The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1895-05-07

themselves in doubtful positions Du
Judge Clark is too smart, too patrloCi'
to place himself in a position where n'
could be Justly and properly crltlc1Seu
Judge Davis and Avery were lie
tees of the University, but pronPUy
and properly resigned when tneLI a.
tention was called to the fact; u lot
us not be led away from the issue H0'
ug not ~personify. We are dlscuSSlne
PRINCIPLES, not persons. Measures noU
men. Let us not draw any PerS
into this controversy.
Article XIV, Section z, Constitution
of North Carolina: mo person VINO
shall hold any office or place OF ErusI or
nrofit. under the United States or any
department thereof; or under this State
or m department thereof; or under
this Safe or any other State or govern
ment shall hold or exercise any other
office or place of trust or profit under
the authority of this State, or be eligi-
BILE to a seat in either house of the
General Assembly. Provided that
nothing herein contained shall extend
to officers in the militia, justices of the
peace, commissioners Of public char
tiles or commissions for special pur-
poses." In Clarke and others VS..
Stanley and others, &c N. c., SO, Pear
G. j., as if anticipating the trouble into
which the State has fallen, lays down
q broad definition of q public Office, as
follows: "a public office is an agency
for the State, and the person whose
duty it is to perform this agency is a
public officer" The essence of it is
the duty of performing an agency that
is of doing some act or acts or series
of acts for the State. "Where no sal
airy or fees are annexed to the Office it
is a naked fice-honorary and is sup
posed to be accepted merely for the
public good"
In the People of North Carolina, ex
rel. John Nichols and others vs. ".
H. Mickey and others, IS N. c., page
429, the court says: THE directors of
the institution for the Deaf and Dumb
and the Blind are officers made SO by
the Constitution and so called" In the
People of North Carolina, ex rel. G. W.
Welker and others, the court says:
1.-THE trustees of the University, the
directors of the Penitentiary, of the
Lunatic Asylum and for the Institu-
ton for the Deaf, Dumb and the
Blind are public Offices" Are not
the cases cited above ample to re,
move doubt from the minds of the
most skeptical9 Is not this matter
clearly stated and that beyond
peradventure9 You insist that 1 bring
a test case. In view of the foregoing
is any further test necessaryG IF they
believe not Moses and the prophets
neither would they believe n though
he be risen from the dead" Is it not a
well known fact that the last several
Legislatures, in violation of the Con
stitution, have, with an eye single to
their own glory" appointed or elected
many of their own members to oficesG
This abuse is not confined to party
lines, all are alike guilty.
You say that there are too many
crying evils in the land that demand
our attention for us to enter upon a
discussion of this sort" &c. AS a
a leading journal of the State, are you
not in honor bound to see that the
Constitution is respected and to sound
a note of warning when men, whether
inadvertently or otherwise no longer
honor and respect it, 1t is insisted
then that you "Give the People the
Facts" AS one who has the best wishes
of all men at heart, as a patriot, as a
man with charity for all and malice
towards none" in your own well chosen
and very pertinent language, "Give
the People the Facts" When this is
done as you can and as it is believed
you will do, no l~aW-abiding patriotic
citizen need fear the consequences.
B. +. MONTAGUE.
UNIVERSITY SUMMER SCHOOL.
The Summer School at Chapel Hill