Tri-Weekly State Times. (Austin, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 18, Ed. 1 Saturday, December 24, 1853 Page: 3 of 4
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ler the direction of ,the
^ upon the petition of a Ma-
jority of the citizens of the county own-
ing the lands.
If such an amendment were adopted,
these lands might be subdivided into
small and convenient tracts, and each al-
ternate tract might be sold upon a long
tíredit, at no less than a minimum price;
the purchaser to pay an interest of six
per cent, on the amount of his pur-
chase, to be annually expended in the
same manner as the school money distrib-
uted by the State. By adopting this
policy, most of the counties would de-
rive some immediate benefit from their
school lands, and the alternate tracts re-
served from sale would much more rap-
idly increase in value.
The want of a good University in the
State, where a liberal education can be
obtained, is a serious inconvenience. It
should be our policy to furnish, within
our limits all the means for obtaining an
education, that can be had in any part
of the Union, so as to remove the neces-
sity of having to send our youth abroad
to be educated among those who are hos-
tile to the policy and institutions of the
State.
The present seems to be a favorable
time to lay the foundation for such an in-
stitution, and I respectfully recommend
that the sum of two hundred and fifty
thousand dollars of the United States
bonds now in the treasury, be appropri-
ated and set apart as a perpetual fond,
the interest of which shall be applied to
the erection and support of a State Uni-
vrrsity. The income of such a fund,
with the amount that may hereafter be
realised from the lands that haVe been
set apart by an act of the late Republic,
will, at no distant period, enable us to
buildup a University fully adequate to all
the wants of our State. I am aware
r that these lands were appropriated for
the establishment and endowment of two
Universities, but I suggest for your con-
sideration, that it would be better to have
one well endowed institution of the kind,
than to apportion our funds for the erec-
tion of two, neither of which could afford
the advantages which are furnished by
similar institutions in other States of the
Uqion.
Should such an appropriation be made,
it will be necessary to pass laws for the lo-
cation of the proposed University at some
central point, convenient to the entire
State, as well as for the erection of the
necessary buildings and for the organisa-
tion and government of the institution.
The establishment and endowment of
an Asylum for lunatics, and an. institution
for the education of the deaf and dumb,
are measures that should commend them-
selves to your consideration. Our cen-
sus tables show that we have in our
midst many of both of these unfortunate
classes, who have a claim upon our sym-
pathy and bounty, and who now have to
be sent away from their friends to dis-
tant parts of the Union, in order to ob-
tain the means of alleviating and improv-
ing their condition.
Institutions of this character cannot
be established in a State so new as ours,
except under the care and patronage of
the government, and I recommend that
the sum of five hundred thousand dollars
of the United States bonds be appropri-
ated and set apart as a perpetual fund,
one-half for each of these institutions, the
income of which shall be applied to their
erection and support. Should you con-
ear in these recommendations, you will
of course pass the necessary laws for
their location, establishment and govern-
ment.
These appropriations will absorb a
large portion of the United States bonds
now in the Treasury, but the objects for
which it is proposed to use them are of
great practical utility, and will be produc-
tive of benefits as lasting as the institu-
tions under which we live.
The improvement of our navigable wa-
ter-courses and the construction of rail-
roads are measures of great interest to
our citizens and have deeply engaged
public attention. Our past legislation has
frequently been directed to these objects,
b«t it has been productive of little if anv
a market, and we must continue to rely
upon them to a great extent for many
years, even if the construction of rail-
roads shall proceed as rapidly as is antici-
pated by their most sanguine friends. It
is believed that a moderate expenditure
of money by the government would great-
ly increase their usefulness and add large-
ly to the value of the taxable property of
the State. If such be the case, it cer-
tainly is an object worthy of our encour-
agement and patronage.
The advantages to be derived to our
State from the construction of railroads,
are too obvious to require demonstration;
the necessity for them is felt and acknow-
ledged by all, and it is a question of great
interest to our citizens to devise and ad-
opt some policy, by which we can secure
their construction at the earliest period.
The limitations imposed by the Consti-
tution upon the power of the Legislature,
precludes the State from undertaking
these
The rejection, at the late election, of
the raver bill of the last session, cannot
be fairly considered as an expression of
the people against the policy of attempt-
ing to improve our navigable rivers.—
That bill was defective in its details, Mid
made insufficient appropriations for those
streams that are susceptible of being im-
proved, while it contained many appro-
priations for objects of questionable util
ity. It should be borne in mind that our
ttfge river have, without any improve-
ment, hitherto furnished the means of
traamortific most of our productions to
improvements or becoming a part
owner of the stock of any corporation
created for that purpose. The active capi-
tal in the hands of our own citizens is in-
sufficient to secure their construction, but
for the attainment of this object, we may
hold out sufficient inducements for the in-
troduction of capital from abroad. It
cannot be disguised that the population
and business of the State are not such,
at this time, as to promise the return of
an immediate profit on the amount that
may be invested in such enterprises. In-
deed, it may well be doubted whether a
railroad in any section of the State
would, for the next five years,.pay an in-
terest of five per cent, on the amount in-
vested, in addition to the costs of repairs
and other expenses necessary to keep the
road in operation. If, therefore, we
would invite the employment of capital
from abroad, in railroads in this State, we
must hold out such inducements of ulti-
mate profit as will compensate the holders
of it, for the small interest they will re-
ceive during the first years of its invest-
ment. Fortunately, the large extent of
our public domain will enable us to do
this, without imposing any onerous bur-
den on our citizens.
I had intended on this occasion to pre-
sent you my opinions in relation to the
best mode of securing the passage across
our State of the proposed railroad to the
Pacific Ocean ; but this is now rendered
unnecessary by the bill which you have
already passed to provide for the con-
struction of the Mississippi and Pacific
Railroad. While the principal provisions
of this law are unobjectionable, I think
it might have been improved in some of
its details, particularly in that provision
which authorizes the company to receive
patents for the lands selected previous to
the completion of the entire road.
It is to belioped that this law will ac-
complish for the State all that is antici-
pated by its friends.
The duties and responsibilities imposed
upon the Governor under the provisions
of this law will be cheerfully undertaken,
and I shall endeavor to execute them in
a manner calculated to effect the objects
intended by the legislature.
In adopting any general system for
aiding other companies in the construc-
tion of railroads, we finid ourselves em-
barrassed by the numerous charters that
have heretofore been granted to individu-
als, without any specific designation of
the routes they were to pursue, who still
hold and rely on them, although not a
dollar of capital stock has ever been paid.
It is much to be regretted that instead
of granting charters indiscriminately to
all who applied, without any assurance
that the applicants were possessed of the
necessary means to comply with their pro-
visions, the State did not first locate and
survey such routes as the wants of com-
merce and the business of. the country
seemed to roquiro, and then grant char-
ters for these routes to companies who
should organise after a subscription of
stock, witli an amount actually paid at
the time of subscribing sufficient to show
an intention of prosecuting the work in
good faith. Had this course been pur-
sued, our statute books would not have
been encumbered with railroad charters,
many of them commencing nearly at the
same point, and conflicting with each oth-
er in the routes they propose to pursue,
nearly all of which have expired, or are
about to expire, without having accom-
plished atiythinh beneficial to the public.
In regard to such charters as have been
heretofore granted, I respectfully recom-
mend that no extension of time shall be
granted to any company, unless satisfac-
tory evidence is presented, that it has
I- ■ actually commenced the construction of
its road, and that a sufficient amount of
stock has been paid to give a reasonable
certainty that the road will be completed.
I would also suraest that, in all such
cases, the route and termination of the
road shall be designated, when this has
not been done in the original charter;
and if any further donations of land are
made to such companies, they should re-
ceive the patents only on the final com-
pletion of their roads.
In extending aid to future railroad en-
terprises, we ought to avoid the evils that
have attended our past legislation on the
subject.
I would suggest that all charters here-
after granted to railroad companies,
should specifically designate the route to
be pursued, as well as the commencement
and termination of the road. That they
should appoint commissioners to receive
subscriptions for stock, a portion of which
should be paid at the time of subscribing;
and whenever a reasonable amount of
stock has been Subscribed on, these terms,
the stockholders should be permitted to
hold an election and organize the compa-
ny. That the charter should also limit
the time within which the companies shall
commence their roads, and prescribe the
number of miles to be constructed from
year to year, until their final completion.
The State should grant bounties of land
sufficient to induce capitalists to become
stockholders in companies thus organized,
the land to be selected from time to time
as the road progresses, but no title to be
issued until that road shall be completed
according to the terms of the charters.
These companies should be required to
alienate the lands thus acquired within a
limited time after the completion of their
roads. Should this course be adopted,
the State would secure the construction
of valuable works of internal improve-
ments, before she parted with her lands,
instead of being liable to have the works
abandoned after those portions have been
constructed which promise an immediate
profit.
I would also suggest that the alternate
sections upon the line of the Mississippi
and Pacific road be granted to other roads
connecting this with our gulf ports, with
the Vickburg road and the New Orleans
and Opelousas road at such points as will
best accommodate the different sections of
the State. Such a disposition of these
sections is but just, since the portions of
the State through which these branch
roads are. to be built, will receive no im-
mediate benefit from the Pacific road un-
less they are thus connected with it.
In addition to the aid proposed to be
extended to railroads in the manner here-
tofore indicated, I think it would be good
policy to authorize the school fund, the
university fund, and any other funds that
may be set apart by the State for chari-
table and benevolent uses, to be loaned
out, from time to time, to railroad com-
panies, in this State, as they may pro-
Fess with the construction of their roads.
entertain no doubt in relation to the
power of the Legislature to make this dis-
position of these funds. The period is
not very remote when the United States
bonds will be redeemable, and necessity
will then for.ee us, if we would derive an
income from their proceeds, to make
some investment of them. If they can
be securely loaned out, so as to be used
in the prosecution of works of improve-
ment calculated to develop the resources
of the State, and contribute to the wealth
and convenience of our citizens, it is our
duty to make this disposition of them.
Should these views meet with your ap-
probation, I recommend that a board of
commissioners be established, to consist
of the Comptroller, Treasurer and Sec-
retary of State, who shall be authorized,
with the concurrence of the Governor, to
loan these funds at six per cent, interest
per annum, payable semi-annually, for a
period not exceeding twenty years, to
companies chartered b^T this S$ate, for
the construction of railroads and other
works of internal improvement. The
amount loanecf -to any company in no
case to exceed the one-third of the actual
cost of the works that have been con-
structed, and to be well secured by a lien
on the property of the company, subject
to be enforced* without a suit, by a sale
after sixty days public notice.
The condition of the Indian tribes with-
in the limits of our State calls for some
action on the part of the legislature. Our
situation in relation to this class of popu-
lation is different from that of any of the
frontier States of the Union. In these
the Genera] Government has the sole and
exclusive control of the public domain
over which the Indians formerly roamed;
and under the power given by the consti-
tution to Congress to regulate commerce
with the Indian tribes, that department
has assigned to them certain limits which
they are to occupy, and regulates all in-
\rn/U) fit am «nn ino wnifna
ceased for many years. The General Go-
vernment has the same power to regulate
intercourse with the tribes within our li-
mits; but it cannot be efficiently exer-
cised: because, having no right in the
public domain, it cannot set apart any
particular district for their occupation.,
and without this their movements cannot
be controlled. I respectfully suggest that
a portion of our vacant domain, remote
from the settled parts of the State, shall
be appropriated for the temporary occu-
pation of those remnants of tribes that
properly belong to this State; that all
locations within the limits thereof be pro-
hibited, and that a qualified jurisdiction
for Indian purposes be ceded to the Ge-
neral Government for a term of years,
provided she will engage to remove them
within those limits and keep them there,
subject to her laws regulating intercourse
with the Indian tribes.
The* business before the Supreme Court
1$ increasing so rapidly that it will soon
be impossible, with the present uumber of
judges, to dispose of the docket during
each term; indeed, the number of cases
now taken to that court is so great, that
many important ones are continued over
from term to term, for want of sufficient
time to give them that thorough investi-
gation which the vast interests involved
require at the hands of the judges. Much
of their time is consumed in preparing the
written opinions which they are required
to give in each case.. By increasing the
number of the judges, this labor will be
divided, and more time given to the ex-
amination and decision of causes. I there-
fore recommend an amendment of the
constitution, so as to give the legislature
the power to increase the number of the
judges to five. Should you concur in this
recommendation, I suggest that you, at
the same time, propose an amendment
giving to the Governor power to fill all
vacancies that may occur in the Supreme
and district Courts, and in the offices of
Attorney-General, District Attorney,
Comptroller, Treasurer, and Commission-
er of the General Land-office, by appoint-
ment, to continue in force until the va-
cancy can be filled by the people at the
next regular election for state or county
officers. Under the present provisions of
the constitution, should any of these offi-
cers die or resign, the office must conti-
nue vacant until an. election can be held,
which will take several months. Such an
amendment would obviate the necessity
that now exists for frequent elections at
different periods in the year, and subseve
the public interest b^ having these offices
temporarily filled, immediately on the
happening of a vacancy.
In connection with this subject, I feel
it my duty to call your attention to the
inadequate salaries now paid to the Judges
of both the Supreme and District Courts.
The duties of these offices are very labo-
rious, and they should be filled only by
men of stern integrity, and of superior
legal attainments. íjt would seem need-
less to argue that, in order to secure men
of qualifications adequate to the impor-
tant and laborious duties which they have
to perform, a just compensation should
be paid for their services. It miist be
obvious to all, that the present incum-
bents of these offices have never received
salaries commensurate with their labors
and merits. I trust that this subject will
not fail to receive your early attention
and efficient action.
Your attention is invited to the law re-
gulating appeals to the Supreme Court in
criminal cases, under the provisions of
which, in all cases, not capital, the pris-
oner, after conviction, by taking an ap-
peal, Is permitted to be released on bail.
For several offences persons may be con-
fined to hard labor in the Penitentiary
for fif|eei^ years; for others they may be
confined in like manner for life; still, by
this law, they, by taking an appeal, are
entitled to bail after they have been con-
victed by a jury, and thus in all cases, ex-
cept treason, and murder in-the first de-
gree, convicts have it in their power to
purchase exemption from the penalties
of our criminal laws. It is hoped that
this evil will be remedied without delay.
It is believed that an examination of
our criminal laws will show, that there
are some offences for which free persons
may be subjected to the barbarous pun-
ishment of whipping. These provisions
are inconsistent with the general spirit
! of our criminal laws, and ought not long-
er to be retained.
Our laws, both civil and criminal, in
my judgment, require a careful revision.
We have adopted, it is true, the best por-
tions of two different systems, but this
was not done at the same time, and it
was usuaily effected by crude and hasty
leer isla t ion; as a necessarv consequence,
system. Our rules of pleadings attdof
practice in the courts are meagre atífl ex-
ceedingly defective. 'Our statutes con-
cerning crimes and punishments were
often passed without reflection, many of
their provisions conflict with each other,
and these, more than any other portions
of our laws, require to be carefully re-
vised and amended. These are defects
which hasty legislation cannot cure.
I would recommend that you make a
suitable provision for the appointment of
a commission of three gentlemen learned
in the law, whose duty it shall be to pre-
pare a code of civil and one of criminal
procedure; and also a code of general laws
or rules of decision, and that ail these be
reported for the action of the next Leg-
islature.
Should this be done with ability and
care, our system of procedure might be
better adapted to the attainment of the
ends of justice than any other which has
been devised, and the whole of the rules
and principles of the general laws, which
are now diffused in an almost endless
number of text books and reports, could
then be contained in a single volume.—
This woúldbe accessible to all, and should
be adapted, as near as possible, to every
comprehension.
For the reasons mentioned above, it is
evident that there is a stronger necessity
for a revision and codification of our laws
than those of any other State in the Union.
Besides, we should deceive aid from the
lights furnished by the successful experi-
ments of several of our sister States. I
feel entire confidence in recoi
this measure, to your attention as one
culated to be productive of vast advan-
tage to the State.
Our territory is so extensine and so
sparsely settled that but littfó yet
known of its agricultural and mineral ca-
pacities. This must continue to be the'
case, if we wait for the slow process of
settlement to develope them. It is be-
lieved that an accurate and scientific ge-
ological survey of the State will disclose
sources of wealth and prosperity that
would otherwise remain unknown for
years; besides giving an accurate knowl-
edge of our mineral wealth and its locali-
ties, it will doubtless show the capacity
of our soil for the production of many
profitable articles for export, the cultiva-
tion of which is now entirely neglected.
By diffusing this information abroad, we
shall make known the great inducements
that our State offers to emigrants, and
insure a large increase of population. I
recommend this measure to your serious
consideration.
I think it important that provision
should be made for running and marking
the boundary between Texas and the ter-
ritories of the United States, from the
point where it leaves Red River to where
it intersects the Rio Grande. Ttifrdfety
might be imposed upon those who are se-
lected to make the geological survey,
without incurring much additional ex-
pense. The execution of any law that
may be passed on this subject would, of
course, be dependent upon a law being
passed by the Congress of the Uáited
States for the appointment of commis-
sioners on her part io join in the work.
It is believed that our Senators aad^itfe-
presentatives in Congress would have no
difficulty in procuring the passage of such
a law, if the initiatory step be taken on
our part.
The Penitentiary, as at present con-
ducted, is a heavy expense to the Sfate.
It is believed that if the building were
completed and enclosed with a wait ac-
cording to the original plan, and suitable
workshops erected, the labor of the eon-
victs might be let out to thé
der, for a term of years, for an
more than sufficient to re-imburse the ex -
pense of their maintenance. Under such
an arrangement, the contractors should
be required to employ the eonviets eit&er
in manufacturing, or at such trades as
would be least calculated to interfere
with the mechanical industry of the State.
It is hoped that this subject will receive
that attention from you which its impor-
tance demands. .
The laws granting pre-emption rights
to actual settlers upon the public domain
are somewhat obscure and conflicting in
their provisions. I think it advisable
that they be revised and so changed as
to grant to each settler only two hundred
acres of land. This is the quantity pro-
tected by the constitution, as a homestead
to pach head of a family, and is
wjruuurse ueiwc<*ij mem me «uivc?? iu^iatauuu , ÍK a nevtjtsstuy uuuseijuemjc,
and also between the different tribes. Cn. these different parts have never been
der this doIioy. Indian depredations havA i brouerht to combine into one harmonious
for farming purposes.
In connection with this
your attention to the
the right of aliens to Í
daily receiving large ——~
population, by immigration
countries. The «
grants, on their
■ Í MU
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Ford, John S. Tri-Weekly State Times. (Austin, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 18, Ed. 1 Saturday, December 24, 1853, newspaper, December 24, 1853; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth181721/m1/3/: accessed May 20, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.