The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-04-19

the offices made vacant by the first
clause of the section and none other
In the use of the language ''all the registra-
ton and election offices of every description
In the territory of Utah are hereby declared
vacant" did Congress intend only such as
were then in existence; or did it also mean
new election offices created by a legislature
chosen at an election held by persons ap-
pointed by the board provided in the sec
ton. Such legislature, eight years after
the ninth section took effect, provided for
the creation of the corporation called the
board of education of Salt Lake city and
gave it power TO call elections, to vote on
the issuance and sale of bonds and to APP
point judges thereof, and to receive and
canvass the returns; such board and the
judges appointed by it. were given all au-
thority necessary to such election. If the
power given and the duties specified with
respect to such elections constitute election
offices, then they are new ones, and of a
corporation brought into existence eight
years after the act Of Congress in question
/ took place.
'At the time the act of Congress under
consideration took effect election officers
existed in the various counties and mu-
inequalities in this territory. A portion of
the language of the first sentence of the
ninth section considered alone would indi-
cate an intent to empower the board to ap-
point persons to execute the duties of cleo
ton officers that might afterwards be
made, as well as those then existing. But
the other language connected with this
found in the section declaring the offices
vacant and giving the board the power to
appoint until other provision be made by
the legislature for filling the offices de-
clared vacant, and requiring the perform
ance TO be under existing laws should be
considered with it.
1.-The offices which the board, known as
the Utah commission, was authorized and
required to appoint persons to execute were
those offices which the legislature was au-
thorized to provide by law for filling, and
they were the ones made vacant by the
first clause of section 9.
1.-THE election offices created by the legis-
lative enactment of March 3, 1890, were not
mace vacant by the 9th section of the act
of Congress of March %, 1882. The latter
section was designed to vacate the offices
then in existence, not to prohibit any legis-
lature whose members might be selected at
elections conducted by the board from max
| ing laws by which such vacant offices might
be filed.
"The persons Killing the election Offices
at the time the act of Congress took effect
were deemed unsuitable, and the laws for
| filling them, then in force, were believed
to be Objectionable.
ITO remove and replace such unsuitable
election offices and to render nugatory such
Objectionable laws was the purpose of sec
tion nine So far that section evinced an
intention to deny to the people of the terri
| tory to which it was applied, for time, the
right to have their election offices filled by
10, o%Nl ..e-l,%
! through the legislature to provide by law
! for filling them. Only to that extent does
the section limit the political action of the
people of the territory or the political
action of the counties or other municlpali-
ties in its borders with respect to their 10
cal affairs. Doubtless the belief of Congress
was that the public good demanded that the
people of this territory should for a time
! be deprived so far of the principle of local
self government enjoyed by the citizens in
the other territories and in the states.
"a law denying to the people of one ter
ritory privileges extended to all others
should be strictly construed.
1--WE are of the opinion that the section
above quoted did not give the defendants
the power to call the election TO vote on the
issuance of school bonds and the sale
thereof, or to appoint the judges of such
| election, or TO receive or canvass the re-
turns.
Preference has been made to section %
! of an act of Congress in force March 3
1887. This section in effect merely re-
! Quires the laws enacted by the territorial
legislature mentioned in the section above
quoted to be approved by Congress before
taking effect
''Our attention has also been called to an
irreconcilable repugnancy between certain
provisions of sections 102 and lob of article
ID Of an act of the territorial legislature
session laws 1890, p. 12S, relating to cleo
tions to determine whether bonds shall be-
issued and sold; and sections 122, 123, ~
and 125 of the same act. The two sections
first mentioned contain among others the
following provisions that Fifteen days be
fore an election for school trustees fol
leveying taxes, for voting on the issue Of
bonds, or for any other purpose named il
the article, the city council OF the seyera
cities shall appoint from each municipal
ward three judges of such election. These
sections also require the elections to bt
held in the municipal wards of the city al
the time and place designated in the
notice.
Section 122 provides that the board oil
education may, when in their Judgment i
is advisable, call meeting and submit to 6
vote of the district the proposition to issue
and sell bonds to raise money to purchase
school sites, and to purchase or builC
SCuOoluOuSeS.
SECTIONS 123 and 124 are as follows
The meeting provided for shall
be called by publishing a notice signed by
the president and clerk Of the board of edu
cation. Such notice shall contain
First the time and place of holding such
election; second, the names of three judges
to conduct the same; .nird, tie hours dur
ing the day (naming not less than eight
hours for which the polls will be open
fourth, the amount and denomination O
the bonds and the rate of interest, and tn,
number of years (1ot exceeding twenty
the whole or any part of said bonds are t
run; fifth, for what purpose it is proposed
to issue the bonds.
1.-THE board Of education shall appoint
three judges to conduct the election.
AT such elections the ballots shall contain
the words bonds yes, or bonds no. Section
l25 requires the returns to be canvassed BY
the board of education, and makes it the
duty of that body to file with the clerk O
the county a certified copy of the order O
the board and of the notice, and an affida
Wit showing when and where published
and also statement showing the numhe
of inhabitants and the value of the taxabl
property in the district and that tn,
amount of bonds proposed to be issued doe
not exceed two per cent. of the value O
such taxable property and also facts show
ing that all matters in relation to the issu,
thereof were lawfully conducted. Sections