The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-02-06
REVISION OF THE LAWS.

N~AhSS VIC OpChihS VI GuC ~ OsSub
session Of the Legislature the air
has been rife with apprehensions
concerning the labors of the com.
mittee appointed two years ago to
revise and compile the laws OF
Utah.
Men employed to perform pub
lie work, whether public officials or
lnot, are always the legitimate SUBJ
jects of proper criticism, and when
the criticism is made, it is likewise
the privilege, if not the duty, of the
citizen to investigate and weigh the
merits Of the criticism, especially
when it appears tinctured with
pref ldice and malice.
A correspondent In Sundays
HERALD has evidently sought, and
robably to some extent eeded,
in creating additional interest In
the subject of revision and compila-
ton, and by his structures and ple-
tended definitions assumes that
the committee appointed to perform
the labor exceeded their powers,
abused their trust, sought to 'ssteal
march," and 30 on, Gd iaaJfalituna.
The arraignment of the com mittee
In the manner aforesaid, and the
insinuations by an anonymous
and perhaps irresponsible writer,
induced me, in behalf of justice, to
investigate the matter, and ascer--
tain, if possible, what there is of
merit in the criticism referred to.
There appears to be variety of
opinions as TO what was intended by
the last Legislature in appointing
the committee; some claiming the
object was revision, and others
asserting 1t was compilation, while
others say that it was both revision
and compilation. One thing is
certain, that both terms are found
In the law, and in such connection
as to render it almost impossible
to conceive anything else than that
both revision and compilation were
intended. To arrive at any other
conclusion Is to accuse experien ced
legislators, like those of last
session, Of not comprehendjng
the meaning of terms. Nor can
1t be claimed with any degree of
truth that the law was passed with.
out full and ample consideration, as
the journal shows. The subject
was introduced on the fifth day of
the session and made subject to
various motions, bills and resolu-
tons throughout the session, until
it finally eliminated in the law re-
ferred to. Assuming thus, which
appears to b proper, that the legis-
lature acted with care, caution and
elaboration, the next question is,
what ia meant by the terms used.
Webster says of "Revisien" as ap-
piled to the subject under consider
alton, as follows: "Revise-to re-.
view, to alter and amend, as to re-
viee statutes" Of the other term
"Compile," the same author says:
leCompile, to put together, to COM
pose, OF materials from other books
or documents"
1t would seem then, that under
the terms used the commit ee
were authorized to ''put to-
gether, compose Ct materials
from books and documents
and to alter and amend and present
their work in one bill to the present
legislature; ia short. what "Salt
Laker" msliciously accuses the COM
mittee of doing Is just what the
law authorized them to do. But,
says "Salt Laker," "the committee
instead of revising and compiling
set themselves to reconstruct, en-
large and codify the laws, and i'm
deed to propose q new body of laws
for the consideration of the Legis-
lature." While this in point of fact
is untrue, yet if 1t had been 80, IN
der the power to 'alter and amend"
the committee could have even gone
to the extent of offering substitute
for existing laws 80 long as due re-
gard was paid to the general policy
of former legislation. Now as re.
CARDS the bringing in OF new body
of lave, what are the facts? For
the last quarter of a century it has
been the policy of our Legislature
to adopt from time to time, so far IS
applicable to our local circum-
stances, the Jaws of California.
Any person who will take the
trouble TO study the progress of
Legislation in the Territory of U ah,
will find that in the beginning the
body of Our laws came from that
State, and as the general laws of
said State have been amended, im-
10 owed and altered from time to
time to meet the wants of a growing
commonwealth, the laws of Utah
have kept pace and adopted those
amendments, alterations, etc., SO
far as applicable. This has been the
uniform policy; can it be wondered,
then, that the committee, clothed
with power to revise, should draw
largely from that fountain which
has been the source of nearly, If not
r,;Sa al or1r lowc0