The Shasta courier. [volume] (Shasta, Calif.) 1852-1872, 1853-05-14
Of OMciaI and Legal Notices


As the act recently passed by the California
Legislature, entitled IAN Act to provide for the
Better publication of Official and Legal Notices, y
has called forth more bitter animadversion from
a respectable portion of the press than any law
of the present session, we publish it in full on
our first page.
we have RETAINED heretofore from expressing
an opinion III regard to this law, for the very
good reason that we had not a copy of it up
so the time of going TO press last week. True,
we enjoyed the privilege of reading sundry ar
tcles denouncing the law in he most unmeasur.
ed terms of bitterness. Bat the writers OF
those articles have during the entire winter un-
ceasingly abused everything and everybody con-
nected with the Legislature and Government OF
California, we did not of course attach any very
great weight to their expressions of censuse,
While we cannot give the lazy full approx
nj, we are free to confess that in some respects
it cannot fail to work to the advantage of the
people at large. 1t will undoubtedly fully ac-
complish the object at which it osteasibly aims,
viz better publication of official and legal
notices. throughout the State than we have had
heretofore. This of itself would justly outweigh
many Objectionable features. Every one is
aware OF the fact that heretofore valuable prop
erty has frequently been sacrificed through fail
ure of the proper officer to make suitable pub
lication of the same. Under the present law no
such thing is likely to happen.
1t also provides that all officia. and legal mott
cfs shall be published at cost of about fifty per
cent. less than heretofore-a provision which,
we fear. will prevent the unhappy papers below
from exciting that sympathy in the breasts of
the people which at present they seem much
to desire, as well as save the favored press from
that fiery indignation of the public which, it is
said, will speedily burst forth.
Nevertheless the law should never have been
enacted inasmuch it depriyes certain bust
ness men of rights vested in them by immemo-
rial usage. 1t is essentially anti-democratic and
justly subjects the Legislature to the charge of
legislating for few persons in opposition to the
interests of others 1t tends 20 monopolize i'll
the hands of a portion of the press, certain de-
scription of business which was heretofore pos
sessed by all in common. We are uncompro-
misingy opposed to almost all manner Of mo-
nopolies. They are violative of all our ideas Of
democracy and equality. We opposed to
protecting, by legislative enactment. men en-
gagged either in printing newspapers printing
ealicoes. We would have free trade and equal
privileges, as near as may be, in all branches of
business.
Besides, the protested and great object of the
law would have been fully accomplished, if the
name of no newspaper had been mentioned in
the act. 1t ought to have simply provided that
all official and legal notices in the counties COM
posing certain districts should be published in
some paper in the district. This would
not have interfered with the business of any
newspaper concern, as the present law does.
The act is of but little benefit to us-giving us
no more than we had before-fOrcing us to do
the legal publishing for half our usual rates-and
then demanding for this munifcence that we
furnish the various County Clerks of the State
with six hundred dollars worth of our papers