The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1859-01-13


/ respessfsIly call your attention to
the salaries paid your Circnit Judges.
The salary is fixed BY the Constitution
atFffteen hundredrdo dollars each. per am
pumg The travelling expenses Of these
Judges in visiting their respective cir
cults, are very great, varying from
three to FIVE hundred dollars per wear
which, when deducted from their sala.
ries, leaves sum barely sufficient for
the support of theirrespective families.
This compensation is entirely made
9uate to the services rendered. There
Is no State in the Union that can boast
Of ADLER or better men than are the
Judges of Michigan. Their entire time
is occupied in the performance of their
most arduous duties, and certainly they
ought to receive such compensation for
tkeir services as viii at least enable
them to live respectfully. You connot
increase their salary. That is fixed by
the Constitution. But it is, in my opin-
ion, entirely ce~apetent for Won to make
provision for the payment of their trav-
cling expences while in the performance
of their official duties, and / believe
an act of that character would meet
with the approval of very large por-
tisn of our citizens. 1 therefore re-
commend that you pass, o law making
provision for the payment of the ordin-
airy travelling expenses of our Circuit
Judges. while in the performance Of
their official dut' es. gtlid Is
Much complaint is being made. at
the present compensation received BY
the several Judges of Probate in the
State. 1t is claimed that the foes for
official duties performed by them are
too high, amounting, in several Of the
older counties, to an aggregate sum much
beyond the salary received by the sew
eral Judges of the Supreme Court.
These fees have to be paid, generally,
by the widow and orphan, in the settle
nient of estates, and at time when
they are illy-prepared to make the pay
ment. Iwould recommend that you
take into consideration the propriety of
making this Office salaried one, the
amount thereof to be fixed by the
Board of Supervisors of the respective
counties, and to become a county
charge. By so doing, you would make
the expenses of that office fall equally
upon all, and the amount being paid
annually would scarcely be felt. We
are all equally interested in having this
compensation properly fixed and paid
annually, for the estates of all, SC oner
or later, must be administered upon,
and under such system small estates
would not be entirely swallowed up in
the expense of administration. Should
you see fit to pass such law, I would
recommend that it go into operation
from and after the first day of January
1861. The present Judges of Probate
hold their Offices until that period, and
you ought not to pass law, the effect
of which may be to lessen the compen-
sation that by law they were entitled
to receive at the time of their cleo
ton.
Our whole military system needs re-
vising. 1t is against the policy of our
government to tolerate a large standing
army. In times OF war we must RELY
npon the patriotism of the citizen sol
diary" This reliance has thus far
been found sufficient in every emergen-
cy. Our State is bounded by foreign
power for an extent of over five hun
dred miles, and IN case of war with
Great Britain, this whole frontier would
be exposed to the inroads of fereign
foe. / trust the time is fardistant when
Great Britain and these United States
will be engaged in hostile strife; but
prudence requires that we should, at
least, have our military system so per-
fected that wccould readily prepare our
selves to repel invasion. The most ef.
fectual way of doing this, in my opin-
ion, is to extend proper encouragement
to the formation of Independent Com
panies," and for this purpose / recon-
anend that you take such action as will
most tend to their encouragement.
The Legislature, at its special session
in January last, passed law authori-
zing the Board of State Auditors to
procure plans, drawings and estimates,
for State Capitol" to be submitted
10 you at your present ses sion. In pur-
suance Of this Legislative enactment, I
am advised that the board Of State Au-
ditors are prepared to report to you
their doings under the act above re-
ftrred to. Your State Capitol was
built for temporary purpose, and at
time when it was impracticably. to
build any other. We had ut that time
population Of three hundred and four
thousand three hundred and ten, with
taxable valuation Of property of only
twenty-seven millions six hundred and
two thousand and forty dollars. We
have now population of not far from
eight hundred thousand, with taxable
valuation of property Of one hundred
and thirty-seven millions six hundred
and sixty-three thousand dollars.
What was sufficient for the wants and
necessities of the State at that time, no
longer answers the purpose. The diff.
ferent Officers of your State govern
nent no longer have sufficient room in
which to perform their duties. The
archives of the State are unsafe-the
very building in which they are kept
is in danger of falling. You have NO
proper and suitable place at Lansing
for the holding of the Supreme Court.
II is believed that the increase of bust