| This amendment was not now in order. The amendment
of Mr. BRENT by ayes 26, noes 41, was rejected And the amendment of Mr.
DORSEY wag rejected. Mr. DORSEY offered the following amendment: No person
in this State holding any office or appointment under the constitution
or laws of the United States, or any of the officers thereof, shall give,
contribute or subscribe any sum or sums of money or other article of value,
to be used in any electioneering canvass, or to be expended in any way,
in relation to any election to be held under the constitution or laws of
this State, or ordinances of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, and
any person herein offending shall, upon conviction thereof, in a Court
of law, be fined and imprisoned as from time to time may hereafter be provided
by the Legislature; and be forever thereafter incapable of voting at any
subsequent election, and of holding any office or appointment of any nature
or description whatever, under the laws or constitution of this State,
or under the ordinances or authority of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore.
Mr. DORSEY stated that it was matter of public notoriety that officers
of the United States had been called upon to contribute to the expenses
of the elections. Levies were made on them, which they complied with under
the dread of losing their offices. He desired to extricate the United States
officers employed in this State, from this state of things, by exempting
them from these levies. He wished to prevent the United States government
from thus interfering with, and cor-upting our State elections. The question
was taken, and by ayes 40, noes 41 (after a second count) the amendment
was rejected. Mr. DORSEY offered the following amendment : ' No person
in this State shall himself or through the agency of others, receive, use
or expend any sum or sums of money, or other thing of value given, contributed
or subscribed by any person or persons whatsoever living out of the State
of Maryland to be made operative in any electioneering canvass, in relation
to any election about to be held under the laws or constitution of this
State, or of the ordinances or authority of the Mayor and City Council
of Baltimore; such person so receiving, using or expending, and each and
every of his agents therein, upon conviction in a court of law shall be
fined and imprisoned as the Legislature may, from time to time direct;
and be forever thereafter incapable of voting at any future election of
any nature or kind in this State, or in the city of Baltimore, or of holding
any office or appointment under either. Mr. DORSEY explained that this
amendment was intended to operate not only in the State, but on persona
out of the State, and out of the United States. In former times, with what
truth he could not say, we had heard of hundreds of thousands being expended
by British manufacturers, for the purpose of destroying ours. He thought
it right to punish any man who shall receive from any others, whether from
Presidents |
of the United States, or of foreign countries,
any sums of moneys for the purpose of bribing. Mr. MAGRAW moved (the usual
hour having passed) that the committee rise. The motion was rejected. The
question was then taken on the amendment of Mr. DORSEY, and by ayes 30,
noes 43, it was rejected. Mr. STEWART, of Caroline, moved that the committee
rise. The motion was rejected. Mr. DORSEY moved the following amendment;
Or appointment under the laws or constitution of this State, or the ordinances
or authority of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, or to vote thereafter
at any election therein; and the person to whom such bribe, present, reward,
promise or security may have been offered or given, shall be a competent
witness to prove the offence, and may be compelled to testify as such,
and if so testifying should he have received the same, he shall be exempt
from all punishment therefor, and the person by whom such bribe, present,
reward, promise or security may have been proffered or given, shall be
a competent witness, and may as such be compelled to testify, and if so
testifying, he shall be exempt from all prosecution or punishment for the
offence by him committed; provided always, that such exemption from prosecution
and punishment shall only be extended to that party who shall first appear
before the grand jury to testify against the other party, and that neither
party shall be compelled to give testimony unless protected from punishment
by the exemption hereinbefore provided. Mr. DORSEY said it had been alleged,
that it would be impossible to obtain a conviction in these cases, because
of the difficulty of compelling one of the parties to testify against the
other. Therefore, we proposed to exempt from punishment, the party which
would first give testimony for the conviction of the other. Mr. CHAMBERS
called for a division of the question (which was ordered) upon the first
branch of the amendment, ending with the words "at every election therein."
The first branch of the amendment was rejected. And the second branch of
the amendment was rejected. Mr. DORSET then moved to amend said report
by adding at the end thereof, as an additional section, the following:
It shall be the duty of the General Assembly of Maryland to pass laws punishing
with imprisonment as well as a fine, any person who shall remove into any
election district of Howard District or Anne Arundel county, or into any
ward in the city of Baltimore, not for the purpose of acquiring a bona
fide residence therein, but for the purpose of voting therein at an
approaching election, or who shall vote in any such election district or
ward, in which he does not reside, except in a case provided for in the
first article of this Constitution, or shall at the game election vote
in more than one of such election districts or wards, or shall vole or
offer to vote in any name, not his own, or in place of any |
