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Proceedings and Debates of the 1850 Constitutional Convention
Volume 101, Volume 1, Debates 158   View pdf image
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168

correct an error in Mr. SriFBENSON'areaolution,
was approved. '',
Mr. PRESSTMAN offered the following order
which was adopted :
"That the committee on the Judiciary inquire
into the propriety of reporting a provision that
the rights and interests of parties to a suit shall
not be affected by any law passed during the
pending of said suit in any court of law or equity
in thisBtate."
The PRESIDENT announced that reports of com'
mittees were now in order.
No reports were made.
Mr. MICHAEL NEWCOMER, presented a peti-
tition of sundry citizens interested in the inspec-
tions of Tobacco, Flour, Liquors, Fish, Lumber,
Wood, Anthracite and Bituminous Coal, Planter
of Paris, Lime and Guano, praying that the prin-
ciples of a free inspection may be engrafted in
the Constitution.
The petition was read and referred to the com-
mittee on Inspections.

BOOR Of MKET1NB.

The PRESIDENT announced the unfinished busi-
ness 'of the morning hour to be the resolution, of-
fered by,Mr.STEPHENSONyesterday,(as amended,)
which provided that from and after Monday next,
the daily hour of the meeting of the Convention,
sha) I be ten o'clock.
Mr. SAPPINGTON, suggestingjsome doubts as to
the presence of a quorum, moved that there be a
call of the Convention.
The motion was agreed to.
And the roll was again called.
A quorum having Been ascertained to be pre-
sent,
On motion of Mr. BaowN, all further proceed-
ings on the call were dispensed with.
And the question recurring on the adoption of
the resolution,
Mr. JOHN NEWCOMEE asked the yeas and nays,
which were ordered, and being taken, were yeas
43, nays 26.
So the Convention decided that from and
after Monday next, the daily hour of the meeting
of the Convention should be ten o'clock.
Mr. BROWN said that as there seemed to be no
morning business before the Convention, he
would move that the Convention resume the
consideration of the unfinished order of yester-
day.
The motion was agreed to.

THE BILL OF RIGHTS.

The Convention thereupon resumed the con-
sideration of the report of the committee on the
declaration of rights of the State of Maryland,
The pending question was on the amendment
offered by Mr. CHAMBERS, of Kent, to the amend-
ment of Mr. PRESSTMAN.
Mr. FIERY said, that if the gentleman from
Baltimore county, (Mr. Ridgely,) did not desire
io speak,, he, (Mr. F.,) would move the previ-
ous question..
Mr. SPENCER sujzestad that as be understood,
flie gentleman'fromWorcester, (Mr. Dirickson,)

was entitled to the floor, that gentleman haying
yielded to a motion to adjourn by the gentleman
from Baltimore city, (Mr. Brent.)
rtjMr. DIRICKSON. I believe that the gentleman
from Queen Anne's (Mr. Spencer,) is correct^
but if there is a great anxiety on the part of toe
Convention that the question shall be taken, I
have no, desire to delay its action by any remarks
of mine.
Mr. RIDGELY. I have not entirely closed the
remarks whjch I inteuded to make yesterday. But
a suggestion has been made to me, that the Con-
vention is anxious to take the question; an4|if
so, 1 will not trouble it with any additional re-
marks. If not, I should be glad to have an op-
portunity of concluding my remarks. I shall,
however, be perfectly satisfied that the previous
question shall be, taken, if such is the disposition
of the Convention.
Mr. FIERY. No gentleman in this body is
more anxious to accord to every member the
privilege of syeaking upon every question than
myselfT But what is the condition of things
here ? For the last three months, we have been
discussing different propositions, and up to this
hour, not one report has been adopted by the
Convention.
Mr. MORSAN, interposing. I rise to a question
of order? "Is the previous question debateable."
The PRESIDENT. The previous question has
not yet been moved, because the gentleman
from Washington county, (Mr. FIERY,) is not in
a position to move it, until it is ascertained wheth-
er the gentleman from Baltimore county, (Mr.
Ridgely,) desires to conclude his remarks.
Mr. FIERY. I understood that I had the con-
sent of the gentleman from Baltimore county,
(f.lir. Ridgely.)
Some conversation followed.
Mr. FIERY (resuming.) I simply desire to»set
myself right before the Convention. I do not
wish to be discourteous. 1 state, upon the pledge
of all the honor I possess, that I am solicitous to
afford every gentleman an opportunity to do jus-
tice to his own views and to the sentiments of
his constituents. But gentlemen will bear in
mind that, by the very act of moving the previous
question, I deny to myself, as well as to 'others,
the privilege of discussion. But I do not desire
to speak on every subject. I want action — im-
mediate action. It is my firm belief that if we
do not place some limit upon the discursive and
latitudinous debates which continually take place
in this body, we can never arrive at any success-
ful result. I am conscientiously of opinion that
it is my duty to enforce the necessity of action
by all proper means within my reach. My con-
stituents demand it, and when my duty directs,
I shall not hesitate as to my course. Whatever
may be the odium which I may bring upon my-
self, in this body or out of it, I shall not skulk
from responsibility here or elsewhere. I take
this course in good faith, and with no feeling of
ill-will to any member of this Convention. My
sole object is to expedite the transaction of its
business. As to the question which we have had
under discussion for a day or two past, the prin-
ciple involved in it must come up For future dis^



 

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Proceedings and Debates of the 1850 Constitutional Convention
Volume 101, Volume 1, Debates 158   View pdf image
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