Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-01-28
ANSWER OF THE COURT.

full text of the unanimous decision of the
supreme judicial court, completed This even
ing, declining to recognize the Fusionlst
bodies and explicitly declaring the House
and Senate now holding sessions in the
State house, the legal legislature of Maine:
In response to the foregoing commun1ca-
ton mot given the undersigned justices OF
the supreme judicial court have the honor
to saw, that while we cannot admit even by
implication, that the statement and cues
tons now before Us are presented by any ie-
eally organized legislative body,
so as to require any opinion sfrom US under
the constitutional provision of article 8, sec
ton 3, we feel that we should be emitting
an important service which the people OF
this beloved State and the gentlemen who
have presented these questions, presumably
from an honest desire to know their duty as
citizsns in the premises, might fairly expect
of us, if we fail to give some of the reasons
which compel us 70 decline to entertain and
respond TO the aforesaid statement and ques-
tions based thereupon.
The solemn OCCASION is indeed here in the
UNPARALLELED and ominous events in our pub
lie history which have occurred within the
last few months, but we are bound to declare
that these questions are not presented by
legally constituted legislative body, for the
following reasons briefly stated: When diff
erent bodies of men each claiming to be and
to exercise the functions Of the legislative
department of State appear, each asserting
their title to be regarded as lawgivers for
the people, it is the obvious duty of
the judicial department who must inevitably,
at no distant day be called to pass upon the
validity of laws that may be enacted by the
respective claimants to.legislative authority,
to INQUIRE and ascertain for themselves, with
or without questions presented by the claim
ants. which of those bodies lawfully repre-
sent the'people from whom they derive their
nower. There can be but one lawful le9is-
ia1ure. The court must know for itself
ybose enactments it will recognize as
laws of binding force who levies the taxes
it will enforce when brought judicially be-
fore it, whose choice of prosecuting officers
before the court it will respect.
In thousand ways it becomes essential
that the court should forthwith ascertain
and take judicial cognizance of the ques-
ton which ia the true legislature. The ex-
istence of certain facts raising questions as
to the power and duties of the governor and
council III CauSHSSili3 NOtOo ici SAAS@AS ~
the senate and house CT representatives, was
necessarily implied in the questions pro-
pounded by Gov. Garcelon, and the answer
by this court under date of January Sd. 10
mt such questions, in the absence of facts
requiring their solution, would be an abuse
of power of the executive to call for an
opinion of the court upon question OF law
on solemn occasions.
f,,Ii ,,ara6 and
by the answer it appeared that the acts and
doings of the government and councn III
issuing certificates of election to certain men,
as Senators and members of the House OF
Representatives, who did not appear to be
elected, and declining to ISSUE certificates
and summons to certain men who did appear
to be elected, were in violation OF their legal
and constitutional obligations and duties.
We are bound to take Judicial notice of the
doings of the executive and legls-
lative departments of the gov
eminent. and when called upon
by proper authority, t, pass upon their
validity. We are bound to take judicial
notice of historical facts matters of public
notoriety and interest transporting IN our
midst. We can't accept statement which
asserts US facts matters that are IN conflict
with the record, and historical facts that We
are not at liberty to disregard.
We can't shut our eyes to the fact that the
governor and council, then 10 office, dlsre-
garded the opinion of the court, given IN
answer to the governors questions, omitted
to revoke summons and illegally issued to
the men who didn't appear to be elected, or
to issue summons to men who did appear to
be elected. We know that the officers who
presided in the conventions of members
elect Of the Senate and House on the first
Wednesday in January recognized as mem
bers of both these bodies, men who were IN
lawfully introduced into them by unconstitu-
tional and illegal methods pursued by the
governor and council, and refused to recog-
men who appeared to be legally elected and
refused to permit any appeal from their llle-
gal decisions to bodies over which they
were temporarily presiding.
TIE report of the committee of the coun-
Gil and the action of the Governor and coun-
Gil thereon, of which we must take judicial
notice, show that men were thus admitted
and excluded upon grounds which this court
declared in their answer to Gov. Garcelon' g
questions, to be untenable and Illegal. 1t
can't be successfully claimed that there was
quorum in the House of Representatives
which undertook to organize on the first
Wednesday of January, without counting
men who could only appear to be elected be-
cause the tie Governor and council pursued
modes which this court declared in THEN an
swer to his questions to be unconstitutional,
illegal and void. These men We're not in
fact elected, they didn't appear to be elected
by the returns if canvassed in the manner
in which the constitution and laws rightly
interpreted, required the governor and
council to canvass them. We can't recog-
nize House of Representatives to make a
quorum in which the presence OF these men
was necessary as a lawfully constituted
body, or capable of performing any tune
tions of the House of Representatives when
one protest was made in behalf of those who
were in fact elected by the people.
In the meantime the presence in the Senate
Of men claiming seats to the exclusion of those
whom a canvass, legally conducted, being reeog-
nized as members OF the convention by the
| temporary presiding officer who, though
| protest against his illegal action was made
| on the spot, refused to permit an appeal from
| his decision to the convention of Senator
| elect, vitiated the organization of that body.
| We have only to reaffirm principles We as
| serted in an answer of January TO- 1880, on
these subjects, in coming to the result that
| these bodies propoundiug to us the foregoing