Affirmative.—Messrs. Sellman, Sollers, How-
ard Buchanan, Bell, Welch, Chandler, Lloyd
Chambers, of Cecil, McCullough, Miller, Grason,
Wright, Thomas, Shriver, Biser, Sapping-
ton, Stephenson, McHenry, Magraw, Nelson
Carter, Thawley, Gwinn, Stewart, of Balt. city
Brent, of Balt. city, Sherwood, of Balt. city
Ware, Fiery, Michael Newcomer, Brewer, An-
derson, Holliday, Slicer, Fitzpatrick, Parke and
Brown—37.
Negative.—Messrs. Chapman, Pres't, Blaki-
stone, Hopewell, Ricaud, Chambers, of Kent,
Mitchell, Donaldson, Dorsey, Wells, Randall,
Kent, Bond, Jenifer, John Dennis, James U. Dennis,
Williams, Hodson, Bowie, Tuck, Sprigg, Mc-
Cubbin, Bowling, Dirickson, McMaster, Jacobs,
Gaither, Kilgour and Waters—29.
So the amendment was adopted.
Mr. SOLLERS, before the vote was announced,
by the unanimous consent of the Convention,
stated his reasons for voting in favor of the pro-
position, He regarded the question as a mere
party question. He was as much a Whig as
any one; but he believed in one Democratic
principle—that when the people had signified
their will, their voice should he listened to. The
Governor of the State of Maryland had been
elected by the people for 3 years. That vote
should be respected. Even as a party expedient,
it would be unwise; for if a single month should
be abstracted from the term of the executive
elected by the people, they would either rein-
state him or one of the same party. Prescrip-
tion would not do. It would not suit the tastes,
sentiments and feelings of the people of the
State of Maryland. As a mere party question
therefore, he believed that he was subserving
the highest interests of the Whig party in voting
as he had upon this question.
Mr. CHAMBERS, of Kent, withdrew the amend-
ment offered by him.
The question then recurred upon the adoption
of the substitute as amended.
Mr. SPRIGG moved to amend the substitute
by striking out to the word " Governor," inclu-
sive in the 6th line, and inserting in lieu thereof
the following:
" The persons qualified to vote for Delegates
to the General Assembly, shall meet at the time
and places of electing electors of President and
Vice President of the United States, in the year
eighteen hundred and fifty-two, and at the same
time and places in every fourth year thereafter,
and elect a Governor—provided that the first
Governor elected under this constitution shall
not qualify until the expiration of the term for
Which the present Governor was elected, and
shall hold office for three years, and until his
successor shall have qualified."
Mr. SPRIGG demanded the yeas and nays
which were ordered, and being taken, resulted—
yeas, 31; nays, 38—as follows :
Affirmative.—Messrs. Chapman, Pr't , Mor-
gan, Blakistone, Hopewell, Ricaud, Chambers,
of Kent, Mitchell, Donaldson, Dorsey, Wells,
Randall, Kent, Bond, Sollers, Jenifer, John
Dennis, James U. Dennis, Dashiell, Williams,
Hodson, Bowie, Tuck, Sprigg, McCubbin, Bow- |
ling, Dirickson, McMaster, Jacobs, Fiery, Kil-
gour and Waters—31.
Negative.—Messrs. Sellman. Howard, Buch-
anan, Bell, Welch, Chandler, Lloyd, Dickinson,
Chambers, of Cecil, McCullough, Miller, Gra-
son, Wright, Thomas, Shriver, Gaither, Biser,
Sappington, Stephenson, McHenry, Magraw,
Nelson Carter, Thawley, Stewart, of Caroline,
Gwinn, Stewart, of Balt. city, Brent, of Balt.
city, Sherwood, of Balt. city, Ware, Michael
Newcomer, Brewer, Anderson, Hollyday, Slicer,
Fitzpatrick, Parke and Brown—38.
So the amendment was rejected.
Mr. JENIFER hoped the gentleman from Cal-
vert would acknowledge that every Whig in
the Convention had voted for the amendment.
Mr. SOLLERS said that he would do it with
great pleasure. He was glad to see that such
was the case, although the question was in itself
a party question. The vote showed conclusively
however, that the Democrats were as true lo
their party as they could possibly be. He would
now give notice that he should at some subse-
quent day, move to reconsider the vote of the
Convention just taken.
The question was then taken upon accepting.
the substitute in place of the second section, and.
it was agreed to,
Mr. SPRIGG gave notice of his intention at
some future day, to move to reconsider the vote
of the Convention just taken on the adoption of
said substitute.
The amendment was then adopted.
The 5th section of the report was then read.
Mr JENIFER moved the amendment offered
by him on the 8th of March, as follows :
See journal, page 419.
Mr. JENIFER said, although he intended to move
an amendment to this section of the report, he
wished it to be understood that in no event
should he vote for it, as he was opposed " in
toto" to districting the State for the selection of
a Governor. The system he considered wrong,
and the sooner abandoned, the better. The
Constitution provides that the Governor shall
be elected by the popular vote of the whole
State, and it is proposed to divide it Into three
districts, and the selection of the Governor to
be confined to each district alternately, thereby
compelling the electors to elect an inferior man
though a far more qualified one might be found
in the State at large. He should move to strike
out the whole section, in the mean time, he
proposed to render it more palatable and just,
by equalizing more nearly the three districts, in
the event this system should be adhered to.
Mr. JENIFER said, he desired to call the at-
tention of the Convention for a few moments to
the section as it then stood, according to the
census before them. The first district was the
Eastern Shore, the population of which was
130,000. Second, the western district, 175,000,
and the third, which included Baltimore city
and also the counties extending down the penin-
sula between the Chesapeake bay and Potomac,
which contained a population of 278,000. Now,
his object was to equalize these districts, if this
system is to be continued, by a different course |
