they do deny that the Legislature can rightfully prohibit the sale. If the Legislature can rightfully prohibit the sale, they can, by the same right, prohibit the use. The operation of the law, under the construction put upon it in several counties, is to prohibit the sale of spirits except for medical, mechanical and chemical purposes; and if the Legislature have the right to enact that it shall not be sold as a beverage, they may enact that it shall not be used as a beverage. This conceded, and the whole ground is abandoned to the enactment of sumptuary laws whenever a majority see fit so to do.

The ground upon which the friends of the law base the right to prohibit the sale, is that the traffic is immoral. That the Legislature have the right to prohibit and punish any immoralities, is not denied; but a question of morals cannot be settled by act of legislation, but THAT must still be regarded as moral, which has always been so considered. In short, a set of enthusiasts ought not to be permitted to establish a new code of morals upon which to base a new system of legislation.

It is understood that the existing license law was urged upon the Legislature by those who claimed to be the exclusive friends of temperance. The minority of your Committee are unable to discover that temperance has been promoted anywhere by the operation of this law; but that, on the contrary, in some of the counties that refused licenses the evil of intemperance has increased in consequence of the virtual absence of all laws upon the subject.

The minority of your Committee believe that the law in question has failed to accomplish the end desired by its friends, that it has promoted intemperance, that it is expensive in its operation, unnecessarily calls the freemen together to elect Commissioners, that in some counties it yields no revenue, that the total disregard of this law in large sections of the State is calculated to bring contempt upon all law, that it abridges the rights of the people, that it is unjust and unequal in its operation, and that its repeal is demanded by the people.

Therefore, in the opinion of the minority of your Committee, the bill entitled an act to repeal an act relating to licenses to Innkeepers and Retailers, ought to pass and become a law.

All of which is respectfully submitted.

BRADLEY BARLOW,

For Minority of Committee.

(I)

REPORT

OF THE MAJORITY OF THE COMMITTEE OF CLAIMS ON THE CLAIM OF GUY C. SAMPSON.

To the House of Representatives, now in session:

The Committee of Claims, to whom was referred the bill entitled "An act to pay Guy C. Sampson the sum therein mentioned," have had the same under consideration, and respectfully report:

That in pursuance of a resolution passed at the last session of the General Assembly, requesting the Governor to appoint some person to make a digested Index of such portions of the Revised Statutes passed in 1839 as have been altered or repealed, and of all public acts of this State passed since said revision, together with the laws passed at the last session; Governor Slade appointed and commissioned the said Sampson to prepare said Index; that an Index was made by said Sampson and submitted to the Governor for inspection; that, upon examination, said Index was rejected by him on account of its imperfections. Your Committee are of the opinion that the imperfections justified its rejection. They also believe that Mr. Sampson intended to perform his duty faithfully, and to make such an Index as was required by the resolution.

In the opinion of your Committee the bill ought to be amended by striking out the words "one hundred" in the 6th line, and inserting instead thereof the word "fifteen," and when so amended, they recommend the passage of the same. H. CLARK,

For Committee.

(K)

REPORT

OF THE MINORITY OF THE COMMITTEE OF CLAIMS ON THE CLAIM OF GUY C. SAMPSON.

The Minority of the Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill to pay Guy C. Sampson the sum therein mentioned, are compelled to dissent from the report of the majority of said Committee for the following reasons, viz:

It appeared before the Committee that Gov. Slade appointed Mr. Sampson, under the resolution of the Legislature of this State passed in 1844, to prepare a digested Index of all such portions of the Revised Statutes passed in 1839, as have been repealed or altered, and all public acts of this State since said revision, with the public laws passed at the (then) present session of the Legislature.

At the time of the appointment no direction was given to Mr. Sampson by the Governor, as to the plan of the Index or the manner of its execution, but a request that he would consult with D. P. Thompson, Esq. (who had compiled a Volume of our Laws, and made an Index thereto,) as to the plan and arrangement of the same.

Mr. Sampson proceeded with the execution of the duties of his appointment, and had frequent recourse to the aid and advice of Mr. Thompson, as requested by the Governor.

When the Index was completed it was forwarded to the Secretary of State, and by him to the Governor, for publication, in season to comply with the resolution under which he was appointed.

It further appeared, that said Index is now in the hands of the Governor, who has refused to deliver the same to Mr. Sampson upon his request.

It was in evidence before the Committee that the value of compiling Mr. Sampson's Index was seventy or seventy-five dollars.

But the Minority of the Committee would take the specification of one hundred dollars mentioned in the resolution, for compiling and publishing the Index, as the basis of compensation. It was proved to your Committee that the requisite number of copies of Mr. Sampson's Index could be published for the sum of forty dollars, which being deducted from the one hundred, leaves the sum of sixty dollars for the compilation. They would therefore recommend that the words "one hundred" should be stricken from the Bill, and the word "sixty" should be inserted in lieu thereof, and that, so amended, the Bill should pass.

P. C. JONES, for Minority of Committee.

(L)

REPORT

OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE VERMONT STATE ASYLUM FOR THE INSANE.

To the Honorable the House of Representatives:

Your Committee appointed to examine into the condition of the Ver. mont Asylum for the Insane, have had the subject under consideration, and respectfully report:

That having examined, under oath, the Auditor appointed by the Trustees of the Asylum, they find that the Trustees received,

By the Will of Anna Marsh,

Also for interest,

By sundry appropriations from the State,

That the Trustees have appropriated the same as follows:

Making in all the sum of

In the purchase of the farm of about fifty acres,

In the purchase of the first building, and lands adjacent

thereto,

In the purchase of springs and aqueducts,

In repairing the first building and additions,

In erecting the centre building and west wing,

In erecting the east wing,

In extending the west wing,

$10,000 00

819 70 23,000 00

$ 33,819 70

$2,705 40

3,504 98

550 00

3,560 65

12,399 67

7,769 87 4,654 82

The balance over the receipts, being

$1,325 69

has been paid out of the income of the Asylum.

We find the present state of the Asylum as follows, to wit:

Amount due the Asylum in good accounts,

$10,564 60

Deduct amount due from the Asylum,

9,528 66

We find, also, that at the last session of the Legislature, three thousand dollars was granted for the relief of the Insane Poor of the State, to be drawn by the Trustees in the month of August annually, with a provision that if, in any year, the expenses of supporting such Insane Poor at the Asylum, at $1,50 per week, including the expense of transporting at the rate of eight cents per mile, should be less than three thousand dollars, the Trustees should not, for such year, be entitled to a greater sum than the aggregate amount of said expense, That, on reference to the Trustees' Report to the Auditor of Accounts, it appears that the expense of such support and transportation, from the first day of January to the first day of August last, amounts to the sum of $4,930 78, which sum exceeding said appropriation, the Trustees have drawn said $3,000 and distributed the same for the benefit of the towns which have availed themselves of the provisions of said act. That 137 patients of this class have received the benefits of this appropriation, the annual expense of which, at the Asylum, WOULD BE about 10,000 dollars.

It is apparent, therefore, that the amount now appropriated will pay but about one-third of the expense of supporting the Insane Poor at the Asylum, and will hardly afford a sufficient inducement for the towns to send their Insane Poor there.

To secure the benefits of the Asylum to this unfortunate class, your Committee recommend that the annual appropriation be increased two thousand dollars, which would leave about half the expense to be paid by the several towns on whom their support devolves.

Your Committee, considering the large amount appropriated by the State, and the importance of the Institution, recommend that a Commissioner, residing in the vicinity, be annually appointed by the Legislature to visit the Asylum monthly, or oftener, and act in concert with the Trustees, and report to the Legislature annually the condition and management of the Asylum, with such suggestions as the interests of the Institution and the State may seem to require.

From the foregoing facts, the Committee find that the Institution is in a prosperous condition, and has been judiciously managed, and strongly recommend it to the fostering care of the State, for its influence in diminishing, in so great a degree, the volume of human misery.

All which is respectfully submitted.

GARDINER C. HALL, for Committee.