NEW 1IAMPSIIIKK. 



NEW JEI: 



operation in August. The general purport of 

 th.< ohan e introduced by this act, and tho 

 range of tho jurisdiction belonging to thu 

 now courts established by it, appear from tho 

 tint three sections, as follows : 



faction 1. From and After tho time when this act 

 takes effect, instead of tho Supreme Judicial Court 

 heretofore existing, there shall be established in thin 

 State a Superior Court of Judicature, consisting of 

 one ohiut'und two sssooiate JostioM. to be appointed 

 and commissioned as pr.-.>eriln'd by tint constitu- 

 tion; also u Circuit Court, to consist of one chief and 

 uooiota justices, to be appointed and commis- 

 sioned in the same manner. 



Stcttoii -j. Said Circuit Court and tho justices there- 

 of shall have jurisdiction of all actions, appeals, pro- 

 .n.l matter* and things whatsoever, both civil 

 and criminal, now provided by law to bo entered at 

 or dnc, and which may be entered at or done, at 

 tho trial terms of said Supremo Judicial Court, and 

 also concurrent jurisdiction with tho justices of the 

 Superior Court of Judicature of all matters and things 

 which may now be done by any of tho justices of said 

 Supreme Judicial Court in vacation. 



section 8. Said Superior Court of Judicature and 

 the justices thereof shall have jurisdiction of all other 

 writ-', process, appeals, and matters and things what- 

 ;, of which said Supreme Judicial Court now 

 has jurisdiction, and also full power and authority to 

 do any act in vacation which the justices of said 

 Supreme Judicial Court or any one of them may 

 now do. * * * 



The greatest importance was also attached 

 to the legislative action on the bill ''to author- 

 ize the Nashua & Lowell and the Boston & 

 Lowell Railroad Companies to unite and be- 

 come one corporation," which was repeatedly 

 and warmly debated. When first put to the 

 vote, on July 7th, the bill was lost, but a mo- 

 tion to reconsider that vote having been, after 

 further debate, carried in the Lower House by 

 175 yeas to 132 nays, the bill was put to the 

 vote again on the 9th, and passed yeas 169, 

 nays 149. The Senate passed it on the same 

 day. 



The bill entitled " To restrain the sale and 

 use of intoxicating liquors in the State," which 

 was considered one of the most important sub- 

 jects acted upon by the Legislature during this 

 session, was, after warm and excited debate, 

 finally defeated. Though favored by a large 

 number of members, its passage met with such 

 decided opposition on the part of others who 

 were most friendly to the cause of temperance, 

 but maintained that this bill, notwithstanding 

 the words of its title were apparently in favor 

 of prohibition, was introduced, and its passage 

 strenuously advocated, in the interest of liquor- 

 dealers. After a long contest the vote was 

 taken, on July 9th, and the bill was rejected : 

 yeas 137, nays 155. 



In compliance with the terms of the act es- 

 tablishing the new judiciary system, which 

 took effect in August, 1874, the Governor and 

 Council appointed the six judges constituting 

 the two new courts, as follows: For the Su- 

 perior Court : Chief-Justice Samuel Newell 

 Bell, of Manchester ; Associate Justices, Wil- 

 liam Spencer Ladd, of Lancaster, and Francis 

 A. Faulkner, of Keene. (Mr. Bell graduated 



Dartmouth College in tho class of 1847; 

 IKK! represented New 1 lamp-hire in tin- 

 -ral I.ri*latiir.' ut Washington as A member 

 I the Lower House in tin- I orty-vecond Con- 

 gress, and, besides being a lawyer, is regarded 

 to be a railroad business-man, being president 

 of the. Suncook Valley Railroad, and a Director 

 in the Concord & Boston and Concord & Mon- 

 ttval kail roads. Mr. Ladd also graduated 

 IV. .u i Dartmouth College in the class of 1865, 

 and for several years has served on the bench 

 of tho old court to the acceptance of th-.- 

 bar generally. Mr. Faulkner is a lawyer <>t 

 abont fifty years of age, and enjoys* a distin- 

 guished reputation iu his profession.) For tin; 

 Circuit Court: Chief- Justice William Law- 

 rence Foster, of Concord; Associate Justin-. 

 Ellery A. Hibbard, of Laconia, and John S. 11. 

 Frink, of Greenland. (Mr. Foster is a native 

 of Westminster, Vermont, and has been on the 

 bench of the old court for many years, in 

 which ofiice he has proved himselt an able and 

 popular judge. Mr. Hibbard, born in St. Johns- 

 bury, Vermont, in 1826, has been a Representa- 

 tive from New Hampshire at Washington dur- 

 ing the Forty-second Congress, and soon after 

 the completion of his term was appointed to 

 fill a seat on the bench of the old court. Mr. 

 Frink is a prominent lawyer iu the county 

 where he resides. Mr. Faulkner, in the Supe- 

 rior Court, and Mr. Foster, in the Circuit Court, 

 are Republicans.) 



NEW JERSEY. The Legislature, which 

 assembled early in January, continued in ses- 

 sion till the 27th of March. Very little of the 

 legislation was of general interest. Several 

 amendments to the State constitution, reported 

 by the constitutional commission, were agreed 

 upon. Pursuant to the present constitution, 

 these amendments came before the Legislature 

 of 1875 for approval or rejection, in whole or 

 in part. Those concurred in by the members 

 of that body will be submitted to the people 

 for ratification or rejection, at a special election 

 to be held for that purpose within four months 

 after the dissolution of the Legislature. 



The provisions of the amendments of general 

 interest which were agreed upon may be 

 briefly summarized as follows : No county, 

 city, borough, town, or village, shall give any 

 money or property, or loan its money or credit, 

 to any individual or corporation, or own any 

 stock or bonds in any association or corpora- 

 tion. In the article on the right of suffrage 

 tho word " white " is stricken out, and, in or- 

 der to put an end to all question on woman 

 suffrage, the word "male," expunged by the 

 constitutional commission, is restored. In time 

 of war, no elector in the service of the State or 

 national Government, in the army or navy, 

 shall be deprived of his vote by reason of ab- 

 sence from his election-district, and the Legis- 

 lature shall provide the manner in which the 

 vote of such absent elector shall be received. 

 The Legislature may pass laws to deprive per- 

 sons guilty of the crime of bribery, of whatever 



