587

Mr. Bowie, moved as a substitute for said amendment and sec
tion, the following:

"Section 9. There shall be a county court in each county of the
State, and for this purpose the State shall be divided into thirteen
inferior judicial circuits, of which Allegany county shall be the
first, Washington county the second, Frederick county the third,
Baltimore county the fourth, Prince George's county the fifth,
Carroll and Harford counties the sixth, Montgomery and Howard
counties the seventh, Calvert and Anne Arundel counties the eighth,
Charles and St. Mary's counties the ninth, Cecil and Kent coun
ties the tenth, Queen Anne's and Caroline counties the eleventh,
Dorchester and Talbot counties the twelfth, and Worcester and
Somerset the thirteenth; and one person from among those learned
in the law, having been admitted to practice the law in this State,
and who shall have been a citizen of this State at least five years,
and above the age of thirty years, at the time of his election,
and a resident of the said judicial circuit, shall be elected from
each of said circuits by a plurality vote of the legal and qualified
voters therein, as a Judge in and for the said judicial circuit, who
shall hold his office for the term of ten years from the time of his
election, or until he shall have attained the age of seventy years,
whichever may first happen,and be re-eligible thereto, until he
shall have attained the age or seventy years, and nor after; subject
to removal for incompetency, wilful neglect of duty, misbehaviour
in office, by presentment of a grand jury and conviction of a petit
jury of the county in which he may reside, or by the Governor,
upon the address of the General Assembly, two-thirds of the mern
bers of each House concurring in such address. The salaries of
the judges of the said Judicial circuits shall be two thousand dol-
lars annually to each,and shall not be increased or diminished during
their continuance in office. They shall reside respectively in the
district from which they were elected, and shall hold in each and
every year, at such times and places as may be prescribed by law,
and attend at the Court House of each county in said district, as
often as the Legislature may prescribe for the transaction and
dispatch of Judicial business;"
Which was read.
Mr. Thomas, moved to postpone the consideration of the 9th
section and amendments and take up the 10th section of said re
port;
Determined in the affirmative.
The 10th section of said report was then read
Mr. Thomas, moved to amend said section by striking out from
the word "law" in the 5th line, these words
"They shall also have exclusive jurisdiction in all matters rela
ting to last wills and testaments, executors and administrators and
guardians, within their respective limits, and all and ever other
power which the orphans courts of title State now have, or which
may be hereafter prescribed by law ;"