words "in the year eighteen hundred and fifty-
four."
And the pending question was on the adoption
of the said amendment.
BIENNIAL SESSION.
Mr. DIRICKSON, (to the President.) Is it now
in order for me to make the motion, of which I
yesterday gave notice, to reconsider the vote
heretofore taken on the second section,
The PRESIDENT. It is in order.
Mr. DIRICKSON. I make the motion.
The PRESIDENT. What is the precise motion
of the gentleman?
Mr. DIRICKSON. I desire to move a recon-
sideration of the vote of the Convention adop-
ting the amendment of the gentleman from Queen
Anne, (Mr. Spencer,) to the second section of
the report.
Some conversation followed between the Chair
and Mr, DIRICKSON, as to the mode by which the
object could be attained, when
Mr. DIRICKSON moved to reconsider the vote
of the Convention adopting the second section of
the report.
The question was taken, and by ayes 32, noes
30, the vote was reconsidered.
Mr. DIRICKSON then moved to reconsider the
vote by which the amendment of Mr. SPENCER
had been adopted, (i. e. the amendment submit-
ting to the people the question of annual or bien-
nial sessions.
The question was taken, and the vote was re-
considered.
And the question then being on agreeing to
Mr. SPENCER'S amendment,
Some conversation followed on a point of
order,
Mr. SPENCER expressed his desire to withdraw
the amendment.
Some conversation followed on the point
order.
The PRESIDENT then expressed his opinion that
under a liberal construction of the sixteenth rule,
the gentleman from Queen Anne, (Mr. Spencer,)
might withdraw his amendment
Mr, SPENCER thereupon withdrew the amend-
ment,
The question then recurred on the adoption of
the section.
Mr. WELLS moved to amend the said second
section, by adding at the end thereof the follow-
ing:
"And the sessions of the General Assembly
shall be annual"
Mr. WELLS asked the yeas and nays on the
said amendment, which were ordered, and being
taken, resulted as follows:
Affirmative—Messrs. Chapman, President, Morgan,
Donaldson, Dorsey, Wells, Merrick, Buch-
anan, Welch, Constable, Chambers, of Cecil,
McCullough, Sprigg, Shriver, Biser, Gwinn,
Brent, of Baltimore city, Sherwood, of Baltimore
city, Ware, Anderson, Ege, Shower and Brown
--22.
Negative—Messrs. Ricaud, Chambers, of Kent,
Mitchell, Dalrymple, Bell, Ridgely, Lloyd, Dick-

inson, Sherwood, of Talbot, John Dennis, Wil-
liams, Hicks, Hodson, Phelps, Miller, Bowling,
Spencer, George, Wright, Dirickson, Hearn,
Jacobs, Thomas, Gaither, Annan, Stephenson,
McHenry, Magraw, Nelson, Carter, Stewart, of
Carolina, Stewart, of Baltimore city, Schley,
Fiery, Neill, Harbine, Davis, Brewer, Waters,
Weber, Hollyday, Fitzpatrick, Smith, Parke and
Cockey—45.
So the amendment was rejected.
Mr. PARKE moved to amend said second section
by adding at the end thereof, the following pro-
viso: -
"Provided, That the Delegates shall be elected
for one year and the Senators for three years,
(one-third of the latter annually, as near as may
be,) as soon as a majority of the legal voters of
the State, at some general election shall have de-
cided in favor of a change from biennial to an-
nual sessions of the Legislature; and the General
Assembly shall have the power to provide by law
for taking the sense of the people as aforesaid,
and for making all arrangement necessary to
carry such change into effect, should a majority
of the legal voters determine in favor thereof. "
Mr. PARKE said he did not desire to interpose
any delay. He was in favor of biennial sessions
at present, but that there should be the power in
the Legislature, to change the time so soon as
the people could be relieved from direct taxation.
This, he was inclined to believe, would accord
with the feelings of the people themselves.
The question was taken, and the amendment
was rejected.
The question then recurred on the adoption of
the said section, as amended.
Mr. PHELPS demanded the previous ques-
tion.
Mr. McHENRY enquired of the chair, whether
the action of the Convention would be final, or
whether it would again be in order to move are-
consideration.
The PRESIDENT said that, under the rule, it
had been the practice to reconsider more than
once.
The call for the previous question was then
seconded
The main question was ordered, and having
been taken, the section, as amended, was adop-
ted.
The Convention now resumed the considera-
tion of the motion of Mr. THOMAS, to amend the
fifth section, as amended, by striking out, in the
second line, the words, "in every," and inserting
in lieu thereof, the words, "in the year 1854, and
on the same day in every second "year."
Mr. THOMAS made some explanatory remarks
as to the effect of the amendment which he had
offered, which was intended to make the bill con-
sistent throughout, slating that it was rendered ne-
cessary by the amendment to the fifth section
which had been engrafted in it on the motion of
the gentleman from Queen Anne, (Mr. Spencer.)
He briefly showed what would be the effect of
the adoption of the fifth section as it had been
amended, without the amendment he (Mr. T.)
had now proposed, and then consistency would