The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-10-17
NEW COMMISSION
 ACT HELD VALID Judge Lane Rules On Interesting
 Case WILL BE APPEALED AT ONCE He Holds That the Act Is Not Private, Special or Local Law, as Con-
 tended By the
 Relator.
WILL BE APPEALED AT ONCE

yesterday morning in the circuit court in favor of the new police commission, and declaring the act of the legislature creating the new commission constitu- tional
 The opinion Is a lengthy one and covers the question from the viewpoint of both sides. The next step in the proceed ings will be an appeal to the supreme court. which will be taken at once.
 The decision of Judge Lane is as fol- lows:
 State of Alabam ex rel of F. F. saltsman,
 and F. F, Saltsman, relator, vs. John
 B. Weakley F. B. Yielding and George
 B. Ward, respondents. In the circuit
 court of Jefferson county, Alabama
 Text of Opinion.
 This is an information in the nature of quo warranto, by which it is sought to oust the respondents from the office of police commissioners for the city of Birmingham, and the petition is based upon the insistence that the act en- titled,
 An act to establish police commits sioners in cities of 35,000 population, or more, in counties of 125000 more pop ulation, and to define their terms of of- flee, duties and powers" approved March T. 1907, is unconstitutional, imperative and void, in far as the same relates to the city of Birmingham or it's police de- partment. This contention is challenged by respondents through demurrers as- signing numerous grounds. This state of the pleadings presents fairly and squarely the questions whether said act of March !, 1907. Is valid, and whether 1t has the effect of repeating the former
  police commission for said city. So I will consider the question in the two phases and in the order above stated.
 The powers of the legislature as to all the functions of government are abso- lute and plenary, except the restraints and limitations put upon such nbwers by the federal and state constitutions. Dorman vs. the State, 34 Alabama, 216.
 It is the duty of courts, when they can do so with liberal but reasonable con- struction, to hold that statutes are with in the range of constitutional power, and not to capriciously or arbitrarily assume that a coordinate branch of the gov ernment has violated the fundamental law of the land. In construing d statute as- sailed for unconstitutionality, the courts have naught to do with questions of right, morality or justice-their sole con- cern being to determine the validity or invalidity of the law in question. Dorman Vs. the State, supra
 Questions of constitutionaiity should al- ways be approached with caution and ex- amined in every respect, and a law should not be pronounced invalid until it is clear that the constitution and the statute cannot co-exist. Mayor of Mobile vs. Stonewal Insurance Co., 53 Aa 525
 IT, however upon due and deliberate consideration, it is clear that the Iegisla- ture has transcended its authority, it Is the solemn duty of tho court to declare the act unconstitutional. The judge stand ing as an impartial arbiter between the coordinate departments of the govern ment should not shrink from his duty to pronounce sentence of nullity when thoroughly convinced that the statute is invalid. Sadler vs. Laugham, 34 Ala, 322
 Legal Questions Involved.
 Now, keeping constantly in view these fundamental principles of statutory con struction, I will proceed to consider the legal questions involved. It is contended by the relator, with forceful reasoning that said act Is a private, special or local law, and that no notice of intention to apply therefor having been given, as re- quired by section 106 of the constitution it Is imperative and void. It Is argued that the act merely having the form of general law does not make it so and that contention is sound so to deter mine the character of an act it's sub stance, rather than Its form, must be considered. The constitution cannot be eyaded by dressing up special laws In the garb and placing them under the guise of general statutes. Lewis Sutherland on statutory construction. Vol. l, second edi- ton, 359.
 So, too the status of the statute is to be determined not by the title, but by the body of the act. Verges ys Milwal1- kee county, 116 Wis, 191
 Now, scanning and scrutinizing the sub- stance of the act, is it public or private act? In construing the act the court must be guided by the provisions of the act itself, and not by extraneous facts or circumstances As is well said by the su- preme court, The act itself is the last expression of the Legislative will and for its intent and meaning we must look to the instrument itself" The motives which superinduced its passage are not matters of judicial inquiry Hawkins. treasurer, vs. Roberts & Son, 122 Ala. Al.
 For an act to be general, it is not neces- sary for it's provisions to apply to every person or to every locality. It would be difficult to frame many laws to so apply. The validity of laws affecting married women or minors, or ex-Confederate sol dfers, etc, has never been called in aues- ton; nor could it be successfully: and yet they do not apply to thousands of the states population. Many kinds of busi- ness, such as railroads and manufactures are regulated by statute, whereas they may not be conducted in many localities in the state. The state vs. Nelson, 26 l.. R. A, 3l9.
 Can 1t Exist?
 The question is not does the subject matter exist in all localities, but can 1t so exist Thesstatute is general whenever it operates upon all localities that may be brought within the relations and cir cumstanees for which 1t provided. Lewis Sutherland on statutory construction, Sec. 191.
 If the ground that the law is special. private or local, because Jefferson is the only county having 125.00O population is well taken, it would be equally so if there were 40 such counties containing 125O00 population, each with cities of 5000 peo- pie, for In that event 1t would not apply to every locality in the state. If a law has characteristics so distinct as reason- ably to form, for the purpose legislated upon, class by itself the law is general. notwithstanding the present operation is upon a single class. It is sufficient if every class that can be brought within it's predicament becomes subject to it's Law Repts., 133.
 It Is argued with great force and earn estness by relator s counsel that said act is cioaked as general law not for the purpose of benefiting all the people or all