, 1880-09-24

cquai.
GENTLEMEN:--Under the Consti--
tuition Of the United States no per.
son can be held "to answer for a
capital Or otherwise Infamous crime
unless on a presentmens or indict.
ment Of grand jury, except in cases
arising in the land or naval forces or
in the militia when in actual service
in time of war or public danger"
And by the criminal code Of this
Territory, no person can be held "to
answer inany court, for an alleged
crime or offense against the Terri
tory unless upon indictment by
grand jury, except in cases Of mis-
demeanor before justice Of the
peace, or before q court martial"
So whether We regard the paramount
or the subsidiary law, the federal or
the territorial Jurisdiction, we find
the grand jury assumed essential for
the complete administration Of Grim
inal justice. This assumed neces-
sity is based upon real need.
For, let q criminal code have been
never SO well devised, it still remains
so to apply its commands and prohi-
billions as to effect the proposed oh.
jects Of its enactment. Obviously,
q law will not enforce itself. And
were the undertaking Of Its enforce.
ment permitted to rest upon the
whim, ignorance, prejudice, favor,
resentment or interest of any who
might choose to come to the task,
criminal courts, if not idle, might be
clogged with mass OF unnecessary
and hurtful litigation; the attention
Of society diverted from fruitful oc.
cupation; time, means, industries
dissipated; and altogether, the evils
attending the attempts at suppress.
sion might exceed perhaps those
waiting on the prevalence of crime.
Our social system contemplates, that
it's criminal as well as civil legisla-
ton be done by minds intelligent to
know the practical good, wise to love
it, watchful to apprehend it, discreet
and generous to select and bes,ow
the best that offers, and disinterested
to leave the personal and local when
il ceases to be public and general.
To carry out such Legislation in the
spirit of its trainers, those engaged
in its administration ought also to be
representative men, intelligent, wise,
watchful, discreet, generous, disin-
terested. 1t is the boast Of our pol
itics that men like these can be found
in every fraction of our vast domain.
Such men must you be, gentlemen,
to extend with impartial justice
over your sectional jurisdiction what
the popular good has demanded shall
be regarded as universal or local
law. Let me urge you, therefore, to
keep in mind, that as q grand jury of
the United STATES you represent for
this district not the local populace of
this part of the United States as O
local populace, but the whole people
Of the entire country; and, as a
grand jury of the Territory, you
represent for these counties from
which you come, not their inhabi
tants only, but the general popula.
tion OF all the Territory.
You do not represent the people
to make their laws, nor to determine
what their laws mean, nor even to
de .ide to what cases Of fact the laws
apply; but having the laws, their
meaning and application laid before
y1u, your proper function is simply
TO solve in each particular case this
question:: Are facts, such as those
to which the law is intended to ap.
ply, well substantiated by good esi.
dence before US? The legislature
makns the law, and determines its