The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1866-01-24

Provisional Governor, shall cease at the close
of the first session of the next General As
sembly. or at such other time as that Assem-
bly shall direct successors in such appoint
ments or offices to be chosen or to be qualit-
ed, subject, however, to the provisions of the
Revised Code, chapter seventy-seyen, section
three: Prurided, howecer, that in all cases
of appointments made by him of directors
in any corporation, they shall continue until
the regular election of its officers. !"
Believing it absolutely necessary that the
| General Assembly should be convened at an
earlier day than that to which it had adj
iourned, l summoned the Executive Coun-
| Gil to meet here on the third day OF this
| month"; when quorum attended, and with
their advice / issued my proclamation, in
conformity with which you are now assem-
bled.
| 1t may be that proper construction OF
| the Ordinance referred to, continued in of
fee the Sheriffs and Clerks of the Courts, until
the qualification of their successors, but it IS
! clear that the powers of the Provisional JUS
tices of the Peace and of the municipal OH
GERS of corporate towns ceased with the
Provisional Government.
| JUSTICES OF THE PEACE.
/ hear that in some counties there are JUS
| tees of the Peace, who were commissioned
and qualified before the goth May 1861, who
| have not resigned, or taken the oath to sup
port the Constitution of the Confederate
| States; and I presume it will be held that
| the offices of such Justices were not vacated
| by the Ordinance ratified 10Th October last,
entitled can Ordinance declaring vacant all
the officers of the State in existence on the
Goth day of April 1885,"
| The appointment of Justices of the Peace
demands your earliest attention. 1t is very
important office, and great care should be
taken that it be conferred only on intelligent
and virtuous men. Our Constitution has
| entrusted this duty to the General Assembly,
under the idea that the merits of the APP
pointee would be duly weighed. A practice,
! however, has long prevailed by which the Sc
lection of the Justices of each county, Is in
effect made by the representatives OF such
county, The nominations made by them are
usually confirmed without enquiry as to the
fitness of the appointees, or the number need
ed in such county. Hence many have been
appointed to effect local or party objects,
whereby many ignorant and bad men have
| been made Justices of the Peace, and the
i tenure of the office being during good be-
havior, the mischief of a bad appointment is
not easily remedied In most of the counties
there were greatly too many of them. From
! these causes the office has lost much of the
dignity which ought to belong to it. An
opportunity is now offered to profit by the
errors of the past The evil, both as to the
number and quality of these officers, is so
universally felt, that the Convention has I'M
der consideration and will probably adopt at
its next session, an amendment limiting the
numbers to be appointed in each county :;
possibly altering the mode of appointment.
| ], therefore. respectfully recommend that only
very small number be appointed at the
present session. These should be properly
distributed over the county.
If it be deemed doubtful whether the pro-
visional Sherifs and Clerks of the Courts re-
tain their authority, untilthe qualification of
their successors, | recommend that they be
continued in office by an act to be passed by
you, to enable them to qualify the Justices
of the Peace to be appointed by you, as well
as all other duties pertaining to their offices.
In some of the counties it will be necessa-
~ that special terms of the County Court
be held to qualify the newly elected Clerks
uib SiSiiho, w Pio'iNeS Juioio Aci ehS AAS-A
Courts, and to transact any other county
business which they may think requires i'm
mediate action.
further recommend that so soon as you
shall have appointed Justices of the Peace,
and passed such acts as you may deem nee
essary to remedy the irregularities to which
have referred, that the Governor be forth
with required to issue commissions to the
Justices appointed, and an order to the Sher-
iff of each county, commanding him to mott
fly each of said Justices of his appointment,
and requesting them to assemble at their re-
spective Court Houses at an early day to be
designated by the Sheriff, in order to be
qualified; on which day, they may, if they
choose, hold the special term of the County
Court. A copy OF such act or-acts, as you
may designate, should be printed and sent to
each of said Justices, by the Sheriff at the
time of notifying them of their appoint
ment, and the Governor should be empower
ed to employ such agency for the expeditions
transmission of said commissions and order
to the Sheriffs and copies of said acts as he
may deem best, with power to draw on the
public treasurer to pay the expenses.
CHARTER ELECTIONS.
As elections have probably been held ir
many of the Incorporated towns. not in con
formity with their charters, and many act:
may have been done since the 2Sth Deem
Der last, or may be done by the late Off
GERS and agents of the Provisional Govern
ment, before their successors shall be quail
fed, | recommend that SUCH elections b,
declared valid and such acts declared as law
full as they would have been, if done befor
the discontinuance of the Provisional Gov
eminent.
wRITs OF ELECTION.
Having been notified by the Sherit
of Sampson that Thomas l., Faison. Sen
ator Of this General Assembly from sal.
county, and member of the State Conven
ton from said county, departed this life sine
your adjournment, l have issued writs @
election to said county, appointing the 27t
day Of this month, for the holding of al
election to fill such vacancies The 16t
section, of chapter 80, Revised Code require
the Governor to issue writ of election t
ill vacancy occurring before the meeting {
the General Assembly. have had doubt a
to my power to issue such writ to fill a va
cancy occurring betneen the sessions of tb
same General Assembly, but conceive tn
intent OF the statute was that the Governo
should exercise this power when the Geners
Assembly, not being in session, could nc
order the filling of the vacancy 1 constru
before to have reference to the meetin
of the Assembly at its next session.
have also sent a writ of election to til
Sheriff of Beaufort, to hold an election q
the Both instant, to fill the vacancy occasion
ed in the 18th Senatorial district, by tt
resignation Of Edward j. Warren, filed
nv office me on the 18th instant