Railroad Company in their prospectus. Shall I ever forget the look of blank amazement on the faces of the Senators while the President's five minutes lasted, and he gesticulated and foamed! However, the bill was lost by a vote of 16 to 14; one Senator having "ratted" at the last moment, to the disgust of a large body of the members of the House, who were waiting to seize the bill and carry it up-stairs into their chamber. [Sidenote: _SOME LEGISLATIVE ACTS._] Among other resolutions carried was one in favor of woman suffrage--a triumph celebrated immediately by a supper and reception given to the members of the Legislature in the Opera-House at Salem by the ladies who had been pressing forward the resolution, and advocating it in some cases by a form of lobbying which, however legitimate, I should fancy some of the members must have found it hard to resist. Heaven forbid that it should ever fall to my lot to hold opposing views and bring forward hostile argument to a group of ladies whose heads were as full of logic and sense as their faces and forms of smiles and attractiveness! To give some general idea of the scope of the State legislation, let me quote the titles of a few of the acts of the session of 1878: "An act to amend an act entitled 'An Act to provide for the Construction of the Willamette Valley and Coast Railroad.' "An act to promote medical science. "An act to protect the stock-growing interests of the State of Oregon. "An act to regulate salmon-fisheries on the waters of the Columbia River and its tributaries. "An act to secure creditors a just division of the estates of debtors who convey to assignees for the benefit of creditors. "An act for the support of the State University. "An act defining the rights and fixing the liabilities of married women, and the relation between husband and wife. "An act to authorize foreign corporations to do business and execute their corporate powers within the State of Oregon. "An act to provide for liens for laborers, common carriers, and other persons on personal property. "An act to prevent the spread of contagious and infectious diseases among sheep." Before finishing this chapter I wish to add a few words on the judicial system of the State. The judicial power of the State is vested in the Supreme Court, circuit courts, and county courts. The Supreme Court sits at Salem, to hear appeals from the circuit courts. It now consists of three judges, elected in 1880 to serve six years, four years, and three years respectively, their successors holding office for six years. The State is divided, I believe, into five circuits, and for each a judge is elected to serve for six years. The circuit courts have all judicial power, authority, and jurisdiction not specifically vested in any other court, and have appellate jurisdiction over the county courts. [Sidenote: _COUNTY OFFICERS._]