Year: 1873

nance has ever been held as binding as any
portion Of the Constitution. The Congress
Of the United States, in accepting the pres
ent Constitution, accepted everything in
proper relation thereto, and the election
declaration, under which the first election
Of State officers was held, says explicitly
when the term Of these officers shall CON-
mence. The Constitution fixes the term
to four years, and there is nothing in
the election declaration at all inconsistent
with It. The officers elected were to
hold for the constitutional term of four
years, beginning from the time of their
election, and no longer, except until their
successors were elected and qualified. Now
what are the facts in connection with the
Constitution and the law2 The present
State officials were elected on the third day
Of December, 1869, the end of the four
days election, and their terms of Office COM
mcnced on the day after and expired on the
third day Of December, 1878, that being
their full constitutional term OF four years.
Could anything be plainerl What right
have they to hold for longer term? Have
they not held Office for four years? This
must be admitted, but then the great Alex
ander says they were holding professionally
until the Constitution was accepted by the
Congress. We deny this. The facts show
the contrary. They did not go into their
respective offices and commence the duties
thereof by authority from the United States
or its military commander Gen. Reynolds,
and they can show no commissions to that
effect. They went into their respective off
-ces by virtue of their election, fraudulent
as it was, and if they were not acting under
that authority they were usurpers and their
acts null and void, as Alexander would say
with his usual parade of Latin, a5 initio.
Admitting that the sanction of Congress was
necessary to- the validity of the Constitu-
ton, the moment it was accepted it gave
full force and effect to it from the last day
of the election by the people of Texas who
adopted it, and full legality to the acts of
the State officials holding under it. Any
other view Of the subject would throw
everything into confusion, for the State
officials had no authority for the performance
of their duties save what the Constitution
and their election under it gave them. The
point made by the Attorney General, that
the Governor must hold under the Constitu-
ton for four years from his installation, and
that he was not installed until the twenty
eighth of April, 1870, is not defensible, be-
cause utterly inconsistent with the plain
words Of the election declaration, and be-
cause all parts of any legal instrument must
be construed so as to give full effect to the
plain intention Of its frameFs; and because,
further, the present Governor was actually
installed from the moment of his induction
into office, and the commencement of his
performing its duties That was the install
lation contemplated by the Constitution,
and the Radical Legislature, by putting off
the mere ceremony, could not prolong his
term of Office fixed by the Constitution. If
so. they could have put it eff for two years
instead of five months, and thus secured his
services for six years instead of four The
matter is too clear for discussion, and none
but an Alexander and the author of the
Texas Pleadings would undertake it. Of
the latter work our friend Brewster used to
say it was the finest comic production ex-
tant