The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1883-12-07
FoIIovLng re tns sIAIsa hayIng dsIeg.Iss -
pAK0TA CoURTS.

n DOUl UAIAO4A AOOnA0s
An Account of the Jnd ciaI system Under
which the Laws OF the Territory are Adj
ministercd The Capital gansaissiea Hill,
and How tile Question is Regarded by the
Lawyers and Ohicials.
Y~ANKToN, Special Correspondence, Nov. 20
1t seems to be q hard matter for many people
in Dakota-where so many thousands are new
comers-to say nothing about those outside, to
understand the judiciary system Of the Terri
tory, The matter is simple enough, and yet
there is, among many people, a decided mis-
understanding concerning it In the hrst place,
let it be said that the judges for tho Territory,
like the most Of the other officers, are APP
pointed by the president. According to the
common practice, Dakota has three judicial
districts for United States district court, aud,
therefore, three judges under the pay and
appointment of the United States government
The First district embraces the Black Hills
counties, the court sitting at De&dwood;
the Second district, substantially all
the country south of the forty-sixth parallel,
and east of tie Missouri, the court sitting at
Yanklon; the Third district consists of all of
North Dakota, with Fargo as the place for
holding court Although a new district was
created by congress- a few years ago, the
| entire Territory is still divided iuto three dis
tricts for United States cases. All offenses
aga inst the United States, such as making or
passing counterfeit money, fraud in the pro
curement of land, robbing the mails, or crimes
committed on the Indian reservation, are tried
before these United States district courts.
One of the judges, Of course, lives IN each of
these districts; and, in addition to his duties
as Judge Of the United States district court, he
holds regular terms OF court in each county
Of his district, aud these courts are called
district courts for such aud such a county
They have jurisdiction over all matters that
dc not come before the United States court,
| except such matters as come regularly before
the probate judges, who are the only other
Judges in the Territory As the Territory de-
veloped, the county court business became so
extensive that one judge could not possibly
make the circuit of a section or country as
large as the State Of Ohio, Application was
therefore made to congress for o new district,
and a bill was passed making the Fourth dis
trict out Of the eastern portion OF the Second
As congress refused TO make the Fourth dis
triCt a United States court, it has Jurisdiction
over county matters only, aud the Second dis
trict still embraces all Of Southeast Dakota for
United States purposes. Thus it will appear
that Shile the chief justice is Judge for all Of
Southeast Dakota for United States cases, his
Jurisdiction docs not extend over the
| edSlSIu pOIllOn VI Ills otA W
county court purposes. This Fourth
district in general terms embraces tho two east
ern tiers of counties, from the Missouri river
northward to the forty-sixth parallel. Chief
Justice A. J. Elgerton is judge OF tie Second
district; Associate Justice William Il. Church,
Of the First; Associate Justice S. A. Hudson,
of the Third, while a vacancy exists in the
Fourth district, by reason Of the death of the
late Judge Jefferson p Kidder. The Fourth
district IS full CT business, and the appointment
of a new Judge is a%uxiously looked for. The
salary Of the judge is 81, per annunE. The
year, and it consists OF all -four of the judges,
all Of whom sit on every case. II, therefore,
takes the concurrence Of thre3 judges TO re-
verse a decision made by one. Should one OF
the others agree with a igdge from whom an
appeal is taken, there would then be a tie, and
the decision made below would stand.
THE CAPITAL COMMISSION BILL.
Oas of the most important cases that has
ever come before the supreme court 10 the bill
for the permanent location of the seat of gov
eminent of the Territory. The public wei!
understand that, under the AUTHORITY OF this
bill, the capital commission located the seat OF
government at Bismarck; that suit was brought
in the district court of Yankton county to test
the constitutiorslity of the bill; aud that Judge
Edgerton decided against the defendants, for
ever ousting them from such Office as capital
commissioner. The defendants appealed to
II a NNA 6AfAA6 D~A " ~ .
and the case will como up for argument aud
review next May. From what has been before
said, il will be seen thar, unless the other three
judges all agree to reverse Judge Edgerton, his
decision will stand; and in that case, so far as
the courts OF the Territory are concerned,
the bill will be defeated, ard Yankton
will be the capital of The Territory.
Where is the capital now is an interesting
question, and there seems to be two sides to it,
Down this way the attorneys for the plaintiffs
and most all the other people maintain
that the work Of the capital commission
was completely oyerthrown by the de-
cision of Judge Edgerton; that his decision
virtually declared the law uncoLstitutiona and
that the commission has no legal existence nor
can it have until Judge Edgerton has been re-
versed by the supreme coart. The other side
declare this position to be absurd That by
reason of their having appealed aud given
bail, Judge Edgerton's decision is held COM
pletely in allegiance until the case can be re-
viewed by the supreme court; that the COM
mission is 3 legal body; that its acts have been
done under the authority of the law; that Bis
marck is now the capital Of Dakota, and that
the commission cannot be estopped from the
performance Of such acts as they were au-
thorized under the removal bill To do.
As a house the Territorial government Is d.
vided. The governor and the auditor have
located at Bismarck; while the secretary and
! treasurer remain at Yankton. both of these
officers having refused TO comply with the
order of the governor to move. Secretary
Teller is just as firm in his position that Yank-
ton IS the capital as Gov. 0rdway lie that the
capital is at Bismarck, and in the official
papers each one considers HE respective To-
cality the capital OF Dakota