The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-03-26

to drive out smoke out the Acting Board OF AL
dermen. And yet M. Corbin is no further advanced
than fhe had gone to the courts o, The act of
the Leg 'ure does not touch the validity of the
votes he question is, whether that act gives the
electio 20 Pillsbury and his Aldermen, whether the
election was valid invalid. and whether not
they received the largest number OF legal votes.
] hts would be inconsistent with and repugnapt to
the city charter and violation of the constitution of
the State and the United States
1he bill violates the charter of the city; 1t is vo
latton, not an amendment. modification repeal.
The citizens have the right to elect Mayor and AL
dermen. and yet the act gives offices to certain
specified persons. The charter is not repealed. 1t
is recognised by the ordinances of the convention
and by the municipal elections act and the act to
quiet rights under military orders requires them to
hold office until their successors are duly elected
and qualified. Admit that the charter may be modi-
fed or repealed and it cannot be done without the
thirty days tice required by the charter. The
first election bill, which vetoed, gave this no.
tce, but the others do not. The Acting Mayor and
Aldermen are actually in possession, and the ques
ton whether the claimants were duly elected and
qualified can only be determined by the
courts. The act is violation of common
right The preamble upon which it is based is OF
In accordance with the facts. It is garbling
twisting Of the truth. illsbury and his Aldermen
of votes, but this never be made to mean '.duly
elected" 1t is also no law, because it deprives the
a;o officers of their rights under charter which
is not repealed, and because imposes punishment
or penalty Under the form of action it attempts to
punish them and deprive them Of their property
without the judgment ofther peers the law the
land which is not the declaration ofthe constitution
but OF Magma Charta It s also inconsistent WITH and
and repugnant to ITSELF in declaring valid what it
admits to be invalid These are violations of comm on
rig hts, and in themselves make the act void and of
no eject
The validating ac' moreover, is special or class
Legislation. Its repeal OF military orders and the
penalty for non.vacating Office demand are not
universal in their application. but confined the
Acting Mayor and Aldermen. 1t subjects them to
restrictions not imposed upon any other persons it
enacts special penalties, it gives Mr.. Pillsbury
cause of action against Mr. Clark, it is retroactive
and prospective in its operation, it despes the Act
ng Mayor and Aldermen Of their Offices prop
perty-and their franchises without the judgment of
their peers and for all these reasons is unconsti
tutional and void. The question of the legality of
the election is clearly judicial and the case is made
up and pending in the Supreme Court, for authori-
ties in the State show that q cannot be discon-
tinued except by an order Of court. The case is
still pending and the city cannot be cut off from it's
right to judicial decision by act of the Legisa-
ture Noact declaring that to be legal which is be-
fore the court as being illegal can be law at all
law cannot be made to deny to certain persons the
beneftof the general law in particular cases. The
Legislature has no light to determine the facts af-
fecting the rights of individuals, and when they 20
beyond their province their acts are void H
1t being O'Clock, Judge Carpenter adjourned the
further hearing of the case to Monday next at 10 A.
NJ. when Mr.. Miles will close his cogent and able
argument.