect their rights and opinions recoils re-coils ou lis possessors and subverts the very ends ond objects it was intended in-tended to accomplish. COMPILED LAWS. The Legialatiiro.al its last session, created a comnii? bIou to compile the statutts and laws then in force and those enacted during that session. ses-sion. The bill provided that when the books should be published they should be placed in the hands of the Auditor of Public Acoounts, to be by him dlsposedof in the following follow-ing manner: To the Governor, Secretary, Se-cretary, and Judges of the Supreme Court, one copy each; to the members mem-bers of the Leglslat ire and to Ihe territorial officers, one copy each; ami two hundred uoples to tie re-laiued re-laiued for the ut,e of members of future Legislatures, etc., but made uo provision for a free distribution of a certain number outside of the Territory to persons aud libraries eulilled to thvm. The Jjegis lature appropriated six thousand dollars to meet theexpeu-ses theexpeu-ses of publication, to whicli Congress Con-gress subsequently added four thousand dollars niorj lp bmlrawu and paid over subject to the. approval appro-val uf the Governor. It was deemed ml vlsalWe, Congress having pontri)iited so litjeraliy in aid of the work, to ut u-jde a pertain per-tain number of the books for ihe use of the President of Ihe United Slates, members of his cabinet, he;idsof bureau, the various com- mittwa Of the rieuateand House of Representatives, and for Iheqse of State and territorial libraries. I will add that this Territory isunder obligations to nearly all of the Stales for law reports and other public documents, and iu returu for thei-e contributions they have requested to bo fu,r)lsied with copies co-pies of our statutes, legislative documents, doc-uments, and Biich other publications publica-tions as we may have, for the use of their libraries, which they consider con-sider iucomplete without thein. To supply this demand, the oum mi-siou p ared iu the bauds of the Secretary of the Territory two hundred hun-dred copies of the compiled las, with the understanding that thv matter should liid before the present Legislature for approval, and for a further contribution of one hundred copies to the tame object. ob-ject. lu complying with these n jii'-U we only liquidate a debt whw-u has long been due, and which should have been provided for in the bill rrlallng to the compilation of the laws. BAIL. Under the present pr c Ice, parties par-ties who are b .uud ovpr for lrnl not u n frequently eftctpe, and are not lo tf fun u. i when I heir ea" are ready for trini. Although bail it thereto forteitPtt, yet Iheprose-euting Iheprose-euting officer is obliged to wm! until un-til the succeeding term of court be fore be can bring au action on the bond, g jt judgment and cullecl-tbe uiouey. This defective bail system is aterious drawback to an efficient and prompt execution of the law; besides, it is no uncommon thing that, by the time judgment is rendered, ren-dered, no piopert can be found out of which to satisfy tbe execuiion. The law iu respect to bailors should be ameud-d, and ihelr liabilities lia-bilities made more specific and positive. posi-tive. A liquidated bond should be rtqu'red by persons who otJer themselves them-selves as surety for others, and a bond on which the officers of the court cau proceed at ouce to collect the mony, if forfeited. Such bonds should be a lieu on the real estate mentioned therein, and the courts be empowered to iue process for the colieotion of the sum agreed upon, without further legal proceedings. pro-ceedings. CHATTEL MORTGAGES. Acquirement of law is needed which will make it obligatory on mortgagees of personal property to record their titles in the county where the property is situated. A provision of this kicd would afford ample notice to third parlies of the trausactiou, and allow the mortgagor mortga-gor to retain possession of the property pro-perty so long as he complL s with the conditions of his agreement, provided the arrangement is satisfactory satis-factory to the mortgagee. Under present enactment loans made on this class of securities are considered consider-ed iu secure, unless the pledge is transferred to and remii ns in possession pos-session of the pledgee. Tbe law so modified as lo contaiu the requhe-ment requhe-ment suggested would be of service lu persous wuo ueai iu mift kuu ui security and equally advantageous to mortgageor and mortgagee. JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. Siuce the adjournment of the Legislature several vacancies have occurred in the office of justice of the peace. Theee offices being elective, and there being no authority author-ity for calling a special election to fill them, the vacanc ts remain unfilled un-filled aud are awaiting your action. An there has been a general mis-understanding mis-understanding throughout the Territory Ter-ritory respecting the.law which governs gov-erns in these cases, I cite the pro-vi-ions of the Uuited States Statutes relating thereto: Section 1856 provides, "Justices of the Peace and general officers of lb ) militia in the several Territories shall be tleited by the people iu such manner as the respective LfeLiiblatures may provide by law." Sec. 1S57 "Ail township,, district, dis-trict, and couuty officers, except juiticesof the peace and general officers of the militia, shall heap-pointed heap-pointed or elected iu such manner as may be provided by the Governor and Legislative Assembly of each Territory." Sec. 1858. "In auy of Ihe Territories, Terri-tories, whenever a vacancy happens hap-pens from resignation or death, during the reces3 of the Legislative Council, in any office which, under tho Organic Act of any Teniiory,is to be filled by uppoioUuelil of the Governor by and with Ihe advice aud consent of the Council. he Governor shall fill each vacancy, by granting a commission, which shall expire at the end of the next sessiou of the Legislative Council, 11 Although the "Orgau'e Act" provides that tbe Governor jshaJl commission all officers who shall he appointed under the laws of this Territory, and the Territorial Legislature Legis-lature has made provision for filling vacancies iu the office of Jmtice of the peace by appointment of the Couuty Court, yet both the Legislative Legis-lative and Organlo Acts coutravene the acts of Congress, which are of more recent dati and control iu such cases STOCK RAJ SI NO. I Immense arena of country in TTtl-. arn arlnnt,l tn om-7.mr mill probably can never be put to any use which will ho bo profitable as stock rai-lng. The mountains, tbe hillsnud unoccupied valleys should be uMliztd for this purpose, and would be a source of considerable revenue to tho people. Though this business i curried on to some extent at the present time, it is nevertheless attended with so much ! risk and wilh a loss ol so many animals that the enterprise is becoming be-coming more hazardous every year. Tbe Legislature cau remedy one of the principal difficulties connected con-nected withjthls pursuit, by providing pro-viding more effective niethod for Die capture aud conviction of the men who drive out of Utah annually an-nually large numbers of stolen caltle and horses. The appointment appoint-ment of one efficient, vigilant officer, of-ficer, for each couuty, but with jurisdiction throughout theTeiri-tpry, theTeiri-tpry, whqse duty it shall be to pr-Bue, pr-Bue, arrest and bring to trial guilty parties, would undoubtedly put an end to annoyances of this kind. The measure would probably be more ehVctive if it should contain a piovlsion whereby, If any such ofjli-pr pr pfficers aid. abet or In any way compromise with persons bus p uted or guilty of the ofleiice stated, stat-ed, or shall make use of his office for any other purpose than that for ; which it was created, such officer or officers shall be punished by fine and for a term in the i'euKentiaiy. pEJJiTKfiiTiARy. The I'eultenliary,)furthe confinement confine-ment of persons in tho Territory, is pitooJ by law qudor the carp and control of the United States Marshal, Mar-shal, and be is by the same enactment en-actment made Warden, subjectouly to such rules and regulations as are prescribed by the Altorney General or' the United States. This is the law aud authority paramount to territorial enactment on this sub ject. The compiled laws of Utah provide, by an act approvpd January Janu-ary iiU:h, lSi't, for a board of directors direc-tors for the Penitentiary, and a subsequent act, approved January ISth, 1S((I, provides regulations for . governing the Warden and directors. direct-ors. The-te Territorial acts are in conflict with congressional legislation legisla-tion and providp a tjiljerent Bystem of government for th& Penitentiary from that established by Congress, and should be repealed. Such balances bal-ances a stand to the credit of the Penitentiary fund by virtue of former for-mer appropri'ilionSjshnuld r,e transferred trans-ferred and made available for ex-pen ex-pen mm under its pre.-ont management. manage-ment. The expen-es ef ft Territorial Warden have been paid for several years, though no such officer has been known to the law. Ano' her enactment provides that, "any person convh-tc 4 by a cmirt of competent jurisdiction, in a Territory, Ter-ritory, tor a violation of the l&wg thereof, aiid sentenced to imprisonment, imprison-ment, may, at the cost of such Territory", on vich terms and conditions condi-tions ai may be prescribed by the Attorney General, be leceived, -ubsiit d "Oil rin pi 13 eJ in the Pen' Henliarj- during ihe tfrm of hi.' impHj-onment." There are now conrJnfd In that instilutb'ii thirty-nine convict, and the iinmfT has averaged twenty-seven twenty-seven for ihe p-ist year. Up to dale no provision .has been made by lh IVnitory f.,r the expense of maintaining main-taining and guarding these ct.-vieic ct.-vieic I therefore recommend a suitable suit-able appropriation for this purport COLLECTION OF DEBTS. It is reasonable to suppose I'-hi the more easily sa l certainly debu can l collected by law, the -riea e: will be tbe facilities for elleciiuti loam and obtaining credit. Alonej will be put in eirculation more freely, aud the benefit deriv d from such a btute uf allirs will iixinicdi ately bo experieucs I by the mer cantile and laboring clause. A? the lisfes attending the collection ol uiouey loaned are inen nsed, io the same proportion will the rules or interest Increase The attachment law of the Ter ritory afl'-irdi very inadequate so curlty to creditors, and as a cu sequence se-quence mouey is rarely loaned, except on bond and mortgage, or on Ihe pledge of collateral securities. securi-ties. It Is deemed advisable to amend the attachment law.so as to allord the necessary lemedies iu all cases of contract for the direct payment of inmiey, when the debt is not paid at maturity. This is Ihe law in California, Nevada and other State, aud while it is but just to creditors, it will be also a benefit to those who require credit iu their business, by giviug them greater facilities for ohtaiuiug it at reduced rate.- nf interest. EXECUTIONS. Sec 1434, Compiled Laws of Utah, provide--, that ihe party in whose favor judgment is given, may at any time within three ye&ra after theeutrv thereof, issue a writ of execution for its enforcement. Sec. 110$ of the same law read.: "Actions other thau those for the recovery of real property can only be commenced as follows: within Jive yearn an action upon a judgment judg-ment or ilecree of any court of the United States or any of the Terri- 1 lories within the United States." It would appear that au action ctn be brought on a judgment al auy time within five years, while Sec. 1134, which ninkes provision for the Issuing of executions, says they (can only isi-ue at any time within three y ara after the entry, thereby allowing al-lowing a judgment creditor fl ve years within which to tue on his judgment, but only thtee years in which to obtain an execution to levy on properly, thereby compelling compell-ing him, al ihe eud of Lhat lime, to commence a suit on his judgment judg-ment aud to litigate his case again in order to project hn interests. Furthermore, the Hen which attaches at-taches to real estate by virtue of ,a judgment properly docketed by the clerk of the court is vacated at the end of two years. If the word three in Sec. 1434 and the word two in Sec. 1429 were respectively changed to the word five the statutes would thee harmonize, and be more in keeping with substantial justice. FEES OF JURORS. The stafutes of the Territory make no provision for the payment of petit jurors except in criminal ca.-es. This is unjut to jurors aud a source of embarrassment to tho courla Jurors are required to attend at-tend oourt, aud they should be paid for their services no matter whether attending ou civil or crimiual business. bus-iness. , To remunerate the Territory for paying jurors in civil cases, t would suggest there be ajury fee taxed as costs in every civil CHse submitted to a jury. The Marv-hal or other officer collecting such feesBhould be required to pay them Into tbe Territorial Treasury. A practice similar to this has been adopted in some of the States, and, I am informed, in-formed, gives entire satisfaction. An appropriation amply sufficient to pay all jury fees should be made by the Legislature. As matters al..vi,l T,.i.rieI..ln1 anrlnnnn ho bought on the streets at from forty to sixty cents on the dollar, so that the juror receives when attending on criminal c.ises only about one-half one-half tho pay allowed by law. The plain ttfJ in any civil action or proceeding should be held responsible re-sponsible to the officer for their fees. If Judgment Is recovered against the defendant, these fees are taxed as ousts of suit, aud the plaintiff is thereby remunerated, provided the defeudaut is able to respond, but If not, the plaintiff should lose the leoa rather than the officers of the court) who have earqed them at his instauoe. Such a law would make paities more caulious iu bringing suits and iu compelling their services when there are no funds or property in the possession of the defeudaut which can be reached by an execution. execu-tion. To provide for such contingencies contin-gencies I would therofore recommend recom-mend that the costs of suit be taxed to and paid by the plaintiff, whether whe-ther he prevails la his action or not. If he does prevail, then he will have an execution for the amount of his judgment and costs against the defendant. SILK. The silk culture In attracting some attention In ihe Territory ,md it has now been demonstrated by actual experiment that our climate and soil are admirably adapted to the mulberry foe and the production produc-tion of silk. It is believed this will be a proli table Indu-try. It requires but small oanltut to engage in it, tiud U Is especially suited to persons of limited means who desire to make safe investments and are satisfied with reasonable returns for their labor. The silk which has been produced so far is of good quality and the manufactured fabrics fab-rics are of an excellent and sub-stantifll sub-stantifll character. If any leelfla- tloo is deemed necessary to foster this branch of home industry, I hope you will not fail to enact it. MARRIAGE. Provisions should bomade whereby where-by the marriage ceremony may be Serformed by persons authorized y law to do so. The BlaLutes are ominously sllout ou this Important aulject. U is usual elsewhere to confer such authority upon magistrates, magis-trates, executive- officers and clergymen clergy-men of all religlousdeiiomiiiaUous. should be gratified to see a law of that bind prevail in this Territory, with a rtq-iireruent that all mir-riages mir-riages ithiiii be mule- a mailer of publlo record, mid that parlies who perform these cremonien shall furnish fur-nish the recorder with a certifies1 containing th n nines and ages of all person united by them iu marriage. mar-riage. CRIMINAL IMtCr.CK ACT. rrevioii" to the meeting of the ' last Le if! ut Ive A-ernhly, the members of the Rirand other leading lead-ing citizen" of this city, composed of both parties, held a meeting ' called for the purpo-e of appointing , committees who thoul i draft such laws, to be presented Ui the mem-' mem-' hereof the Lei-la ure, as the imperative im-perative necfH-:y oet-mi-d to de-maud de-maud in this Territory. Amon oih- l ers, a committee conm-iing of two - leading attorneys was appointed to : prepare a penal code and a criminal i practice act. They attended faith fully to the duties ss-igned tliem. adopting for their guiJe, i-o far as practicable, the California Code. .-ailed ihe atlenii -n of the A-tiub-i to thee uj'U'Uies wlu n it i-ou- vueii, an 1 urgrd their p.i!;e. Toe recouiuieii mii-m u as &o opted -i far as lo pas? a pma! code, which as modeled afier the California i stem and which d-fimd numerous numer-ous offences and affixed to - them appropriate penalties but, for .oim r tisoii u ii espial tied, tl.e Legi-la tun- failed to enact a code ot procedure proce-dure for the courts in criminal cas-e, except such a are held by justices of the peaet. While our court-, are slill left to the guidance of the common law methods, which are uncertain and often contrttdictoiy, and the mode of procedure in cimiinul i-jis varies va-ries with the ooiuioiis of ihe ju ices who preside over them, nothing i.-:-eUled aud determined, nor can i; he ouder ihe prerem(pnvi&ions of the law. The rule laid down by one judge is changed by his successor, succes-sor, aud pert-ous accused of crime are tried by no well-settled, or clearly defined principles of law. This constantly varying practice ii not only unjust to the. courts, but prejudicial to the rights of the accused ac-cused who is on trial. This loose system of criminal procedure is wrong in every respect and should receive your immediate' attention. Tn eases where parties ate convicted convict-ed of murder in the first degree, a doubt exists whether the judge has authority under the statutes to pronounce pro-nounce sentence upon them, and whether, hy law, there is eveu any punishment. The difliculty arises from the fact that, while the Legis lature adopted that porlion of the California code which enacts the penalty of death in cases of murder, it failed to ad.tpt the other portion of the code which piovides a method me-thod for executing the sentence. There is now in the Territory a case of murder involving this very difliculty, difli-culty, which Inn cone lo our Supreme Su-preme Court (Mi appeal, aud which will probably be canted lo the Supreme Su-preme Court of the United States in order to Be.ttle thin mooted question. ques-tion. Diviiitci:. In my meainge two years ago I referred to the law of divorce. specified speci-fied some of its ohjoctiouable features, fea-tures, and rt quested to have it revised re-vised but, as the matter was not acttd upon at that time, I present it again, trusting you will not adjourn ad-journ without adopting a well-considered well-considered bill and such as will throw around marriage all the ne-cetsiry ne-cetsiry safeguards. The practice in vogue in our Probate Courts Is to exercise jurisdiction in divorce suits over parties whether they reside within or without the Territory, Ter-ritory, and in nurrerou-i instances these cases have been decided without with-out giving thedufendantsthe usual notice, thereby depriving them of an opportunity to be heard, however how-ever meritorious may have been their defence. I cauuot present the case now more piintedly than I have formerly, and will call your attention to what was then said: "Hy an act of Congress our Pro- : bate Courts have jurisdiction over suits for divorce, but Congress i n-teuded, n-teuded, no doubt, such jurisdiction should be exercised with caution t aud carefully guarded by Territorial Territor-ial statutes. Tho law is defective and should be modified. The laws of Utah allow dl votes to parties not residing in tho Territory, by -showing to the satisfaction of the : I Court the com p hi i tut it t wishes to become a resident. To prevent an abuse of the law I recommend the statutes be so amended as to require 1 of the complainant iu any case for divorce an actual bona fide resi-, dence of one year prior to the commencement com-mencement of suit, in the couuty ord strictiu which legal proceedings proceed-ings aio iuslitutoil." The law is so loose in its provisions as to invite au illicit practice, which lias recently re-cently beeu carried ou to au alarming alarm-ing extent and brought disgrace alike upon the Territory and those engaged in procuring divorues. The sooner you act lu ihe premises the sooner Utah will be relieved of the odium of these unsavory proceedings. proceed-ings. COMMISSIONERS. For a series of years after tho settlement set-tlement of this inland couutry, the people were of one faith, and whatever what-ever their dillerences, they were adjusted hy a council oftheouurch, cons queutly rew laws were necessary neces-sary and those of the simplest character. Hut when railroads were completed through tho Ten i lory, then another class of people came into the country, attracted here by the rich mineral deposits and en-gntjHd en-gntjHd in mining and its kiudred pursuits. The advent of this element, ele-ment, with i la new enlerpriseu, necessitated further legislation, and that of a diflerent kind. Since that perioij tho meetings of the Legislature Legis-lature liave been biennial and limited lim-ited to a certain number of days, so tint tho statutes have necessarily undergone revision atevery session, to meet the exigencies of the hour, until ihey contain incongruities which it appears impossible lo correct cor-rect during the lime prescribed. To remedy these dilllculties it has been bugi-Gsted, and I fully concur in the mggestion, that a commission commis-sion eminently qualified for its duties should lie appointed to codify codi-fy the laws and eliminate from tliem whatever is in conflict Willi Congressional enactment. They should :Jo bo instructed to draft such bills as they may deem advisable ad-visable for tho public good and submit sub-mit their work to the next Assembly Assem-bly ..for Its approval. Such an arrangement would enable its mernuers io uovote a large portion of their time, during the sesslcn, lo the consideration of necessary measures rather than to the preparation prepar-ation of bills, at is usually tho case, and also enabl- them to bring up the work of legislation to date and to present to their constituents a well digested sywtPm of law. Such commissions are not unusual in the States, and aro created for the purpose pur-pose of simplifying the statut s and presenting a better system of jurisprudence juris-prudence than it is possible to provide wi'hont fuch assltince. If such a com minion he nppoj nted, it should consist of men learned in the law and fully competent to discharge dis-charge the onerous duties which they are called upon to j erfurm. SIUl'.NTA IN MEADOWS MAaSACKE. It is now twenty year since an atrocioUit ci iuie was committed in the southwestern portion of this Territory, known as the Mountain Meadows massacre. Up to the present, pre-sent, time but one of the parlies en-gaged en-gaged in that honibie attair has been punihlie-l, (j her pen-on? have j been indictf-J for the same off'-nce, ' hut they have evaded he officers1 of the Inw SO PUCeHfll y njiK-e 1 their indictment that t heir arr-st , trial and ennvK-ti.oi mtc r.ow quite improbable, on - the Lc i -litt u re interest- iiM-lf io tho nni.i-r an ) offers a suitable reward for their ap prehensi ,-n. Jt is htJiered fnend-are fnend-are in corumunicitiou wilh these men, and warn them of the ap proach of officers, and such vigilance vigi-lance is maintained, that though frequent attempts have t eou ni.tue to s'ps' iheiti, ihey have been , foiled by l hrs-p persons. This is r. ! matter vWii.-h you hould inqutie into, and I soi:!; st a committee be aU:KUtitfd e:ir- Ih i In- seslou With j ail" lir-ces-ary MUlhoMty to invesll- j gate I lie cau-fs operating against j the arrot mid trial of these imiicL-ed imiicL-ed p.irii -'. I urfthis mautrin the inu-re-t ot ju-ttce and i.ood government, that the guilty nny be punched anl ihe ini.O.t'iit vit.-dic vit.-dic .'ed. 1 al-o utge it in the interest inter-est of every innocent pervon living here at the lime of ihe terrib'e mas--ai-re. The responsibility of that melancholy melan-choly transaction siiould ret upon the par: ies engaged iu it, aud not upon the enliiejiopulaliou residing iu the Territory when il Oivurri.d. I'OLYU AM Y. Tho majority of the people of thi.- Territory bclcng to a religion-sejt religion-sejt known us the "Latter day Saints.'' I do not intend lo discui-s tin merits or demerits of this new religion, but t refer to one of its distinctive features, polygamy. This system of marriage lias continued con-tinued here for thirty years, aud lor rii'teeti years i n violation cf law. In all the Slates and Territories except ex-cept Utah it is considered a gtave ollcnse and is severely punished. Polygamy is no less a crime hero than in other portions of our country, coun-try, and yet the Jaw remains a dead letter upon the statutes. I regard this system of marriage an evil undermining un-dermining the peine of society brought within its influence, and carrying w mi u uarK snauows which rest like a blight upon the offspring of these illegal relations and the women who are maintained maintain-ed in them. The number of polygamous polyga-mous wives iu Utah is laige how large I have not the means of knowing yet it is safe to say they number thousands. Such a condition condi-tion of things is an anomaly nowhere no-where else to tie fmiud in a Christian Chris-tian country. This, gentlemen, is a serious question, and should be met openly aud Willi candor. It is for you lo decide whether from all thestirroundings you will take ac-tiou ac-tiou in the premises and provide iigiinstlhe continuance of these criminal relations, or ignore the consequences of this state of affairs. Congress has reserved to itself the right to approve or disapprove of any territorial legislation, and also to enact such laws r.s may appear necessary to the welfare of the people. peo-ple. Yet, notwithstanding these reserved powers, it is more than probable that Congress would acquiesce iu any measures inaugurated inaugu-rated by yourselves looking to a permanent and equitablelsett lenient of this question. The Territories are the wards of the National Government, Gov-ernment, created by Congress, aud whatever privileges aro enjoyed within them, are extended by that body, ail of which Congress has the power to modify or le-voke. le-voke. The policy of tho government govern-ment lias been to allow citizens of the Territories to-legisiate for them-selves,aud them-selves,aud no doubt it will continue in that policy, provided they enact judicious Inws.sucu as are inaccord with the General Government and in harmony with those of thiKt.jfu and not otherwise. Polygamous marriages are so frequent and so numerous throughout this Territory, Territo-ry, ami the sentiment of a majority of the (people so much in their avor, that the oflicers of the law, though clmrgi'd wilh tho duty of enforcing the law, find themselves unable to do so without further and more slringeut legislation on the subject. This legislative body has sufllc-ient sufllc-ient jurisdiction over the matter to provide such enactments as the circumstmices require; but if it fails lo act in tne premises, then it is the duty of Congress lo take cognizance of the fact aud to provide such legislation ns will meet this case, or abolish the law which makes polygamy a crime. Polygamy and the union of church and stale aro stumbling-blocks in the way of a settled condition of aflalrs in this Territory, and arealikodetrlmental to the interests of the dominant church aud the entire people. Any religious body in this country coun-try holding two such tenets as 1 havejust referred to, which are bo antagonistic to American ideas and republican government, will be the object of distrust in other respects, though blameless and eveu praiseworthy. praise-worthy. CONCLUSION. Tho attention of tho members of the Inst AoBumbly was directed to somo of tho measures to which 1 now refer, but as they failed to bo adopted, I again present them, trusting the progiei-s of events has so far modified public opinion respecting re-specting them that favorable action will now bo tuken. To complete the work necessary to bo done will severely tux your energies mid probably pro-bably your patience, nevertheless if you succeed iu tho undertaking your labors will not be In vain, and to the consciousness of having done a public service will be added the approval of a grateful constituency. Permit me in conclusion, gentlemen, gentle-men, to express the hope thut the same generous spirit which characterized charac-terized the dtllborfltions of tho last session will prevail during this, and that the result of your labors will bo satisfactory to the people and conducive to the permanent welfare of Utah. |