FROM UTAH.
The Breach Between the Judiciary and the Mormons—Action of Gov. Cumming—More Shooting Affrays—The Pony Express.
Correspondence of the New-York Times.
GREAT SALT LAKE CITY, U. T.,
Tuesday, April 10, 1860.
The breach between the Federal Judiciary and the Mormons is daily growing wider. A few days since Chief Justice ECKELS, upon a petition for habeas corpus, released five prisoners that were con-fined in the Penitentiary by authority of a mittimus from the Probate Court for the County of Great Salt Lake, and consequently the Mountaineer, the tempo-ral organ of the Saints, in its last issue, abuses him with all the bitterness that a malevolent spirit and a devilish disposition could pour forth, calling him "the great ermined impediment to the execution of the laws," "the protector of thieves," &c. And as this rant may possibly mislead same of those who are un-acquainted with Mormon deceit and Mormon impu-dence, I will enter into a brief explanation, even at the risk of tiring both you and your readers.
The Territorial Legislature, by an Act approved Feb. 4, 1852, gave to the Probate Courts of the Ter-ritory the power to exercise "original jurisdiction, both civil and criminal, and as well in chancery as at common law." As the Judges of these Courts are ap-pointed by the Legislature, and perhaps at the behest of BRIGHAM YOUNG, these extraordinary powers were granted them that they might be used in white-washing Mormon criminals, and robbing Gentiles and emigrants of their property under the forms of law. The act of Congress organizing tire Territory, pro-vides that "the legislative power of the said Territory shall extend to all rightful subjects of legislation, con-sistent with the Constitution of the United States, and the provisions of this act." It has been repeatedly decided by the Federal Judges that the granting this extended jurisdiction to the Probate Courts was in-consistent with the provisions of the Organic Act, as it expressly says the District Courts respectively shall possess common law and chancery jurisdiction, and expressly granting it to them is held to be a vir-tual denial to all others. Yet, notwithstanding all this, the Mormons are determined to force this Court upon the people, and to that end the Legislature has never appropriated one dollar toward defraying the expenses of the District Courts, and of course, having no money, they cannot arrest nor detain persons charged with crime, and this is the precise condition that BRIGHAM and his myrmidons intended to place them in. Meanwhile, the Probate Courts arrest whomsoever they will, and with scarcely the for-mality of a trial, confine them in the Penitentiary, and the prisoners then petition Judge ECKELS for a writ of habeas corpus, which he is bound by statute to grant under penalty of a heavy fine, and when they are brought before him, finding that they are detained by authority of a Probate Court, he, of course, re-leases them, and thereupon the Mormons raise the hypocritical cry that he is preventing crime from be-ing punished, &c., whereas they never intended to punish criminals, except that they could pounce upon some defenceless person whom they could rob of a large amount of property; for when a war-rant is issued for the arrest of any one, the officer is also commanded to take into his custody all of the defendant's property, and what becomes of it after that, I have no doubt BRIGHAM knows. The whole thing is gotten up for effect in the States. They confine men in the Penitentiary know-ing that it is illegal, and that they will be released, so that they will get credit for attempting to punish crime, while the Federal Judiciary, by releasing them, will receive nothing but odium. Their trick ought to be exposed. It will cost no more to have criminals punished by the District Courts, in regard to whose jurisdiction there can be no doubt, than by the Probate Courts. Then why do they not furnish these Courts with means? Is it not fair to presume they will when they really want criminals punished? In other parts of the United States, when a question is once solemnly decided by the constituted judicial tri-bunals, the people acquiesce; but here Courts and their decisions meet with no such respect, unless en-forced at the point of the bayonet or the muzzle of the revolver. The Mormons trample upon them without the slightest regard. FRANK MCNIEL was once thus imprisoned, and last August, when he sued BRIGHAM YOUNG for the trespass and false imprisonment, he was shot down in the streets, and his murderer, to this day, has not even been arrested; and Judge SMITH, who sentenced the five men before mentioned, told AL HUNTINGTON, one of the five, that "if ever he at-tempted to sue him it would be the last time that either he or his lawyer would look upon daylight."
It is said that Gov. CUMMING, in company with some Mormon friends, spent almost the whole of last Thursday night in preparing affidavits to send to Washington in regard to the release of the five pris-oners above mentioned, strongly disapproving the Judge's decision, and asking for some kind of aid, but what kind he does not quite know himself. I would modestly suggest that if he had spent a few sleepless nights last Winter in trying to prevail upon the Legislature to pass an appropriation for the Courts, his time had been better employed, at least his exertions would have been quite as effective, and rather more consistent than his lamentations now are.
Two men were shot in Frogtown, adjacent to camp, last week, but neither are dead, though It Is thought and generally hoped that one of them, FRANK GARVY, will die. The other one is called "Cub" JOHNSON—he is only shot through the knee. If both die the com-munity will sustain no great loss, for they are worth-less fellows, and suspected for horse-stealing.
The troops are elated with the prospect of getting out of this benighted country, though all would be anxious to remain if they could get leave to punish the traitorous Mormons. This feeling is universal among them, and is incontestible evidence of the hos-tility of the Mormons to our Government; but as there is no hope of this during the present Administration, thay don't want to remain.
The Pony Express from the West came in last Sat-urday midnight, being four days out from San Fran-cisco; and from the East it came in at 5 P. M. on Monday last, being six days out from St. Joseph. It came in "on time" from both ways, and went on through like a flash. It is regarded by persons here who know what it is to cross these plains, as al-most the greatest private enterprise of the age; and, knowing the energetic character of its originator, but little doubt is entertained of its making the entire trip in seven days, before the expiration of the Summer. This will be in round numbers 400 miles per day, and is far beyond a parallel in history. RICHARD.
