The bench and bar of Illinois - v. 1 Author:John McAuley Palmer Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHARIER III. THE SUPREME COURT—TERRITORIAL AND SUPREME COURT JUDGES. ON the 3d day of February, 1809, congress passed an act creating the territory of Illi... more »nois, and on the 7th day of March, in the same year, the president appointed Alexander Stuart, Obadiah Jones and Jesse Burgess Thomas to be territorial judges. The territorial legislature, at its session in 1814. passed an act to establish a supreme court for Illinois territory, which in many material points changed the judicial system adopted by the authority of congress upon the organization of the territory. The judges of the territory took emphatic ground against the law. they were requested by the legislature to state their objections in writing, which they did. They held among other grounds for their opposition, "That as the United States government, in pursuance of the ordinance, had established a court of general jurisdiction, and had reserved the right of appointing judges to conduct it, the territorial legislature, which is an inferior authority, had no power to change or modify it." They said "It would have been futile in congress to establish a court, leaving the power in other hands to establish a tribunal superior to it, which would be to annul it." The judges proceeded to argue at length in opposition to the bill; and the opinion was signed by Judges Jesse B. Thomas and William Sprigg. Judge Griswold, though absent, is understood to have concurred with the other judges. The governor (Edwards) favored the act, and he was requested by the legislature to prepare an answer to the objections of the judges, which he did. and his answer was spread at large upon the legislative journals. The reasoning of the judges seems to be solid and conclusive. "In view of the whole matter the legislature adopted res...« less