The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-01-23

| GnS saving In jail Ices ana W1JncSS ices
alone would pay this ten-fold. In the
county of Aikcn six months intervene
between the fall and spring terms of
tho court and prisoners who cannot
give bail are required to languish in
jail at the expense of the county for
this period and often longer. [ have
no doubt the same is tho case in other
counties. The courts cannot sit longer
than two weeks at moro than one term
during the year, and often adjourn
before the jails arc delivered. 1 re-
spectfully ask that you give this matter
your careful consideration.
| Magistrates are provided for, in
place of the old trial justices, with
salaries in lieu Of fees, to he fixed by
your honorable body. Their Jurisdic-
tion is defined in civil and criminal
cases, and this devoives upon you the
duty Of providing for their appoint
mont and to determine the cases in
which they shall exercise jurisdiction
within constitutional limits. l would
suggest that any legislation as to tho
salaries of magistrates be made to
take effect after the terms Of the pro-
sont trial justices expire, which will be
| in Dccomber noXt. 1t Is your duty to
provide for the interchange Of circuits
Of the circuit judges.
JURISPRUDENCE.
1t will be necessary to provide for a
change Of venue in civil and criminal
| cases over which tho circuit courts
have jurisdiction and in which, undcr
| the constitution, such changes can be
made. This requires your attention
| at this session, rs it affects the admin
! istration Of Justice. 1t is also mado
incumbent upon your honorable body
at this session to provide for the APP
pOintnont or election Of q commission
er, whose duty it shall be to collect
and rovise all the general statute laws
which may be passed from time to
| time, and also to reduce into q syste-
matte code the generally civil statutes,
including the codo Of civil procedure,
with all amendments thereto. The
term OF Office would seem to DO neccs-
sarily ten years, but this is lott entirely
| to your own Judgment after reading
| the section.
You are required to provide by leg
| islation for the punishment of any Off
Ger, State, county or municipal, ana
for his removal from office, from whom
a person in his lawful custody has
been seized or taken through his neg
| ligence, permission or connivancc, by
a mob or other unlaw full assemblage Of
persons, and who has suffered bodily
violence or death, and also to provide
| for the maintenance Of Il civil action
for damages against the county in
cases of lynching when death cnsues,
and further for an action by tho
county for the damages against tho
parties engaged in the lynching.
1t is a matter OF qualification to the
people OF tho State that the constitu-
tlOnal convention, in no uncertain
terms, reprobated and condemned this
pernicious practice. There have oc
CURED during the past year four cases
of lynching within the State, and not
one has been for the crime generally
regarded as justifying such action
Ibis should convince any mind that i
lynching is to be condoned and tacitly
encouraged for any crime, like loath
some disease, it will spread over the
entire category Of crime when dozen
or moro frenZied persons feel that
justice has miscarried, until anarchy
prevails and our republican form OF
government is destroyed. The failure
to punish this class Of offenders is not
| the fault Of the Executive. In each
and every case [ have exhausted every
means in my power to apprehend the
guilty parties, and have employed
special detectives to ferret out the
crime, but in vain. The citizens in tho
ghborhood invariably condemn the
offenders. but never inform or assist
tho officers of the law in furnishing
them. 1t is to be hoped that such leg
islation will be enacted by you as will
prevent in future The repetition of such
barbarious practices. fear, however,
Iothing short Of tho loss OF the official
heads OF tho officers permitting lynch
ing will ever put an end tC it.
There is II provision in the cOnstitu-
tlon that all laws Inconsistent with it
shall cease after it's adoption, except
that all laws which arc inconsistent
with such provisions as require legis-
lation to enforce them shall remain in
force until such Legislation is had. 1t
will be necessary, therefore, for the
General Assembly to repeal all laws
inconsistent with the prov isiCns Of the
constitution, or to so alter those now
| in force as to make them conform to
the constitu Gi0n. 1t will be impossi Dle
for me to direct attention to aid such
laws, and | have no doubt nlemb"rS Of
your honorable body viii bring all
such to your attention by bill or other
wise.
| COUNTY AND COUNTY GOVERNMENT.
You are given tho power 10 form
| now counties under worry many v"stric-
tiOnS, and you should provide Tor the
| holding and conduct Of olcctiOns. the
appointment and paymrnt Of the va
rious officers for conducting tho same,
and Othcr matters in reference to tho
| formation Of new counties which
deem Unnecessary to point ont to you,
as the article is almost complete with
in itself without legislation except
such as L have suggested. No prOpo-
sition for the formation OF new coun-
tics, at this session. can be considered
by you, as tho provisions can not be
complied with.
1t is necessary to provide for tho
assessment Of property in the new
county of Saluda for the present fiscal
year and for the collection Of taxes
when assessed.
MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS AND pO-
LICE REGULATIONS.
Hereafter the General Assembly can
only create municipalities under gcn-
eral laws. The power of each class
should be defined so that no such cor
poration shall have any powers or be
subject to any restrictions othcr than
| al <>f 4 ,l.,r