The daily sentinel. [volume] (Grand Junction, Colo.) 1893-current, 1904-12-02
proprietors
"UP A TREE"

"UP A TREE"
The common every day sort of a
man is about up a tree'' when he
reads the newspapers now days and
sees what the Supreme court of this
state is attempting to do. He has
been told and been educated in the
idea that his vote is irviolable when
he casts it and that 10 authority is
high enough to disposess him of that
great American privilege. But here
comes the supreme court of the state,
delegating to itself authority never
dreamed of by any other court in the
land. and takes under consideration
the matter of throwing out the votes
of fifty precincts of the city of Den
YER. By what stretch of the judicial
imagination they can SO interpret the
law as to believe they have authority
to undertake such a high handed pro-
ceeding, is what is puzzliuR people at
the present time.
q That the the common people are
yea- by year having less regard for
the law. as written upon the statute
books, is most apparent to almost
everyone who keeps in touch with
<eurrent events. They see the law
twisted aud turned to suit the con-
venienoe of almost anybody that has
the money to pay for the contortions
to which the law is put. both by
attorneys and by the judiciary. They
see that their votes arc of no moment.
when 1t is necessary to have them
thrown aside to accomplish a purpose
to suit the reigning power.
It is most dangerous to the welfare
of THE whole people, when the law
is fderided. When men have lost
all respect for the law and it's man.
dates then the time of peril is APP
preaching Laws of the present are
not made to simplify matters which
may come in dispute but to more
deeply entangh them.
The Colorado Supreme court has
been a law unto itself in its rulings
before and since the recent eleotiou.
Advanced and uRwarrauted mandates
have been issued therefrom. that any
lawyer will tell you has no precedent
in the acts Of any other state Supreme
court in the several states in the
American union. It has been gen.
orally believed that the Supreme
court was not a tribunal in which
the power lay to take the initiative
to prevent acts disregarding the law,
where punishment was provided and
which could be considered in the
trivial courts of the state. But the
supreme court of this state. guided by
Chief Justice Gabberu, seems to have
formed new code of procedure and
act as if they were a military tribunal
which not only stood as court of last
resort, but interpreted the laws in
advance for the peoples guidance.
1t seems to any conmoner. who
has the ability to interpret the text
of the law, If it happens to be writ
ten in understandable Anglo Saxon.
that the Supreme court of this state
is over-reaching lite constituted au-
thority which will find no precedent
elsewhere. and that unfortunately for
the inhabitants of the state the laws
Interpretation is all on the side OF the
rich and powerful and for the great
vested interests Of the state and is de-
livered as If there were NO other
rights to be considered.
If the Supreme court of this state
has the sole authority to cast out the
votes of any number of precincts. why
should state elections be held. why
not let the Supreme court in It's new
authority. assumed without the color
of authority or privilege in them
vested by the constitution, name all
the state officers?