Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1901-11-19
ON Strong FOOTING
.BAILIFF ACT VALIDITY
ESTABLISHED IN Law
Ruling Of Judge Humphreys Was
Based on q Decision Of the
United States Supreme
Court.


denying the motion on behalf of Will |
panels of the present term Of the First
Circuit Court. was based on the follow
ing decision OF the United States STU
preme Court in the case Of Field VS..
Clark. 1i3 U. s., page 6i7. viz:
The signing by the Speaker OF the
House of Representatives and by the
President OF the Senate, in open ses-
sion, OF an enrolled bill. is an official
attestation by the two Houses Of such
bill as one that has passed Congress:
and when the bill thus attested re-
ceives the approval of the President,
and is deposited in the Department Of
State according to law, its authentica-
ton as bill that has passed Congress
Is complete and unimpeachable."
This case was cited and approved In
lG2 U. s., page 5i7 in case which
went up from Arizona Territory. where
the provisions of the Organic Act are
substantially the same those of Ha-
wall.
! The following passages are from tho
body of the decision in Field VS.. Clark.
Il quotes Mississippi decision,
where, after a careful analysis Of the
adjudged cases the court said: Every
other view subordinates the legislature
and disregards that cocqual position in
our system of the three departments OF
government. If the validity of every
act published as law is TO be tested by
examining its history, as shown by
: the journals of the two houses of the
Legislature, there will be an amount OF
; litigation, difficulty and painful uncer.
tainty appalling in its contemplation
( and multiplying a hundredfold the al
, legged uncertainty OF the law. Every
suit before every court. where the
validity of a statute may be called In
question as affecting the right of a
litigant, will be in the nature of an APP
. peal or writ of error or bill of review
for errors apparent on the face of the
legislative records. and the journals
must be explored to determine If some
contradiction, does not exist between
the journals and the bill signed by the
presiding officers of the houses. What
is the law to be declared by the court
II must inform itself as best II can
what is the law. II II may go beyond
the signed and enrolled bill and try its
validity by the record contained in the
journals. II mast perform this task AZ
/. often as called On. and every count
must do 1t. A justice of the peace
. must do II, for he has as much right
E and is as much bound to preserve the
constitution and declare and apply the
law as any other court, and we will
/ have the spectacle of examination OF
journals OF justice of the peace. and
statutes declared to be not law as the
result of their journalistic history. and
the circuit and chancery courts will
, be constantly engaged in like manner
and this court, on appeal, have often
to try the correctness of the determine
ton of the court below, as to the con.
clusion to be drawn from the legisla.
tive journals ON the inquiry as to the
validity Of the statutes thus tested.
Let the courts accept as sta.
- tutes. duly enacted, such bills as ar,
delivered by the legislature as theii
> acts authenticated as such In the pre-
Q scribed mode"
Weeks VS.. Smith. 81 Maine, Is mex
: quoted, thus: Legislative journals
y are made amid the confusion of dis
u patch Of business. and, therefore
much more likely to contain errors
e t!,an the certificates of the presiding
s officers are to be untrue. Moreover
Q public policy requires that the en-
n rolled statutes Of our State, bear upon
their faces, should not ie put In ques
tion after the public have given faiti
n to their validity. No man should b,
required to hunt through the Journals
J. of legislature to determine whether
u statute, properly certified by tn,
p speaker of the house and the president
!, Of the senate and approved by the gov
ernor, Is a statute or not. The enrolled
act, If a public law. and the original Il
a private act, have always been held IN
X England to be records of the highest
order. and, II they carry no dealt
wounds In themselves. to be absolut,
< verify, and OF themselves conclusive"
The Bailiff Act, attacked by the mo-
ton, Is under this Federal decision
A proof against subversion.
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