The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1875-01-19

more pressing wants of the Hospital for
tho Insane of the University, may make
il necessary to postpone, until the next
fiscal year, all appropriations for con-
struction purposes for other institutions
have no doubt you will cheerfully make
the necessary provisions for current eI-
penses, and also for construction purpo-
ses, if at all practicable. The total ex-
penditures of this institution last year
were $24.9295l.
THE UNIVERSITY.
The very full report of the Regents
of the University-will spare me the
necessity of speaking at length of its
condition 1t is sufficient to say that it is
steadily advancing in usefulness. and i'm
proving in its literary and scientific char
acter. commend it to your fostering
care, but in saying this / do not wish to
be understood as endorsing the recon-
mendation of the President to establish
two additional Chairs-one Of Law, the
other of Anatomy. The appropriations
desired amount to Sal ,46l.06. This in
cludes $40, 220.l5 needed for the compile
ton Of the new hall
PENITENTIARY.
In some of the States the penitentiaries
are a source of revenue but with us the
cost of maintaining the guarding the con-
victs has been an important item in APP
preparation bills. Recently, however,
the Board of Directors have inaugurated
measures to make the labor produce some
valuable returns, and although, as yet,
the results are not very large, they never
theless deserve special commentator for
what they have accomplished. They hope
in Il short time to make the Penitentiary
self-sustainiEg. Some of the convicts
have been employed by the officers in
manufacturing, while others have been
hired to contractor. But the Board say
that at has been successfully demonstrate
ed ut the prisons of several OF the older
States, that the system of letting the
labor of the convicts to manufacturing
contractors, is the surest and most relia-
BILE way of rendering this labor source
of revenue to the State" / fully concur
with the Board in this opinion. The
Board ask for an appropriation of $751;
GlS.S5 for the support OF conyicts, pay of
guards, and salary of officers for the cur
rent fiscal year; and $50, 800 for the same
purposes for the next year. They also
desire an appropriation Of $500 for the
construction of the north cell building,
work shops and water works. While it
is desirable that this request be granted,
yet for reasons before stated, | fear it
cannot be done this year, yet the revenue
for the next fiscal year may permit it.
The reports of the Board covering the
last two years will be laid before you.
LAWS REQUIRING AMENDMENTS.
shall not attempt to refer to all the
laws that seem to need amendment, but
shall speak only of the more prominent.
| come to the election law first, which is
OF primary Importance:
The present law authorizes the county
court to appoint the commissioners of
election. This would seem to be the pro-
per plan, were it not for the provision of
the constitution declaring that 'the Legis-
laturc shall not confer upon any court or
Judge the power Of appointment to office,
further than the same is herelnbetore
provided for" The difficulty can, per-
haps, be best met by bestowing this
power upon the president OF the county
court, and in Ohio county upon the
Board of Commissioners. The president
of the county court is not judge, nor Is
he invested with judicial power, except
when sitting rs one OF the county court.
This law further provides that the COM
missiCners of election, at the court house,
shall ascertain the result OF the elections,
but they are not required to keep any
record of their proceedings. Therefore,
if the certificates issued should be lost or
destroyed, there would be no evidence of
the election of officers, and no possible
means for supplying this evidence. In
any event, however, there ought to be
permanent record showing the result of
each election in county. This would
constitute evidence of the election Of
county and district officers, and would
afford the means of issuing new certiti-
Gates in case any were lost IN the course
of trans mission to the seat otgovernment'
In addition to this, these commissioners,
or the clerk of the county court, ought
to be required to certify a list of all coun-
ty officers to the Secretary of State. The
official character of these officers must
sometimes be certified by the Governor,
or Secretary of State, for use in other
states or foreign countries, hence the
necessity OF having an autentic list on file
IN the office of the Secretary of State
Again the thirty-sixth section OF the
election law requires "the commissioners
authorized by the twenty-seventh section
of this act, to sign and issue certificates
of election. This was evidently clerI-
cal error, the twenty-ninth was without
doubt intended, but it is an error which
NAV be fruitful in mischief, for no COM
missioners are referred to in the twenty
seventh section.
The statute relating to the incorpora-
ton Of banks, needs amendment in two
points. Every bank chartered by the
State, ought to be required to make and
publish in some convenient newspaper,
semi-annual statement Of it, resources and
liabilities, verified by the affidavit of its
president or cashier; and also to file Il
copy of such statement in the office of the
| Secretary of State. see no hardship III
law of this kind, but on the contrary, 1t
will tend toproteCt both stockholders and
depositors.
i will cause to be laid on your tables .
communication from the Comptroller OF
the Currency bearing on this point. No
bank under the existing law can be char
tered unless its capital stock Is mt least
twenty-five Thousand dollars, but only
ten per cent of IFS capital is required to
he paid before securing the charter.
Therefore it is possible for bank tocom-
mence and carry on business with II paid
up capital stock of twenty-five hundred
dollars. the residue of the stock being
represented by stock notes, or the simple
subscription of the stockholders. Tins
ought not to be. The whole capital sub
scribed should be required to be paid up
in good faith before Il bank is permitted
to commence business. The State ought
not to tolerate banking founded even IN
part on the individual credit of the stock
holders, who may be unknown to the
general public.