Office of Clerk of Board of County Supervisors, Washington County Wisconsin. } I, William Vogenity, Clerk of said board do hereby certify that the above is a correct copy of the original canvass of the third vote on county seat of said county, held January 1, A. D. 1849. SEAL. In witness whereof, I'have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of said county thisthird day of January, A. D. 1849. WM. VOGENITY, Clerk of said Board. Mr. Horn offered the following Resolution: Resolved, by the Senate, (the Assembly concurring), That the communication from the Secretary of State and accompanying documents relating to the last vote on the county seat of Washington county be referred to a Joint select committee consisting of the members of both branches of the Legislature from said county; Which was considered and adopted. The following message was received from his Excellency the Governor, which was read. EXECUTIVE DEPartment, To the Senate and Assembly: } Owing to indisposition I shall be unable to deliver my Annual Message to the Legislature in person, as I informed your committee on yesterday. I shall therefore transmit it to each House in writing, at twelve of the clock meridian this day. NELSON DEWEY. MESSAGE. Fellow Citizens of the Senate and Assembly: The representatives of the people have again come together to legislate for the welfare of the State, and to pass such measures as will advance and preserve their rights and prosperity. The condition of our State, in all its diversified interests, presents a gratifying spectacle of successful enterprise, and the abundant products yielded to the hand of toil, in all the branch es of labor, exhibits a capability of resources unsurpassed.Our population is rapidly increasing, and their indomitable energy is fast developing the productive capacity of the State in every branch of industrial pursuit. In viewing the prospects of our State it is a source of high gratification that we possess all the elements of State wealth, and of individual prosperity and happiness. All our great interests are advancing and being successfully extended. Recent discoveries have opened in various parts of the State, rich beds of iron ore which is said to be unsurpassed in quality and richness, and inexhaustible in quantity. The county of Dodge is the seat of one of the beds discovered, and is obtained with great facility. Furnaces are now in the process of erection at this mine, for smelting and manufacturing the ore. The country north of the Wisconsin river, is also said to abound in this mineral. Should the reasonable anticipations, as to the productiveness and value of these mines be realized, the advantage resulting to the State will be incalcluable, and another great interest will be added to its internal wealth. The National Government has recently effected a treaty with the Menominee Indians, by which their title has been extinguished to the country north of the Fox river, embracing all their lands in the State. This is an important acquisition, as it opens a large tract of country to civilization and settlement, and has been for a long time greatly desired by that section of country. These lands are said to be well adapted to agricultural purpos es, possessing a soil rich and productive. It has a salubrious climate; is well watered, with sufficient hydraulic power for all necessary manufacturing purposes, and abounds in fine timber which will add greatly to our lumbering interest. Our increasing imigration, and the adventurous enterprise of the American character will soon make these wilds of the Indian the happy homes of an enlightened and industrious people; and the trail of the savage will soon be turned into the pathway of civilized life. The unprecedented rapidity with which our State has been settled, the rapid development of its physical resources, and the intelligence of its people are subjects of a rational pride. From these facts it is evident that Wisconsin possesses superior natu ral advantages, and these advantages and to her liberal insti tutions, is to be attributed the high comparative position which she occupies among the new States of the federal union. The government of the Union and of the several States being based upon the principles of equality of rights, the great object of legislation is, to secure and preserve that equality, both to the States and to every member of the community. But while such is the basis of our national and State institutions, there is, incident to this, a principle of no less importance to individual happiness and the moral elevation of the people, that should not be lost sight of by statesmen and philanthropists, and that is the equality of the social relations. The equilibrium of the sonic! condition of the people is the greatest safeguard to the permanency of our institutions, and will produce the largest amount of individual happiness and prosperity.— The nearer the members of a community approximate to this equality in their relative condition, in wealth, in education, and in all the social duties of life, the greater will be the extent of their rational enjoyment. In enlightened Europe, where social inequality exists to an alarming extent, the amount of misery, want and depravity among the masses of the people is incredi ble; and the inquiry may well be made whether the present struggles in the European nations for the establishment of constitutional liberty is not more the result of this inequality than the unequal distribution of political rights. While our own country possesses an approximate equality as well in the social as the political condition of its citizens, it behoves those in whose hands its legislation is entrusted to take care that this equality is preserved as far as possible, and that the interests of the most humble are cared for. Whether positive and direct legis. lation can be justly applied to extend this equality, is problem. atical; but much may be accomplished by avoiding all class legislation, at the expense of the many for the benefit of the few. In your hands is entrusted the high and responsible duty of legislating for the good of the State, and by giving a liberal direction to its policy much may be done to secure the permanency of our incomparable system of government, and to promote the progress of social equality and political freedom. The term of service of one of the representatives of this State, in the Senate of the United States, will expire on the fourth of March next. The subject is brought to your notice that the vacancy may be supplied at your present session. The constitution, in the 11th article, provides that "corporations, without banking powers or privileges, may be formed under general laws, but shall not be created by special act, except for municipal purposes, and in cases where, in the judgment of the legislature, the objects of the corporation cannot be attained under general laws. From this clause in that instrument it is apparent that the power of the legislature to pass special acts of incorporation is restricted to extraordinary cases, and that every person who may wish to exercise corporate privileges should have equal access to them. This is a correct and just principle, and if any advantages are to be derived from the use of these powers every citizen should have the opportunity of availing himself of their benefits without the expense of procuring special acts of legislation. I therefore recommend such legislative action as will carry out the intent of this constitutional provision. The common law liability of the individual members of corporate bodies for the debts of the corporation is unjust and anti-republican. No sound reason can be adduced based upon natural justice or public policy why the liability of the members of an incorporated company for its debts should not be the same as that of the individuals of an ordinary copartnership. Should individuals, because they happen to be associated together as a corporate body in any business, be exempt from liabilities and duties which the law would impose upon them if engaged in the same business as copartners? Certainly, no well founded argument can be brought to sustain such a position. The liability in the two cases should be the same. If individuals participate in the profits and dividends of an enterprise they should likewise sustain its losses. The liabilities and duties of individuals should be the same whether acting singly or collectively, or as corporators or copartners. Any other principle is repugnant to the spirit of our institutions and is contrary to the doctrine of equality of rights. I submit to the wisdom of the legislature the justice of providing by law, that the members of a corporation should be responsible for its debts. to the same extent that copartners are for the debts of their partnership firm. The people, by their constitution, having determined not to carry on or engage in any works of internal improvement, except in cases where donations have been made for particular works, it becomes a matter of vital importance to the prosperity of the State, that the most effective system of opening, and improving our common highways, should be established by law. It is over these pathways, which traverse every portion of the State, that our surplus products find their way to market, and our foreign supplies are received from the navigable waters which bound us on either side. The importance of these channels of inter-communication have become more apparent during the last season from their almost impassable condition in many parts of the State. The improvement of the present manner of maintaining our public roads addresses itself with strong force to your consideration. Under the present laws, the revenue for this object is derived from a per capita tax, and by a tax levied upon the taxable property in the several towns and counties.These taxes may be discharged, by the persons taxed, in labor upon the roads in the proper districts, under the direction of a supervisor. The effect of this mode of discharging taxes is, that in some districts, they are when collected, paid into the county or town treasury, and are never expended upon the roads, and the resident tax payers too frequently perform their road labor superficially, which prevents the beneficial improvement of the highways to the extent reasonably to be anticipated from the system. Again, the ratio of taxation being equal in each town or county, the result is, that in some districts, where only a small amount of road labor is required, a surplus is raised which is unexpended, and in other districts, in which a large amount of labor is necessary to keep the roads passable, owing to the small amount of taxable property and the paucity of the inhabi. tants, a deficiency, of taxes for this purpose exists. It follows, therefore, that in some cases the roads are almost impassable. This system operates unequally and unjustly in many, if not all, of the counties of the State. The whole people being equal. ly interested in the public highways, the burdens of maintaining them should be equally distributed. Small districts should |