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Show THE JURY BILL VETO. Governor Murray has vetoed the Jury bill. The reasons which he gives for his veto of the bill are not the reasons of a statesman, and they maybe characterized character-ized as excuses rather than reasons. Governor Murray says there are other reasons which might be given in objection objec-tion to the bill. It is to be regretted that he did not give them, for in them there might possibly have been found a better reason than those given. The bill was vetoed that the open venire system, so largely used, now-a-days, might be preserved. That system makes it possible to pack a jury, and that which is possible very often ' . happens. There is no merit in the open venire system itself, and against ' it there can be urged all - the - arguments 'that can be urged against despotism, and the arguments argu-ments in "Its" favor ; ere ' the ' arguments which uphold despotism. Governor Murray speaks of the provisions of the Poland law as though that law were a Territorial statute, and hence worthy only of contempt. His Excellency says that "notwithstanding the . provisions of the Edmunds bill, the Probate Judges continue in the annual selection of jurors in pursuance of . the Poland bill, to seleet the names of none but those who are virtually unqualified in the class of cases herein referred to." The Governor forgets or ignores the fact that the qualifications quali-fications of individual jurors to sit "in the class of cases referred to" will be determined de-termined by the Court when jurors are called in those cases. And again, the Edmunds law specifies the ground of challenge in polygamy and unlawful cohabitation co-habitation cases and does not undertake to have the challenge applied until the juror is called "in the class of cases referred to." The result of the selection of jurors according to the provisions of the Ed munds laws is that "the courts are seriously seri-ously delayed in the administration of the laws, individuals unnecessarily inconvenienced, incon-venienced, and the people put to useless and great expense." This solicitude for the convenience of individuals is touching touch-ing in the extreme. -. It is so touching that it reminds one of John Bullaker's famous definition of the crockodile which wept for pity as it bit off the head of its victim. If the inconvenience of individuals individu-als is sufficient reason for vetoing a jury bill, should not the inconvenience it very often is to men to perform jury duty be sufficient reason for excusing them from jury duty? Surely the founders of the Government could never have dreamed of what great men would be born in the nineteenth century that liberty should be safer in their hands than when guarded by the law. It is said there is a divinity that doth hedge a king about, but the people of America have yet to learn that there is a divinity that doth hedge a Federal Fed-eral official about. In the class of cases ! referred to by'Governor Murray,none but Mormons are liable to prosecution. The Mormons are not a popular people, anJ their unpopularity is very apt to cause people to think they have no rights, and that any and all wrongs inflicted upon them are right and proper. The Mormons Mor-mons being unpopular, they need to be protected on all sides by the law, lest wrong may be committed. Whatever may be the sins of the Mormons, and they are not exempt from them by any means, their sins do not and cannot justify jus-tify sinning against them. It cannot be denied that the Mormon press do most shamefully abuse and misrepresent the Federal officials in Utah, and for this very reason the Federal officials need to be j more than ordinarily on their guard lest they permit an unjust attack upon them to lead them to become zealous in enforcing the law, their zeal being roused by the desire de-sire of revenge. This is the dangerin Utah, and it is necessary to guard against it at all times. An open venire in the hands of an officer whose character - is being continually traduced and whose motives are ever being impugned is a very dangerous dan-gerous thing. When men's passions are so heated as they always are in Utah over the local question it is the time of all others that the eternal principles of law and freedom should find expression in laws for the protection of the rights, not of one class, but of all classes. The Governor's veto of the Jury bill throws down one of these safeguards in a time of extreme peril. |
