Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-10-25
Legislative and Other Records.


TIA lee Scyfpta est, says the upright
nudge when asked TO construe law so
as to make it read in effect differently
from the PLAIN words of the text, "Thus
the law is written" And he adheres to
its letter. We have SAIL heretofore that
as the record of court of justice i'm
ports absolute verify, we could see no
good reason for doubling that the same
rule would be applied by the courts to the
acts of Congress. The Legislative de-
partment ought to be as dignified as the
Executive or the judicial department.
"FaU faith and credit" says the Con
stitution of the United States, "shall be
given in each State to the public acts,
records, and Judicial proceedings of
every other State" We have known a
debt bearing 30 per cent per annum in
terest in the State where it was incurred
to be collected in Virginia with the as
sistance Of Stcte court So we are not
surprised to learn that Mr.. CAR
Isle is guarded in his lam
guage when he speaks Of the
fact that the tobacco rebate section of
the MCKINLEY tariff bill was omitted from
that act in the copy of it which was
signed by the President of the United
States. He merely holds that If the
Journals of the two houses of Congress
show that the section in question was q
part of the report as made by the con-
ference committees, and was passed by
both houses, the omission If the section
in the bill as signed by the President
would invalidate the law. Here Mr..
CARLISLE assumes that the verify of
the records of the two houses cannot be
questioned. If their Journals say that
the bill was passed in a certain
form that settles the matter. II
one law may be questioned
with or without cause. every law may be
questioned with or without cause.
Surely in this case, as in the case OF the
several States, "full faith and credit "
should be given to the records. Every
year hundreds of bills are passed by the
national House of Representatives when
there is not quorum of members pres
ent. Can these laws be called in ques-
ton in court Of justice ? Nobody will
say SO. In the several State legisla-
lures the same rule is followed, and nu-
merous valid laws are passed by less than
"A quorum OF members. Mr.. KENNEDY, Of
Ohio, when presidento OF the State Senate,
secured in this way the passage Of an
important bill in the absence of all the
Democratic senator's, there being nobody
present to raise the question of quo
rum.
Mr.. WINDOW, Secretary Of the Trea-
sury, and Mr.. Mason, Commissioner Of
Internal Revenue, take the right view Of
this matter. They say It is their bust
ness to execute the law, not to pass upon
its validity. To allow either the ex-
ecutive or the Judicial department to
call in question the records OF the legis-
ivedepartment might occasion trouble.
In the matter Of signing bills, the Presi-
dent Of the United States is part OF
the Legislative department. IL man
may not call in question his deed or his
negotiable note, it would seem not un-
reasonable to hold that not even
house Of Congress ought to be allowed
TO question its own record No bill OF
much length was ever passed. enrolled,
or certified to DO law, that had some
sort of error in it
The New York Herald has the follow
ing paragraph:
The decision OF the Supreme Court
in the question raised under the tariff
act Of 1872, by which the substitution Of
comma for hyphen included a refund
OF hundreds OF thousands Of dollars is
case in point. Importers did not raise
the question then, but the will OF Con-
gress had been defeated by what was
shown to be clerical error or the cor
rupt act OF some one connected with the
enrolment Of the bill Tho Court do