Page:The History of Oregon Bancroft 1888.djvu/166

148 The result of the interference of the governor with legislation was to bring down upon him bitter denunciations from that body, and to make the feud a personal as well as political one. When the assembly provided for the printing of the public documents, it voted to print neither the governor's annual nor his special message, as an exhibition of disapprobation at his presumption in offering the latter, assuming that he was not called upon to address them unless invited to do so, they being invested by congress with power to conduct the public business and spend the public money without consulting him. But while the legislators quarrelled with the executive they went on with the business of the commonwealth.

The hurried sessions of the territorial legislature had effected little improvement in the statutes which were still in great part in manuscript, consisting in many instances of mere reference to certain Iowa laws adopted without change. An act was passed for the printing of the laws and journals, and Asahel Bush elected printer, to tho disappointment of Dryer of the Oregonian, who had built hopes on his political views which were the same as those of the new appointees of the federal government. But the territorial secretary, Hamilton, literally took the law into his own hands and sent the printing to a New York contractor. Thus the war went on, and the laws were as far as ever from being in an intelligible state,