Year: 1865

islative Assembly for the State of California
will assemble at Sacramento. Two years
have passed since the meeting of similar
body, and much business of importance to the
State has arisen for its consideration.
The first business Of the session will prob
ably be the election to the United States
Senate of a successor to the Democrat who
has so long disgraced the State by occupying
a seat there, We hope to chronicle that the
action of the Legislature in this particular
will be such as to reflect credit upon ITSELF
upon the State, and upon the Senate OF the
United States. We hope to be able also to
chronicle in this connection that no improper
effort on the part OF candidates, by them
selves or through their friends, to influence
the vote of any member of the Legislature
has been made; in short, that the record Of
the coming Legislature may be unlike that
OF its predecessors under similar crcum-
stances


We would like to be able to write OF a
really honorable Legislative Assembly IN
California, where vices Of all kinds, when
existing, would be recognized as such, and
so treated. The offer to influence the vote of
"a member by bribe is IA crime under the
the law. The acceptance Of such bribe is
criminal under the law. and morally is
doubly so. We hope the incoming Legisa-
ture may be free from such charges.


The currency question will be agitated.-
Many who believe it to be to the interest Of
the whole State, Will advocate the repeal Of
the Specific Contract Law, believing it the
first and most necessary move preparatory to
the introduction Of the national currency as
the currency of this State. We are assured
that the bankers and brokers of San Francisco
and Sacramento Will spend large sums of
money to defeat the move to repeal. What
does this mean? Is there any argument, any
logic in the spending Of money to carry or
defeat measure before legislative body,
when the question itself is merely one of
right? 1t appears to US that the first step,
and the only one, to be taken by the friends
or opponents of measure is to prove, by a
iudicious arrangement of facts, that such a
measure is right or wrong. This can be done
without spending large sums of money. What
does a man mean when he says he will spend
a hundred thousand dollars to secure an cleo
ton to the United States Senate? Or what
does Il man or Sc: of men mean when they
say they will spend a like sum to carry a
certain bill through the Legislature? Why,
it all simply means that in their opinions
votes can be bought; that for coin or position
votes can be had and we regret to say there
are precedents to Justify such unscrupulous
men in saying what they do. May the pres
ent Legislature be an exception in the line Of
precedents.


Our statutes need revising and codifying,
and we hope the Legislature will take action
in that regard.


The mining interests Of the State should
receive a large share of the attention of the
Legislature. Laws should be passed regu,
lating the tenure and title to mining claims,
especially to those on quartz lodes. TIE
present system of leaving the matter entirely
to the first discoverers of Il mining district.
numbering from three to a dozen, to make
laws for the government of the district, is
not, in our opinion, the way best calculated
to produce the best results. The practical
result of such customs has been to delay,
rather than hasten, the opening of the mines.
Its tendency has been to discourage prospect
ing, and drive industry and capital to seek
other pursuits and localities for investment
A State law, declaring what should constitute
good and valid claim on quartz ledge.
would quiet title, do away with litigation,
and give such a certainty Of security in in
vestments as would largely increase the
mining population as well as the production
of the precious metals. The present system
permits men to hold miles of claims without
an effort, to the exclusion of those who would
gladly work them. The law should compel
every claimant to work or surrender posses
sion.