Show territorial COURT PRACTICE AND APPEALS considerable interest int crest erest appears to have been excited by the tho passage by congress of an act concerning in the practice in territorial C courts burts and appeals 21 which we published in fridays NEWS we do not see anything very exciting in the matter the bill it alpearl al appears pears was desired by the supreme court of the united states and drafted by one of the members thereof in order to settle by a definite law of congress a point con concerning concertin cernin which there llad had been some doubt much discussion and not a little of opinion and action by different judges different territories utah among the number had adopted laws providing for the tho mingling of equity or chancery and ordinary statute or common law in the same action instead of suitors being obliged to proceed either and singly at law or in 11 chancery which would necessitate the bringing of two separate suits if th the e benefit of both kinds of jurisdiction were desired some judges ho however vever in utah and elsewhere I 1 held to the separation of the two modes of procedure the alir bill now passed pawed distinctly authorizes the of the two kinds of proceeding and adjudication and so sa far tends tenda to compact judicial administration and should favor the satisfactory dispatch of legal business facilitate the administration of j justice ustice and lessen costs in many cases besides affording many ad adu vantages to ild ilu litigants gants by the combination of jurisdiction the li lie ile lle bill is a measure which we wet believe the members of the local bar generally favor and if it become a law it ou ought ht to be and have a good effect upon the conduct of judicial business the bill is besides another distinct recognition of the power of the territorial legislatures to regulate local matters and of the right of the people in the territories to a fair degree of local self government the bill confirms these territorial laws jaws mingling chancery and ordinary statute or common law juristic J urise ic validates proceed ings had under and in conformity with such laws still maintaining the right of trial by jury incises incases in cases cognizable leable at common or ordinary oid inary law the bill also in a degree regulates for future cases the method of f appeal from territorial courts to the supreme court of the united states in washington the supreme court of the united states had given decision by a divided court that the territories had not the power of mingling these two j jurisdictions and consequently a number of cases decided in the territorial courts under such mixed jurisdiction had been appealed to theu thou S supreme court hen nence hence ce to stop these appeals and to validate the proceedings of the territorial to rial courts under these mixed jurisdictions the U S supreme court desired the passage bv by congress of the bill in ia question |