The Davenport daily gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1869, 1856-07-07


0ssdspsn # NE Sk.sls, sss House Of Re-
resea)sties; 90
y .By SLsct Of Coaersss, approved Nay
20, Yea oAnted , the Steas
love fog purpe1e Of kng inathe
pnstrs bon 4 kailroSds fred Darlington
] the Sssissi riyeF. to afoint on ahe
6ss0u4 river ar thu mouth et the Platte
liver rom thsCity oiDavenportv va Iowa
City and Fort Demoines, TO Council Bluffs;
from Lyons City, northw esternly to a point
OF intersection with the main line OF the
Iowa Central Air Line railroad, near Maquo.
hefas thence on said main line. running as
near as practicable to the forty-second par
allei across the rsaii State, to The .Nissouri
pver; from the city OF Dubuque TO 4 poin,
on the Missouri river, near Sioux City, with
. branch from the mouth of the Set Des
Mofts, 10 the neares, point on said road, to
be completed as Room a. the main road il
completed to that point, every a~lternAts
section OF land assiGnatea By odd number,
tor elk sections Ia wialh, on each side b
said roads.
The act upy1es shat II il shsll appear
when the liz & M roads IRE 1e6nitely
fixed, that ~ u1lke1 0tAses have cold any
sections or pa1Sepf sepsions % grated, q
that the rieak cf - onpkioA hss attached
to the same, - Il shall ~ lawfal for any
agent or age0ts " = appointed " The Gov
ernor OF san Staae, 10 select, subjec, to the
approval OF the Secretary Of the Interior,
from the lands Of the United States nearest
to the tiers of sections above specified, 80
much land in alternate sections or parts OF
sections, as shall be equal 10 such lands -
the United States have sold or otherwise
appropriated or to which the rights Of pre-
emption have attached as aforesaid.
On the 10Th Of May last, all the lands ly-
ing within the probable limits Of the grant,
were Withdrawn from market, aud there 10
now an entire suspension Of business in all
OF the United States Land Ofices in the
State, except in those At Decsrah and Fort
Dodge. The interests OF the State require
that the lands not embraced within the
grant should be opened to purchase and
settlement at as early . day rs practicable.
Under the construction ofthe commissioner
Of the General Land Office, the title Of the
State does not rest in the alternate sections,
until she several lines OF roads have been
surveyed and maps of their location proper
Iy certified and returned to his oxce. He
therefsre urged upon me the neesssty
that the State take immediate measures to
secure the lands granted, BY an early COM
pliance with the provisions of the act OF
with III. instructions Of his
Hence. | have convened you, gentlemen,
in specisi session that you may determine.
LIST. Whether or not the State will &C.
cept the grant made under the act Of the
18th of May last, and ii 90,
ID. Whether the lands granted shall be
to any specific rail road compa-
Mes and If 90, TO what companies they shall
be transferred, and
90. Upon what terms shsil the transfer
Be made.
Nv experience on matters OF this kind has
been 90 limited, that | am not prepared 10
submit to you any plan for the proper dis
posal OF these lands. Your wisdom will
doubtless mature q system, which, while it
promotes the present material interests of
the State by developing its resources and
Advancing its settlement, by the construction
Of lines OF INSTRUMENTATION, will protect
The people against the sometimes oppIes-
siye and m~onopoiizing tendencies Of power
full corporations.
Your session will be limited under the
constitution to a short period, and I shall
therefore cali your attention to only a few
subjects that seem 10 me o importance and
waich will NOT be calculated to excite de-
bate and thereby protrsct your session.
am unable 10 lay before you a state
mens of the 6nsncial condition Of the State.
The fiscal year has not expired, and the ac-
count OF the Auditor and Treasurer have not
been balanced and rendered.
The bonds OF The State issued in lS46, for
SIS, 900, mature on the LIST ofJanuary next,
in New York, and some provision should be
made for their payment. i
The i~ntroducGon Of Railroads. within the
State has rendered necessary an &C, mora
clearly defining the rights. duties ind iiat
bilities Of Railway Companies. The law
should declare that where death is caused
through negligence OF misconduct of the
agents or servants OF such companies, the
sane remedies shall be open in a suit a,
law, as for like injuries to the person, re.
suIting In disability and not in death. Among
other things the speed Of trains passing
through cities and villages and across high
ways should be regulated by law; and the
disasters that have occurred in a neighbor
ing State, have admonished ~ of the me-
cessity for a law prohibiting . company from
carrying passengers over a new road until
it has first been examined and pronounced
safe by a competent and disinteyesQe46 board
OF engineers. 1t is evidently g ] fxhe
duty cf the State TO protect the iiyeoF md
safety Of the citizens from accidents result.
ing from carelessness, misconduct OF cupid.
", asfrom open and pr~emeditated violence
In the month Of August 1855. the work
shops attached 70 the State Penitentiar,
were consumed by fire. The Inspector,
immediately made arrangements for thei
speedy reconstruction, for which they wer,
| compelled 10 contract an Indebtedness
against the institution Of about So 900, 90
Provision should be made for dischargins
| that indebtedness as well as for the com
| pleiicn of an additional number of cells
The Peniteniiay lie now crowded with con
yicts to its utmost capacity.
4 luc SVHEAtuhfoA tObfCtH uPob tkG WV
ernoY OF The State, "the power TO grant re
prieves and pardon, and commute punish
menfs after conviction" for offences agains
The laws. In a large proportion Of case,
the friends Of persons convicted endeayo
TO procure the exercise of this power, ant
a. few if any ofthe Judges preserve minute,
Of the testimony taken on the trial Of Grim
linsl cases, these efforts are, for the mos
parte, based upon erparte statements, mads
| without the sanction Of an oath, and OBJ.
tanned without notice to the prosecuting at.
l~iorney, or other persons representing the
/, Government. IL is frequently alleged tina
there was error in the ,rial; that the judgs
mistook the Law; that there was a mistake
of fact by the jury; that there is newly dis
covered evidence showing the sentence L
be UNJUST; or that the case although within
the letter OF the Law @as net within tn,
spirit Of il.
The interests of society require that thi
great power should be exercised with hr
msnity bu, az the same time with the great
est di discrimination and caution. Justice Il
the OF Ger vino is compelled to inyestigat
| each case presented to him, as well as thu
parties mere immediately interested, re
quires that every fact proved rpon the ,ria