The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-12-29
WILL RAISE A ROW.
M'CONNELL'S ARBITRARY AC-
TON OF YESTERDAY.
Appoints Sixteen Out of the Twenty
one County Attorneys, with the
Compliments of the Season''-The
Legality of the Action Doubted.
Especial to The Herald)


Boise, Ida, Dec. Ex-Governor Nc
Connell has decided to take the bull
by the horns in the matter of the dis
trict attorneyships. At the recent cleo
tion a constitutional amendment was
adopted, providing for a prosecuting
attorney for each county instead of dis
trict attorneys. The district attorneys,
five in number in the state, were state
officers, elected every four years, and
those in Office at the time of the adop-
ton of the amendment had two years
more TO serve. The question was then
raised as to whether the adoption of
the amendment had abolished the Of
flee of district attorney, and if so,
whether the county attorney is
county or q state officer: In view of
the fact that another constitutional
amendment, which was adopted at the
same time, in enumerating county Of
fees, made no mention of prosecuting
attorney. Governor Mcconnell, after
first having come to the conclusion
that the district attorneys Office was
abolished, decided the new officers
were state and not county, and he pro-
ceeded today to name men to fill the
places for a term of two years. He
names prosecutors for 10 out of q
of the counties, and will appoint others
at once. This will cause quite row.
The district attorneys, il is said, will
refuse to give up their Offices and other
legal complications will arise. Politi-
cal disturbances will also follow, as the
Demo- opulist fusionists see in the
governors action on the eve of his re-
firing from Office a little political
strategy they do not at all relish. The
men appointed today are as follows:
II L k-T1-
Cassia-B. S. Howells, Albion.
Bear Lake-R. S. Spence. Montpelier.
Bingham-H. X. Linger, Idaho Falls.
Oneida-D- c. McDougall, Malad.
Lincoln-V. Bierbower, Shoshone.
Blaine-P. NJ. Bruner, HALEY.
Custer-N. ]. Sharp, Challis.
Lemhi-F. j. Cowan, Salmon City.
Elmore-W. c. HOWE, Mountain
Home.
Ada-S. L. Upton, Boise.
Canyon. T. Morrison, Caldwell.
Washington-John w. Ayers, Weiser.
Nez Perce-James E. Babb, Lewis
ton.
Kootenai-C. L. Hoffman, Rathdrum.
Latah-J. B. West, Moscow.
The letter of notification in each in
stance is in this form:
Boise, Ida, Dec. IS. 1S96.-Dear Sir:
/ have this day appointed you as at
torney for your county. This appoint
ment is made to fill the vacancy
caused by the adoption of the amend
ment of the constitution providing for
such an officer. and in conformity with
the provision of the amendment which
provided for the office of county super
intendent of public schools, and states
that no other offices shall be estab-
lished.
In naming these offices, the office of
county attorney is named, consequent
ly, the Office not being a county office (
the commissioners cannot fill it by APP
pointment, and the duty devolves upon
me.
Hoping that my action may be
agreeable to you, and satisfactory to |
the people of your county, / am, with |
the compliments of the season,
VERY sincerely,
ssW. J. MCCONNELL, Governor
The state prison board held special |
session today TO consider the bid sent
in by Conley and McTague, the Mon
tana contractors, for maintenance of /
the penitentiary here. They offered to /
take the contract. including payment of I
all salaries and expenses incurred in I
running the institution. at the rate of /
471a cents per man per day for the first /
100 prisoners and As cents for all in ex-
cess of that number. 1t was rejected
and the matter of letting contract
lapsed so far as this administration is
concerned. |,