Louisiana capitolian., 1880-06-24
LETTER FROM NEW ORLEANS.
Editor Capitolian:

y
most important question, which has re-
Gently been argued before our present
Supreme Court. Judge Rodgers has de-
cided in one of our city Courts that the
appointments made by Governor Witt
arc unconstitutional, because they were
not submitted, as required, to the Scn-
ate, and consequently were not madc"by
and with the advice of the Senate"
Therefore, this learned Judge refused to
direct that they (thcsc new appolntees)
were entitled to displacc the present IN
cumbents, their appointments being
deemed constitutonally defective.
On precisely the same issue presented,
Judge Houston, in another OF our City
Courts has taken an opposite view. lie
decides that the commissions signed by
Gov. Wilt, and in the possession OF
these new appointccs, entities them TO
the several Offices to which they were
thus appointed, and orders accordingly.
LET us examine our constitution ana
study this question now under consider
alton by our present Supreme Court. 10
one who has watched the rulings OF this
Court it is very plain that this issue has
40 far been lodged by them. Several
such cases have already come up before
the highest Court Of our State but the
Court has succeeded in making dccl-
sion by a sort of flank movement, which
has enabled them to escape giving an
opinion on the merits of such cases.
Now, however, the issue appears TO
have been too squarcly presented Tor
further public evasion.
Our constitution speaks thus nnnls-
takably upon this point:
cart. 6S. He (rcfcrring to the Govern
or) shall nominate, and by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate, ap-
point all officers whose Offices ~ estab-
iis}tcd by this constitution, and whose
appointments or elections are not herein
otherwise provided for; provided, now,
ever. that the General Assembly shall
have the right to prescribe the mode OF
appointment or election to all Offices
created by it,"
cart. 60. The Governor shall have the
power to fill vacancies that may happen
during the recess of the Senate, in cases
not otherwise provided for in this con
sttution, by granting commissions
which shall expire at the end of the next
session; but no person who has been
nominated for office and rejected shall
be appointed to the same office during
the recess of the person appointed iol
Office, as herein provided, shall be cqul'
valent to rejection"
If the Supreme Court do not dive into
the far distant past and rcsurrcct there
from some mou1dy decision and inter
pret the same into precedent for set
ting aside the requirements of our exist
ing organic law, the decision of judge
Rodgers must be sustained.
In the bulk of his appointments, tn
Governor has made clear and palpabl'
"failure" "to send into the Senate TIM
name of any person appointed for ofllc'
as herein provided" and hence all sucl
appointments stand under constltu
tional inhibition, and against all sucl
we find written in our existing organic
law that they "slall be equivalent to
rejection"
Now this same constitution directs ant
commands that emo person who ha
been nominated for office and rcJcctc'
shall be appointed to the same ofllc
during the recess of the Senate"
The important question NATURAL,
comes up, can n "rcjected nominee b
again nominated to the same Office
Granted that an extra session of tn
Legislature were called, could thes
nominations which are 'cquivalcnt t
q rejection" be rc-nominatcd by tn
Governor to the Offices theyArc now at
tempting to occupy?
Certainly, all appointccs who stan
equivalent to rejection" arc powcrles
to assess property, to collect taxes or t
perform any other official act known t
our constitution or laws; because sue
appointccs exist under constitutions
prohibition, and, therefore, can perfor
no legal Or binding act. If in the fac
of these facts, the Supreme Court, slla]
decide in favor of these unconstitutiona
appointees, then the mutilation OF on
present constitution will be about CON
plete, and the people may well cNclam
eff these (mcaning the new Suprcm
Court) be our friends, who then arc on
enemies p Undauntcd by such an III
expected act from one of their own crCf
lures, the people would have to com
together again in constitutional convcl
tiOn and frame q new Organic law, an
in so doing, they would, to safeguard
against another possible destruction 4