The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1880-10-02
AN APPLICATION FOR MANDAMus.

Bohemian. Justice, delivered toe fol.
lowing opinion:
As an original question, l have uni
tormly been Of the opinion that the
Supreme Court had no jurisdiction in
such cases as this, except il aid OF It's
appellate powers. / have considered
that the Supreme Court had no dis
tinctively original Jurisdiction, except
10 cases OF ha6eas corpus. The issuing
of the msndsnus as prayed
is an exercise of original jnrisdie-
ton. 10 the late case OF Enc.
line Young and others vs.. George
Q. Cannon ct a., this court, after ex-
hsustive argument, declared that it
had jurisdiction to issue the writ OF
certiorari, which is an original Wri. OF
the same Glass az that of mandsmus,
and coming to US from the ga e
source, the Kings Bench. l assumed
that that decision was to settle the
practice, and that in this class of
cases, to which both ceTtiOrGri and
mandsmus belong, the Supreme Court
would take jurisdiction. l think it
our duty now to stand by that decis-
ion and not again unsettle the prac-
tice, as / deem would be done if the
writ were now denied.
Upon the merits of the case can
not agree with majority of the court.
l deem this to be a proper case in
which to issue the writ. The Legisla-
ture had no authority to allow any
body to vote who were not citizens or
who had not declared their intentions
to become such. 1t has never enacted
that parties who had declared their
intentions to become citizens might
vote. Therefore, the registering off,
Ger is not authorized to allow anybody
to vote who are not citizens. The
statute granting suffrage to women
allows them to vote without being citi-
zens il they are 'the wife, widow or
the daughter of a native born o.
naturalized citizen" Such provis-
ion is utterly void, in my opinion,
and it is the duty OF the registering
officer 10 obey the law of Congress
and not that of the territory, when
they conflict.
The act comforting the elective
franchise upon women is unjust, as
granting the franchise to women
uDon easier terms than upon males.
Men are required to be taxpayers by
the statute. but not so with women;
the men are all required to be resi-
dents, bu. not 30 the women, if they
be the "wife, widow or daughter"
and all men who ask to vote must be
citizens, or they will be rejected, but
not 30 with all women. This matter
OF citizenship ID important. when we
consider that the bulk of the popula-
ton of this territory is of foreign
birth, or children born in this terri
tory of foreign parents. The statute
granting the elective franchise to
women destroys the uniformity and
impartiality which should exist in re-
gard to the qualifications OF voters,
and the act which will do this is un-
just and ought not to be upheld. !
do not think that it will do to say
that the requirement as to male
voters, which is not found amongst
the requirements of the female
voters, will be nugstory. We have
no right to conclude that this is so.
The Legislature has expressed itself
to the contrary. 1t fret passed the
statute allowing males to vote, re-.
quiring them to be citizens, etc. It
afterwards passed the statute grant
ing the elective franchise to women,
and subsequently, it enacts the regis
tIation law, wherein it retains all the
qualifications originally required as to
male voters. 1t certainly, therefore
had no intention OF repeating any part
thereof. The two laws in regard to
suffrage show great unfsirness and
lack of uniformity between the re-
quirements of male voters and those
of female voters, but as the Legisla-
.ure so intended, What authority have
we to say that the one repeats the
other2 This certainly does not exist
by implication, as they are statutes
regarding dlnerent classes. Inc TWO
laws are not inconsistent further than
that one is unconstitutional, unjust
and unfair to the body OF ve;ers men.
toned in the first, and being 30,
should not be upheld. II the Lsgis-
lature had power to make one set Of
qualifications for one class of voters
and another set for another claEs oil
voters, then the two laws can stand
but if the Legislature has no such
power, its attempt to do so is nuga
tory and void.
For these reasons, thus hastily
stated, am unable to egree with my
associates IL denying the writ in this
case.
! Carpets Carpets Carpets!