A State Officer In Trouble

From the Free Press we copy the fóllowiug legislativo prooeedings, whioh took piad in the House on Friday last: Mr. Grosvonor presented tho following potition, which ho said had been hm led to him upou entering tho hall this morning: To the Honorable the House of Ropresentativos of the State of Michigan : WhêrtO, lt is susceptible of proof that Chas. A. lidmonds, Cmimissioner of the State Land Office, has violatod act No. 71) of the session laws of 1871, which provtfes that tho drankennou ói uuy panon hold ing oflico undor the Constitution or laws of this Btatf, tthall be good cause fot the rumuval from office by the authority and in the manner providod by luw and Wtureat, l'he Conatitution makes the IjOgislature the ouly body having control of this law as regarda ;i State üfficer, or who can exnc;ute the saine when it is in se.-siiiu ; and, WTisrtaê, We bclievo tbis law was enactod to the end that the poople of this State might not be made to endure tho disgraco of the continuance in public office of men addioted to the uso of intoxi:ating liquors to oxcess ; and, Whereas, The too freo uso of liquor leads to othcr debauoheries 3nd excesses in violatiou of good order, and disreputable to the partíoipaut, bringin"; disgrace upon himself and thus upou those who liavs confidod tho public trusts to hun, of which debaooheriea and excessos itcan be proren by undoubUyl testimony that Mr. q Imonds is ffuilty ; und, Whereas, SLr. lidmonds has in his e:uploy as clerks in the State Land Offlue uw who publicly viólate the laws of gooi order und decêncy, and who uso iutoxicating liquors ; thoreforo, To the end that the law passod in 187 may uot bo a dead lotter on our Statut books, and the people forjed to endur tho disgrace of having süeh wen in pub lic plaees whörs they are compelled t como in couttot with thom and be sub jeoted, whi'UL'vor b4te or eftvy díctate, t tho dauming words gathered from th hauuts of vice aud iniquity, whioh suc men storo up froin the debaucheries i whioh they iiululgj, mul low character with whom they associato, we ask tha the Legislature tako the proper steps t enter into a full investigation of this sub ject, and if tho ohargas of drunk nnes and othei' misdemuanors erin bo prove agaixtst said Uhaé. A. E lm jn ds, that h be at onco removed from tho position o Oommissioner of the State Land Office And your putitioucrs will over pray. J. H. B. The putition is signcd by J. H. B.u tholornoW and twonty-five othor oitizei of Lansing, and on motion of Mr. Fento it was ordered printed in th= jouraal. Mr. Grosvenor asked unanimous con sent to introduce thu following resolu tion : Resolved, That the petition and eom plaint of J. H. Bartholotuew and twenty hvo otherg, oitizeaèof the city of Lansinj against Ch:w. A. Eimonds, Cormnissiono of tho Btate Land Office, be and the s;im is heroby referred to a select committeo o threo, with instructions to inquiro int thu probable truth or falsity of the com p'aint, an 1 report tiioroon to the Ho:s with all emvenient sp;ed, the rosul.t o these deliberations, and wbether the saic Char'.es A. Eduiondsought tobuimneach cd by tiiis House, to tho end th:tt I13 m_ be removed from the said ofti :ü of Gom niissiouer of the State Land Offioe; m; if, in their opinión, the complaint is wo' fouaded, that they roport to the House i form charges and specifications thereon with the view of a trial befóte the Senat as oonteoaplated by art. 12, sections 1, and .'S of the Constitutioii of this State and forther, for tin; purpose of whioh in quiry and inveitigation such coiumitte is horeby authorizod and empowerod to Sfind for p 'i'soris and papers, and examin witqesses touching tho matter of suc complaint. Mr. Fonton moved that tho numbor o the prOposed committee be incroasod t five, which was agreed to. Mr. Huston said lie had propared reso lutions with tho saine view, and, as the; erabracod other mitters, involving an in veptigation into tho couduet of the offic under Mr. Edinonds, which, he had fre quontly heard from various quartnrs o the State, had boen very corruptly admin istered, he offered theso as a substitute. - He knew of many settlers upon swam lande in Tuscola and Sanilac Countie wlio had lived upon thoso lands for ful fivo years ; somo of thom had cleare( farms as large a-i fifty acres, and had pu up good farm liouses, and whoscland bad been sold at this office and their right takou away from them through collusioi 011 the pirt of thoso in charge Hu saic further that it is belierved that tlio Com missioner of tho State Land Office ha shared in the pvofits of these trausaetions Mr. HostOQ related an instanco ot a mai whom he knew, who had lived upon hi farm five years and three months, had a familj' of live or six childron ; that thro an ovorsight ho had nealected to file a surporvisor's certifícate within 3 month after moving upon the land; that in con seqoenee f this informality a man fron Coid water (Mr. Edmonds' home) hac spied out tho facts and looked up the records ; liad bought the land of tin; Oommissioner, sold it to a firm in Pontiac who, ia turn, had disposed of it to partiei in New York, and thoy have now brouj-h action in thu United States Court, at Detroit tor tho purposc of ejeoting this pooi farmer and gcttiiig poggession ot' nis proporty, wIkko only fault was a nogloet to oomply with a toohnical requ roment of the Swamp Land law. Upon applying to tbc partios wlio hold the above titli-, the poor man was informed that thoy knew he was in possossion, butit made no diffurence ; if, however, ha would pay them $(300 thcy would give hitn a deed of it. This was bnt ono of the many cases, and whetherthe Commissioner W88 guilty of taking a gbare of the=c iniquitous traasactions, instoad of loo'.cing out for the rights of the settlei's, it was cctainly timo tiiat he knew of theso robberies, and sliarks that w.ire hanging about his olfic-e for this purpose. Mr. Giosv. nor supported his resolution and oren l that it with the pstition covered all tho ground nonossmy, to inc'ude all conduot in tho office, in thu word " misclemeanors," which was vory broad and comprehensivo. He thouht also that this p.:tition of citizons should receive immediate nttmtion. TIn' matter was discussod by Messrs. Riford, Huilbut and Cinnoron, when tho Substituto was lost - 20 to 43. The original motion was adopted and the Speaker appointed Messrs. Grosvenor, Hust'Hi, Adnms, Millington and Adam as tho Cummittee of Investigation.