The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1884-01-15
THE wi OF TIE HOUR.

THE Evil OF THE HOUR.
SENATOR TERRELI's oil on the iencs-cut.
tin troubles will hardly become a Jaw. II has
some excellent provisions in It, and It has
been drafted evidently with oonsummale
ability and care, but the machinery for its
operations seems to be too complicated and
cumbersome. The simpler that we can
have the Law and the practical work.
inps OF law the better. As we
have before stated, the difficulty
IN all this feuce.cutting business ia the de.
lection OF the parties engaged in the unlaw-
fil practice, their arrest and their conyic.
ton. A law imposing severe penalty,
bat not overly severe, may act rs a deter
rent, aud will bring good yerdicis from a
jury. To make it Il felony punishable By
incarceration in the penitentisry will prove
a failure In the vast m i1rity Of cases.
SENATOR TERnELL's bill not 10 pass on its
cons.ituronality, 10 a species Of conglom'
crate in the machinery through
out. In the first place IL has
embraced In Il all manner OF
civil aud criminal matters which should
have been divided Off into different bills.
A second objection to II is that the consta.
buutory force business is offensive to the
citizens OF Texas and will engender feelings
sufficiently intense to create more trouble
than what is intended to be suppressed.
We should seek to do away with all appli-
cation of military rule save ia most press
ing occasions. The grjwing youth OF this
state should rather be educated to oppose
the slightest appearance of shoulder-strap
regime,
SENATOR GIBBS has introduced three bills
OF the wire-fence troubles which are likely
to meet with good support in the senats
at least. The first forbids under heavy
penalty the enclosing Of any OF the public
! lands OF this state and makes each day a
separate offsnse. The second Furnishes the
enclosing of any unoccupied lands belong
! ing to any individual or corporation with
out the consent OF the owner and makes
the minimum fine equal to four cents per
acre for each acre so unlawiully enclosed 4,
but provides that the owner of same can
use IL and can pasture one head OF stock to
! every five acres and have all
water privileges Of the en- We enclosure. II
any one dis.urbs him in the full enjoyment
i of his land 80 uulawfuly enclosed such
person is subject TO both fine and impr SON
ment, one-hali OF such fine going TO the in-
former. His third bin is the one introduced
ny The senator a. the last session, requiring
a gateway in every tE0 miles linear meas
ure of fence, and that the same shall be
unlocked. violation OF this regu-
lation is fined heavily, and each
day made aseparate ofiense.
The senator claims that II such legisla-
ton is had that then the legislature will be
justified IN furnishing iencf.cutting by Sc
we're penalties. He claims that this will
prevent the enclosure Of land without COM
pensation and will put stop TO the prac-
tice OF leaving railroad sections and using
school lands free, and while the bill will
enable the railroads and land spectators
to get revenue from any Of their land
used that 1t will not put the stockmsn at the
mercy OF railroads and land mea.
These bills have likewise some good pro-
visions but il is questionable whether it is
healthy morality for the state thus to offer
to divide up a species Of blood money" or
enter into kind of copartnership with an
informer, perhaps most frequently con.
spira or. in order to attain her ends. 1t
appears 10 us under existing circumstances
hat , far as fence-cutting, or tence-iDju.
ring, or pasture burning, etc, are concerned
the simplest and most effective corrective
is for the legislature to pass
a law making the offense q felony, although !
this does not wholly meet our approval.
Tnen comes the question of catching the
criminal. This must be mainly relegated |
L, the local authorities. The sending OF
,r ,ops, commissioners, ETC., ETC., will never |
eff ct the desired object unless the county
officials shall do their duty. To compel
these latter to duly discharge that duty,
ct the legislature empower the executive,
In his sound discretion as to due cause, to
sheriffs or Others found want
ng in the truste oonfided TO them
Let the sheriff be authorized to employ |,
UGH force la his county as be shall need
10 arrest offenders. to be paid by the com.
court. Ii occurs 10 us that pro.
visions and pena ties o. this sort will REACH
ne evil
90 he other hand let Il be correlatively
provided that no person Under extreme
,enal,y hall enclose any public lands, or
,riyate lends not his own, or 10 drive his
locks for the purpose Of grazing upon such
ands. These, with further provisions for a
y.iem Of sufficient and convenient high
avs, would, 1t occurs 10 MS, be adequate
sislation ii properly embodied in due :
lrm.
shilob's Catarrh Kennedy. aposftive cure