Show TO BE TESTED THOSE who have kept the run of criminal proceedings in the courts under the edmunds tucker law are aware that there have been a large number of convictions of individuals for unlawful cohabitation and adultery the same persons have been convicted of both of tenses we have hold held from the time the edmunds tucker statute was enacted that the charge of adultery could not properly lie in unlawful cohabitation cases the latter charge covers the entire ground to convict an individual of the two offenses is in our view in contravention ven tion of the principle that no I 1 person shall be placed twice in I 1 I 1 pardy for the same transgression furthermore the constitution provides I 1 that cruel and unusual punishments shall not be inflicted and any punitive system by means of which a convict has endured one imposition of penalty can be made to undergo another by simply changing the nome name of the offense to is both cruel and unusual not even in the domineering and tyrannical reign of such men as jeffreys Jeff and marlborough was such a thing thought of much less attempted we very much question if even the laws of dracos by any process of construction could be made to cover such a proceeding it is forbidden by common law as well as by common christianity at the time the law was on its passage the point was raised in opposition to it that it was legislation agal against not a claw class and therefore one sided this led to the introduction of the provision for the punishment of the crime of adultery which has no connection with the plural marris marriage ge relationship it was intended intend ed to apply to ua classes of the people that the statute might not be open to the objection of being entirely directed against one class sexual association to is an element of unlawful cohabitation although it has been declared by the courts here not to be an essential one it is however admitted to be an element of that offense this being the case when a man is convicted of unlawful cohabitation it necessarily covers that ground if in addition to that conviction he is placed in jeopardy upon a charge of adultery there to is as previously stated a plain infringement of a universal principle of law we are glad that this matter is to be at the earliest practicable date tested bested on habeas corpus in the su preme court of the united states when it reaches that tribunal we cannot but feel confident that it will share the same fate as the segregation process of whose genius it partakes but whether this anticipation be correct or not it is eminently proper that a final decision should be arrived at as the subject will then be placed beyond question so far as judicial operation is concerned there is no doubt regarding the view that has been taken on this question by bv the late administration it was wae on the ground of their cases having been covered by the charge of unlawful cohabitation that a number of men who were sent to the sioux palls falls dakota penitentiary for long terms on a conviction of adultery were pardoned by mr cleveland the case selected for a test is I 1 that of a man named recently 1 convicted in the first district court at provo on both charges the proceedings will be looked to with interest |