The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-03-04


are informed that some men were enlisted
who received no local bounty.
Hasty Legislation and the Policy OF
Doing Nothing In Sixty Days.
The wise man has said that though one
bray a fool in a mortar with wheat he
will be % fool still. We can state no
stronger illustration of the truth of this
than the conduct of the lower branch of
the Legislative Assembly Of Minnesota. It
is in a spirit of charity we attribute to
folly what might be with equal propriety
and facility charged to culpable ignorance
and criminal indifference and neglect. We
single out the House too, not for the pur-
pose of affording an exculpation to the
Senate, but rather to more effectually sig
nalize the deserved, superlative reproba-
ton of the lower branch Of our Legislature.
We in common with every conservative
voice in our State, that has made utter
ance on this subject, have pointed to that
body in emphatic and repeated appeals,
the great necessity and popular demand
for reform in Minnesota Legislation, and
that the great number of legislative en-
actments should be considered no longer
as compensation for the unwise haste in
which they are passed, and the trifling and
often unjust character of the laws them
selves. They have been told again and
again that it was far better to have bad
stable laws than the whiting and moon
slant provisions which were effected by
the representatives of this minority of
public opinion. We mean by this that
the whole session of State legislature has
been devoted to special, partial and i'm
provident legislation, with very few ex-
cept;ons which shine like angels visits
few and far between.
This is the more especially distressing
since the public wants were SO very great
and the ability and disposition to supply
them so very small. To speak plainly,
we mean the want of inherent honesty in
that body to do right. .....
We could now point out to you (the
Hen. Mr.. So and Soy so many instances of
your short comings that if they were made
public your constituents would condemn
and spurn you! Why did you so often
try to change general public laws without
possessing any knowledge of that which
you were so free and ignorant to mutilate
Why have you devoted two-thirds of your
session to the passage of special bills rela-
tive to changing self-shame afflicted and
bastardly names, local and trihing special
grants, unnecessary and unequal and un-
constitutional enactments? But this is
not all you have done. The record of
your transactions shows that you have
done all these unstatesmanlike iniquities
in such hasty, reckless, and we say dis
honest manner that you belle the common
sense of your constituents, unless you ad-
NIT you have for three dollars per day in
State scrip foresworn your conscience to
do those things we ought not to do and to
leave undone those things we ought to do.
Why have you not rather looked to the
salvation of the country than to the
temporary interests or local advantages
Why, if you felt yourselves called upon to
legislate upon these local or special triAes,
have you not given them at least the test
of ordinary forms and ceremonies OF leg
islative enactments? Unhappily, if the
country ever does see the over three hun
dred acts which you will cause the de-
pleted treasury of our State to publish,
and which will stard alike as the lnonu-
ment of your own and our States dis
grace, your constituents will be free and
willing to emba.m most of your precious
names in the denunciatory epitaph eye
knew your duty, but ye did it not
We shall publish full list of the acts
passed by this delectable body, with such
seasonable and just comments as the sub
ject affords.
Additional Pawn asterS.