The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1857-05-09
Report Of Select Committee appointed
to report ON the legality Of the present
Session of tho Legfslature.

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to report ON the legality Of the present
Session of tho Legislature.
The Select Committee appointed to ex-
anime the several laws relating to our Leg
islative powers and organization, and report
to this House their opinion of the legality of
the present session of the Legislative AS
sembly, respectfully report as follows:
The first question which presents itself is,
does the Organic Act allow an extra session
of the Legislature I? The expression, tex
ira session" is not to be found in that act
nor is there any express provision upon the
subject. If there be any authority for hold
ing the present session, it must rest upon
fair inference and implication, and upon the
nature and necessities of the case.
Sec. 4, of the Organic Act provides that
certain things not here material "shall be
prescribed by law as well as the day of the
commencement of the regular sessions of the
Legislative Assembly,"
1t is a well settled rule of legal construc-
ton, that writing, whether it be statute
or deed, shall be so interpreted, if possible,
as to give effect to every word, because it is
to be presumed that Legislature in enact
ing law, as we'll as an individual in execu-
ting written instrument, mean what they
say, and do not employ word, phrase or
sentence without use, object and meaning.
If an annual session only can legally be held,
then the expression Irregular sessions OF the
Legislative Assembly," is identical in mean
ing with the expression sessions of the
Legislative Assembly," emitting the word
Irregular" But the rule of construction re-
quires us to give effect to the word "regu-
lar" What effect can be given to it unless
we regard it as descriptive Of particular
kind of session, in distinction from some of
the recognized kind, and what can that other
kind be unless it be an extra or irregular ses-
sion? This view is consistent with the fact
that the power of the Legislature is con-
fined to fixing "the day of the commence
ment of the regular sessions of the Legisla-
tive Assembly," for an extra session may al
ways be presumed to be held in an emergen-
cy which cannot be met at any regular ses-
sion, an unforeseen emergency, for which, in
asmuch as it is unforeseen, no definite pro-
vision can be made, at least so far as fixing
the time when it shall be acted upon is con-
cerned. There is nowhere in the Organic
Act any prohibition in terms expressed or
implied, of extra sessions.
The present exigencies of the Territory
make out strong case in favor of the i'm
perative necessity of the right to hold extra
sessions of the Legislature. Our land Offices
are closed against pre-emptors. An act OF
Congress has shut up the courts of justice,
and our frontier settlements have already
been the scene of Indian Outrages. An ex-
ira session alone can give US complete relief.
Without it,. We are powerless, political Or
ganization without the ability to provide for
the administration of the laws, the defense
of our citizens or the removal of obstacles
which threaten serious injury to the settle
ment, improvement and progress of our Ter
ritOry. We are government in name, with
out the power for which governments are fn-
sttuted among men. The proprety Of the
right to hold extra sessions of legislatures
has been too long and too often established
as principle, by precedent and universal
usage to admit of question, and it is con-
ceived that every reason which can be urged
in behalf of the propriety and necessity oil
this right under the Government of the
United States or of the several States, must
apply with equal force to the case of a Ter
ritory. Article 9th and 10th of the amend
ments to the Constitution of the United
States, read as follows: "The enumeration
in the Constitution of certain rights shall
not be construed to deny or disparage others
retained by the people. The powers not
delegated to the United States by the Con-
stitution, nor prohibited by it to the States,
are reserved to the States respectively, or to
the people," General provisions like those
contained in these articles must apply either
directly or by analogy, to Territories as we'll
as States, for the word "Territory" occurs
but once in the Constitution, and unless gen.
eral provisions are applicable in one of these
ways to Territories, the people of the Terri
tories are without any rights recognized by
the General Government. Whether the au-
thority to organize Territorial Governments
is to be found within the Constitution in the
power ''to make all needful rules and regula-
tons respecting the Territory" or wahout
the Constitution, in the natural necessity of
the case, the right in both instances rests
upon what is needful or necessary, and in
the absence ofprohibition express or implied,
we are.not to presume that it was the inten-
ton of Congress by silence, to deprive us of
necessarypowers under the pretext of making
neeeful rules, or under cover of the natural
necessity Of the case. In conformity with
these views neither the Constitution nor
Congress in the Organic Act, have prohibited
us from holding extra sessions of the Legis-
lature, and we have right to infer that this
is one of the powers reserved to the people
of the Territory by the letter or spirit, or
both letter and spirit of the 9th and 10th
articles already cited. But looking outside of
the Organic Act and the Constitution, we
find two acts of Congress which have been
said to render the present session Illegal
The first of these acts is to be found in vol.
5, United States Statutes at Large, pages
AS, 4SO, and is entitled an act making ap-
preparations for the civil and diplomatic ex-
penses of Government for the year 1912,
and among various appropriations, contains
this proviso, "And provided further, that the
Legislative Assembly of no Territory shall
hereafter in any instance or under any pre-
text whatever, exceed the amount appropri-
ated by Congress for its annual expenses"
The second act is found in the same volume,
pages $40 and 54l, and is entitled San Act
to provide for the settlement of certain &C.
counts for the support of Government in the
Territory Of Wisconsin and for other pur-
poses," and provides that ''no payment shall
be made or allowed unless the Secretary Of
the Treasury shall have estimated therefor
and the object been approved by Congress.
No session of the Legislature of Territory
shall be held until the appropriation for its
expenses shall have been made These
acts were both passed in 1912, ard the Or
ganic Act passed in lS49. Section IL, pro.
vides that ''the laws of the United States are
hereby ext.nded over, and declared to be in
force in said Territory, so far as the same or
any provision thereof may be applicable. >
1t is under this provision alone that the Or
ganic Act is qualified, ifit be qualified at all:
by the acts of 1912. Both Of the acts of
1912 were appropriation bills; bills in which
the amount ofmoney to be dsbursed by the
General Government for specific purposes
was fixed. Both acts show upon their faces
that expenses had been incurred by the Ter
ritories, which the Government was reluc-
tant to pay; but for the payment Of which
provision is made, with protestation, how
ever, against any such payments in the fll-
ture. AS they were appropriation bills, we
L L &C. L. Of basr