Ex parte Mabry

Citations

• 5 Tex. Ct. App. 93

Syllabus

<p>1. Constitutional Law—Dog-Tax. — By the third section of the act of 1876, entitled “An act to levy a tax on the privilege of keeping or harboring dogs, and to provide for the assessment and collection of the same,” a failure to pay the tax imposed by the first section is made a misdemeanor. Se Id, that this provision is not in violation of section 35, article 3, of the Constitution of 1876, which declares that no bill shall contain more than one subject, which shall be expressed in its title, and that if any subject embraced in an act be not expressed in its title, the act shall be void pro tanto.</p> <p>2. Same. — The said act embraces but one subject, and the provisions of its third section are subsidiary to that subject, and are embraced in the title of the act.</p> <p>3. Title oe Acts. — It is settled in this State that the provisions of the Constitution in regard to the titles of legislative acts are mandatory, and not tnerely directory; but in the application of them a liberal construction obtains, with the view of sustaining the validity of legislative enactments.</p> <p>i. Constitutional Law. — The Federal government being one of enumerated powers, the constitutionality of an act of Congress is to be tested by the grant of powers contained in the Federal Constitution; but the State governments are presumed to be invested with general power of legislation, and, therefore, in determining whether an act of a State. Legislature is in violation of its Constitution, the inquiry is directed to the limitations imposed on the Legislature by the terms of the Constitution. See the , opinion in extenso on this subject.</p> <p>5. Habeas Corpus. — The writ of habeas corpus is not available to effect the purposes of an appeal, certiorari, or supersedeas.</p>