The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1857-09-03
ATTORNEY GKsERAL's 0frIcE,
August %, 1851.

marshal OF Utah
ATTORNEY GKsllasL's ofncE,
August rs, 1851.
SIR BY the act Of 3Ist August, 1852, 40 U. s. Laws,
99) the President is authorized to allow payment from
the Judicial fund of extraordinary expenses Incurred w
officers Of the United States though payment OF such ex
penses be not specifically provided for You send me the
accounts and all papers relating thereto, of Joseph L.
Heywood late marshal of Utah, and ask my opinion
whether the expenses for which he claims to be allowed
come within the provisions of the act referred to.
To justify the allowance of expenses like those which
the late marshal of Utah exhibits, it Is necessary be
should show L. that they incurred by ministerial
officer g. that they incurred in executing the laws
of the United States and 3, that they were regularly
taxed by the district or circuit court OF the district IN
which the services charged for rendered II the ac
counts under consideration within these require
mens they ought 90 be allowed and II not, lot What
the factsf
More than twenty thousand dollars of this claim are
for conveying the Judges Of the Territory ia and from the
places Of holding the Supreme and district courts.
numerous guard provided and part OF the account Is
for the pay Of the who composed IT, The hire OF the
horses wagons and other of transportation for the
guard il also charged To this is added the price OF
visions forage and medicine and the expense Of teams
to haul them well carriages for the judges them
selves The total is sweled by great many curious
items, which it would be hard to classify.
These expenses within the law, tar they are
extraordinary expenses, for they extraordinary
both in amount and character But they are not the
expenses of ministerial officer The expenses of judge
on his way TO court his expenses, and he cannot
call them the expenses of ministerial officer merely be-
he allowed the marshal TO hire his carriage and
servants and to pay his bills ON the road The large
sums which these Journeys to have cost maSes
difference since the law does not cover expenses of a
judicial officer however extraordinary they may happen
TO be- II the marshal had furnished to each of the
Judges single horse, and made claim upon the gov
ernncnt for the of them, no would have had case
Just the in principle that which ho has in fact
presented The legal merits of the not any bet
because it is for twenty thousand instead OF hundred
dollars
Another objection to this claim is equally fatal 1.-The
expenses were not incurred by the marshal IN executing
the laws of the United States The act Of Congress
fines the powers Of the President that he can allow no
expenses what incurred in the execution OF u
dcAl process. But here there Judgment decree
order process of any court to be carried into effect
was the marshal in the line Of any duty which the law
commanded him to perform The law does tell the judges
to be at the court but says nothing to the marshal
about bringing them there The mandate Is directed to
the Judges alone When Judge obeys that mandate by
going to court whether foot ON horseback, or IN
carriage surrounded by cayalcade of outrdes 1t
hardly be said that he Is executing the law any more
than Juror when he to his witness when
he obeys the subpoena clerk when he makes UP the
record Certain is, at all events that the judges per-
Torrance of his duty by going into court is not an exec
ton of law by the marshal.
But even if these bills had been legal IN other respects
they have been legally taxed The act of Congress
requires SPECIAL ardtoa by Tie court This taxed Of
taxed at ALI by Judge at his chambers by judge when
he not in the Territory by judge after be resigned
his Office by judge when the court consisted OF three
You cannot consider bill properly taxed under this act
until it is done in and by the proper court duly organized
with quorum of Judges the bench in regular service
and a record made of their decision The exclusive evil
deuce of this will be the certificate of the clerk, atese
by the seal
Some Of these expenses might be allowed il they
properly taxed but the greatest part of them of
character which would exclude them, however they might
be authenticated.
lam, most respectfully &C.,
J, s. BLACK.
Hnn Il T,inupsox