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JOHN A. KERR & CO., PRINTERS TO THE STATE.

GOVERNOR'S MESSAGE.

Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives: In assuming for the second time, at the call of her people' the functions of Chief Magistrate of this prosperous Commonwealth, I tender to them, through you, my gratitude for this renewed expression of their confidence; and, while receiving with respect this marked token of approval in the past, and acknowledging its generous evidence of trust in the future, I would express my abiding sense of the responsibilities which the position imposes, and repeat my pledges to labor constantly for the promotion of the public welfare, and to be guided in the discharge of my official duties solely by the deliberate convictions of right.

In obedience to the Constitution and laws of the State, you are now assembled, as the Representatives of the people, for the purpose of enacting such laws as the public interests demand; and such also as are required to preserve and maintain individual rights, to secure public order and tranquility, and to promote the prosperity and happiness of the people of Michigan.

Upon thus assembling, I am required, not only by the express provisions of the Constitution, but by custom, to give information by message of the condition of the State, and recommend to you such measures as I shall deem expedient. In the acceptance of our respective trusts, we have given our constituents assurance that they shall be faithfully and conscientiously discharged; and that the official authority thus conferred, shall not be abused nor used for any other purpose than that of securing and maintaining the geueral good. Let a consciousness of this obligation inspire us at all times and under all

circumstances, with an unyielding purpose, to remain firm in the discharge of duty, and to deliberate carefully, yet earnestly and promptly, upon every subject submitted for consideration.

But standing here, as we now do, upon the very threshold of another legislative term, and before proceeding to the performance of its obligations, let us remember our dependence upon Him, who is not only the Ruler of the Universe, but the lawgiver of all nations, and from whom cometh all knowledge and wisdom. Let us now, and at all times, invoke His aid, for He alone can guide us aright in the hour of doubt and difficulty.

When these halls were last occupied by Representatives of the people of this State, a fratricidal war was raging in our land. Rebels and traitors, with deadly hate, had conspired to destroy the Union, and as a consequence, to overthrow our Republican Institutions, which have made Michigan, with her sister States, not only a great nation, but a prosperous, peaceful and happy people. The public mind was then anxious and troubled, and deeply solicitous for the future. But by the help of Heaven, and the strong arms and unyielding wills of the loyal and patriotic men and women of Michigan, and of the nation, this enemy to our liberties has been subdued, and his fell purpose defeated. The roar of cannon and the strife of war are no longer heard in our land; and our hearts are no longer pained with the repeated news of the carnage of battles and the slaughter of our true and gallant fellow-citizens-the patriot soldiers-who so nobly and generously, at the hazard of their lives, volunteered their services to preserve the altars of Liberty, and to save from destruction a nation of Freemen.

We have also been preserved, by a beneficent Providence, from the ravages of contagious disease; and pestilence has not been permitted to visit us. The work of the laboring man, and the toils of the husbandman and of the artisan, have been abundantly rewarded; and the tradesman and professional man have also shared in the general prosperity. Peace has succeeded war at home, and we enjoy friendly relations with foreign powers. Let us seek, then, to merit a continuance of

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