Mr. GWINN said he could obviate the difficul-
ty suggested by his colleague, as to his, (Mr. G's.,)
amendment, in a moment. And he modified his
amendment with that view.
Mr. PRESSTMAN suggested to his colleague that
the amendment might perhaps be better intro-
duced at another time and in another form.
The object and construction of the lection were
further explained by Messrs. CHAMBERS, of Kent,
PRESSTMAN, DORSEY and GWINN.
Mr. Gwinn expressed his intention to insist on
the amendment here, because, he said, he knew
of no other place in which it could properly be
introduced.
But Mr. G., on the suggestion of Mr. PRESSTMAN,
decided to offer the amendment as an ad-
ditional section.
Thereupon, the Convention adjourned until to-
morrow at ten o 'clock.
SATURDAY, March 1,1851.
The Convention met at ten o'clock.
Prayer was made by the Rev. Mr. GRIFFITH.
The Roll of the members were called.
LICENSE LAWS.
The PRESIDENT announced the following gen-
tlemen as the members composing the select
committee of seven, yesterday ordered to be ap-
pointed on the subject of the license laws:
Messrs. DORSEY, HARBINE, FOOKS, WRIGHT,
DENT, WEBER, and DASHIELL.
Mr. DORSET asked to be excused from service.
It was usual not to put upon these committees
gentlemen who were opposed to the applications.
He concurred in part with Ilia friend from Cecil
in his opposition. He, (Mr. D.,) thought there
should be a general law, and not a separate law
for any particular district or neighborhood. As
he was opposed to this and could not discharge
the duty in such a way as would enable the peti-
tioners to have their case fully considered, he
hoped he might be excused from service.
The Convention excused Mr. DORSEY.
Mr. DONALDSON was appointed by the PRESI-
DENT to supply the vacancy.
THE LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT.
The PRESIDENT announced the unfinished business
of yesterday, being the report of the committee
on the Legislative Department of the
Government.
Mr. THOMAS offered the following substitute :
"The General Assembly may provide for the
election or appointment of such county officers
as may be required, and are not wholly authori-
sed by this Constitution, and prescribe their pow-
ers and duties; but their tenure of office, mode
of appointment, and the character of their powers
and duties shall be uniform throughout the
State."
The substitute having been read, |
Mr. THOMAS said, he did not want to discuss
the amendment. He merely submitted it. He
supposed the Convention would forsee that there
were many officers whose appointment the Con-
vention would not undertake to prescribe.
Mr. SHRIVER asked the yeas and nays.
Mr. CHAMBERS, of Kent, said he supposed that
the question of electing Levy Courts, or that item
in the organization of the police of the state now
known to some of the counties as Levy Courts,
and existing in some form in every county, must
at some time be decided upon by the Convention.
If there was a settled purpose, as he supposed
there was, to have this done by election, why not
now say so? The question had to be acted upon,
and the action of the Convention was now em-
barrassed for the want of knowing how these tri-
bunals were to be organised. He did not desire
to introduce the question if it would lead to any
difficulty. But if there was such a settled pur-
pose on the part of the Convention as he had sup-
posed, to adopt some plan, he thought it had bet-
ter be done. With a view, therefore, of testing
the sense of the Convention, he had prepared an
amendment as a substitute. He did not desire
to debate it, nor was he solicitous as to what the
decision of the question might be.
The substitute indicated by Mr. C. was read
as follows:
"The General Assembly shall avoid partial and
local legislation as far as practicable; and may
confer upon the Levy Court of each county, the
members of which shall be elected by the people
of their respective counties, by general ticket
and not by districts, such powers of local legisla-
tion and administration as may be necessary, and
all laws conferring such powers shall be general
in their nature, and extend to all the counties of
the State."
Mr. THOMAS said, that the difference between
his proposition and that of the gentleman from
Kent, (Mr. Chambers,) was very material.
Mr. CHAMBERS. Oh, very.
Mr. THOMAS proceeded to state that his amend-
ment proposed to leave to the Legislature the
passage of laws providing for the appointment of
such county officers as the Convention might not
expressly authorise. Mr. T. specified gone of
them.
His reason for during the adoption of this
amendment was, that in the past legislation of
the State, there had been a continual change in
the mode of appointing even the Levy Court
Judges. At another stage of the proceedings,
he desired to go to the extent which the gentleman
seemed to contemplate in another particu-
lar. He, (Mr. T.,) would be glad to see a pro-
vision in the Constitution denying to the Legisla-
ture the power to make that a crime in one coun-
ty which was a mere misdemeanor in another.
Mr. CHAMBERS, of Kent, suggested that the
proposition of the gentleman from Frederick,
(Mr. Thomas,) so far as it went, was precisely
his proposition.
Some explanatory conversation followed be-
tween Messrs. THOMAS and CHAMBERS, of Kent, |
