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Show UTAH LEGISLATURE NOW IfUEuSil FOURTEENTH LEGISLATURE FORMALLY FOR-MALLY ORGANIZED AND READY FOR WORK. Thomas E. McKay Chosen as President of the Senate and E. R. Callister Speaker of the House of Representatives. Sail Lake City. The senalors and representatives of the Kouneem h legislature leg-islature convened at noon .Monday, January 10. 11. K. Crocket t. secretary of state, read the certificate of t tie election of senators of state ami Charles lieiner, deputy secretary of state, read the certificate of the election elec-tion of representatives. Chief Justice K. E. Corfman and Justice J. K. Frick administered the oath of office respectively re-spectively to the senators and to the representatives. The senate appointed a committee to inform the house of representatives it was hi session and ready to receive communications. The house advised the senate likewise, and in addition the governor was notified that the body had convened. With these formalities concluded and the assignment of seats to the legislators announced, both houses adjourned ad-journed until 2 o'clock Tuesday. Thomas E. McKay of Weber county was elected president of the senate, with the vote standing eleven for nnd seven against, representing the first vote taken by the 'upper house in the present session of the legislature, and showing a solid political division, there being seven holdover Democratic senators sen-ators and eleven new Republican senators. sen-ators. E. R. Callister of Salt Lake was elected speaker of the house, all the votes but one beinj; cast for him, the one in opposition being cast by C. A. Hammond of San Juan, the only Democrat Demo-crat in the house. Provision was made for the employees em-ployees of both houses. One vacancy on the list, however, that of chaplain of the senate, will not be filled, and it is probable that the house also will do without a chaplain this year. The senators sen-ators in caucus decided that they would take turns in opening the senate sen-ate proceedings with prayer, confident that their Democratic colleagues would fall in line. It was decided to allow any senator, when ' his turn came, to invite some friend to offer the prayer in his stead. The first legislature held in what is now the state of Utah convened on July 2, 1849. It was the first general assembly of the provisional state of Deseret. It convened in Great Salt Lake City, the session being helu in the council house,- the first legislative ball, which stood on the corner of South Temple and Main streets, on the site now occupied by the Deseret News building. Brigham Young presided. pre-sided. The first legislature was brief, and adjournment was taken until December Decem-ber of 1849, and then adjourned sessions ses-sions were held at intervals throughout through-out the winter, during which time the counties of Great Salt Lake, Weber, Utah, Sanpete, Juab and Tooele were created, as also a supreme court, and a charter was grnnte'a the state university. uni-versity. . The general assembly was convened in special session on July 4, 1850, for the purpose of passing an act which would tax the sale of intoxicating liquors at 50 per cent ad valorem, and this was done. Again the assembly was called in special session and on October 5, 1850, passed a bill creating Davis county. The third session convened December Decem-ber 2, 1850, and was held but four days, when a recess was taken until the first Monday in January, 1851. At this session bills were passed granting charters to Mantl, Parownn. Provo and Ogden, and on January 9, 1851, the measure Incorporating Great Salt Lake City was enacted. Special or adjourned sessions were held on February 4, 5, 10 and 24; on March 28 and 29, and April 5, 1851, the last date ending the legislature of the state of Deseret, dissolution being succeeded suc-ceeded by the territorial legislature of Utah. The first legislature of the territory of Utah was convened in Salt Lake September 22. 1S51. Willard Richards was elected president of the council and William W. Phelps speaker of the house. The. first act of the legislature legisla-ture was. to adopt a joint resolution declaring all the laws -of the state of Deseret. such as did not conflict with the organic act. to be of full force and effect in the territory of Utah, the passage of the joint resolution preserving pre-serving the charters granted to the University of Deseret and the several cities in the state. |