The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1871-11-30


v medlately qualified, and enter upon the du
ties required by law
l had considered this law constitutional
Hrs6 because the Constitution evidently in
tehdeu an early termination 70 that abnoF
NAL condition Of affairs which had bestowe
upon the Executive the temporary power O
| appointing those officers, who, under tn
regular and permanent operations of tin
constitution, are to be elected by the pep
, PIE second because knew of no proYisioi
IA the constitution to which this view o
the subject Is repugnant; and thirdly, be
cause considered that such law was il
exact harmony with section of article x
OF the Constitution. which is as follows:
The term OF office OF all county, town
snip ana precinct officers shall expire within
thirty days after this Constitution shall hav,
been ratified, and the Governor shall, By
and with the advice and consent of the
; senate, thereafter appoint such officers
whose term Of office shall continue until III,
Legtstdture shall prouide by lac t0r an
election Of such officers; provided the pres
emf incumbents OF all county, township
district and beat officers shall hold theiI
respective offices until their successors are
legally appointed or elected aud duly quail
fed"
The words italcised in this section are
In my opinion, the only words in tie Con-
stltution having any application to the
tenure ofthoSe elective officers, the prelim-
ln7ry appointment of whom is required to
be made by the Executive. except that cer=
tain officers named i'm articlev., and no 9TH
ers. are required by section % of that arti-
Gle to Fold It'll their Successors shall be duly
qualified
These are briefly the grounds on which
my opinion WAS based and,if was correct
then the act of the Legislature is in strict
harmony with the Constitution. But finding
my opinion overruled by your ExcelIencv's
private counsel, for whose opinion enter
tain The highest respect, have carefully ex-
amlned their opinion and then most patient
| iy reconsidered the entire subject. with de-
sire, II possible. to surrender my view to
their superior Judgment. l am, however
unable to concur with them; but on the
contrary, am more than ever convinced of
/ the correctness OF my first opinion.
The ground on which your learned coun-
sci insist upon the unconstitutionality OF the
| act OF the Legislature providing that the
the officers elect may "irnmediate.
/ ly qualify" and that their sofficiaI
| terms shall commence with the date
of such qualification" is that it is provid-
ell in the Constitution that elections shall
be 'heid on the first Tuesday AFTER the first
Monday in November, biennially :" and
that ''the political year of the State shalr
commence on the first Monday i'm January
of each year" But they failed to note that
by the 9TH section of article iv., the date of
the election may be '-alteTcd by law :" and
that, 10y the 9th section of the same article
'lhe political year may be ''altered bv law"
If they Will notice these important limita-
ton, and tor the day Of beginning 1.-THE po-
litical year" | think they will admit
that both these days are subject to the con-
troll OF the Legislature and that consequent
ly. even admitting that the phrase '-politi-
cal year Is 10 have no other Specification
than that claimed for it by the learned coun-
sci, the commencement Of official terms is
Aso, subject to legislative control.
But even if this view of the subject be
incorrect, it is very clear that the ..Dolitieal
hath 1n III loxx
and no matter when it shall commence was
not intended 70 measure, and does not and
cannot by any construction be made to
measure, the official terms of any of the po-
liticai or other officers of the government.
Because the Legislature and the Executive
are expressly and imperatiyely required,
and the Judiciary clearly authorized, by
other provisions of the Constitution, to
commence their terms respectively on other
and different days.
The political year is to begin on the first
Monday in January Kill altered by law, and
the Legislature elect is required by section
6, article iv, to meet annually on the first
Tuesday after the first Monday in January.
And when Governor has been elected, the
Speaker OF the House of Representatives,
during the first week OF the session after
their meeting, is to open and publish the
returns in presence of both Houses. and in
ease Of Il tie, the Legislature is to choose II
Governor. Thus the Governor cannot COM
year, because it cannot be officially known
who the Governor is till after the Legisla-
ture shall have met and elected Il Speaker,
who is then TO publish the result, on any
day during the first week of the session.
The judiciary are to hold their offices from
the dates of their respective appointment
the supreme judges for nine, the circuit
iltdg, for six. and the chancellors for four
years These judges have already been
comm issiOned by your EXcellencY. for their !
full terms rs prescribed by the Constitution,
some Of them commencing on almost every
day of every month in the spring and sum
ner Of 1870 Indeed, your Excelleney, !
among nearly 5000 appointments, has wholly |
ignored f'Uhe political year in them all. |
How, then, / ask, is it possible that the |
terms Of any of these officers shall be meas !
ured by the political year? The selection |
and appointment, by and with the advice |
and consent of the Senate, OF the entire |
judiciary, and the subsequent ceremony of
determining by lot who shall hold the long |
er and shorter terms, as performed by your
Excellency in the presence of the Senate in |
the spring of 1870, are among the most Dig
niiied and important political functions of
the government. And why was it that |
these functions were performed, and COM
missions issued for each respective full term
commencing as do all your appointments
with the date Of the commissions, and with no |
regard for the political year"
The terms of all the offices mentioned in |
the Constitution, legislative, executive and
judicial. are alike measured by the word
years" The Constitution nowhere directs
in express words, the date of the commence |
ment or expiration of any. 1t does by eX-
press terms exclude the Legislature and |
Governor from commencing their terms |
with the day named for the beginning of
the political year." The Governor and |
every Judge and chancellor in the State have |
by issuing and accepting commissions fix |
in. the commencement of judicial terms at
other dates, conceded that these terms do
not run with the political year. 1t Is prob
able that the Judiciary will recede from the |
position to which they and the Executive, |
as well as the Legislature. are all alike fully |
committed. And yet we are asked by the |
learned counsel to adopt remote Inference, |
which, even if adopted, will apply TO only |
= few of the minor offices of the districts |
and counties and stultify the Executive, the |
Legislature and the Judiciary for having |
rejected this inference as to any of the rest |
Thus it is perceived that the position as |
sumed by the learned counsel would not
only reader the act of the Legislature un-
constitutional, but the same fate would
await all your Executive appointments, |
from the highest TO the lowest, and the sew
eral provisions OF the Constitution itself
would be brought into immediate AM direct
conflict.
The retirement of one officer and the in |
duction of his successor is not very I'M !
Dortant event in the history of well or |
dered republic. These are the mere incidents
and not the objects OF the system. Anu
thev do not occur every year, as the Con-
stitution says the commencement OF the
political year shall. But there are political
functions of vast importance i'm every State
which. like the functions of nature, are re-
peated every year. Seed-time and growth,
harvest and decay do not return with more
punctual regularity than do the reports OF
departments, the estimates for ex penses, an
mail appropriations, the assessment aud
collection of taxes. the maturity OF con-
tracts and interest, the settlement of &C
counts, the operations of the various courts
and the public schools and universities etc
T'I,a.e are among the most important polit-