What advantages were proposed to counter-
balance these? He had heard none suggested
The gentleman from Queen Anne's had spoken
in so low a voice that he (Mr. c,) had not heard
him if he had suggested any. Without going
in pursuit of other reasons, in addition to those
urged by his friend from Dorchester, he was at
a loss to conceive why we should disregard
these. If the arrangement suggested was en-
forced by considerations of economy both in
time and money, as well to the individual voter
as to the county, if less pernicious to the mor-
als of the community and more calculated to
draw out a full expression of public sentiment,
he could not but think it ought to meet with ac-
ceptance. He went therefore for the consoli-
dation of the political elections of the State,
with the election of President of the United
States, in the years when these last would occur,
and that the first should be held oon the Tues
day next after the first Monday of November,
1852.
The PRESIDENT stated that the amendment
would be in order after the question had been
taken on the amendment of the gentleman from
Queen Anne's.
Mr. SPENCER said that he held in his hand
the report of the Legislative Department, as
amended by the Convention. He read from it
the third section thereof, as follows:
"The first election for Delegates shall take
place on the first Wednesday of November,
eighteen hundred and fifty-one, and on the same
day in every second year for ever thereafter,
the general election for Delegates, and for one-
half the Senators as nearly as practicable, shall
be held."
It had therefore been determined by the Convention, that
the sessions of the Legislature should
be biennial. The first election would necessa-
rily take place in the fall of this year, 1851. He
presumed it was nut in the contemplation of
any body, that there would not be a meeting of
the Legislature for the year 1853. The first
meeting of the Legislature must be in January
next, 1852, and the election must take place in
the fall of 1851. But the sessions were to be
biennial, and it therefore followed that the next
election which would take place, would be in
the fall of 1853, in the fall of 1855, &c., every
alternate year thereafter. Now, the question
was, will the Convention separate our State
elections? Shall we separate the election of our
Governor from our Legislative elections and
couple it with the national elections? He hoped
not. Our Governors had enough with politics
now, without any other stimulants, in every
other year we will have an election of mem-
bers for the Legislature. By the manner of
their alternation they never can fall on a Presi-
dential election. The gentleman from Kent,
instead of electing their Governor at the same
time when they elect their Legislature, the pop-
ular branch of the Government would seek to
associate his election with the President of the
United States. This was too strong an en-
couragement of party. |
Mr. CHAMBERS (interposing) said that it was
not in his recollection whether they had passed
over that section with a view to be acted on.
Mr. SPENCER stated that the third section had
been passed over informally.
Mr, CHAMBERS said the gentleman would of
course consider it a matter of necessary conse-
quence, if the proposition he advocated should
be adopted, that the other elections should be
made to compare ill point of time. It was no
part of his plan to have the election for Gov-
ernor in one year and the election for Senators
and Delegates, in another. There would be no
difficulty in making the other bill compare to i
this, if the amendment prevailed,
Mr. SPENCER said that if they should have
the sessions of the Legislature biennially, they
must have the first election this fall, and to carry
it out, they must have another election in the
fall of 1853. They must do this, otherwise they
would have their Government without a Legis-
lature for mure than two years, or they would
not have a session the next year. The Conven-
tion had determined—so he thought—that the
sessions should be biennial, if so, then he pre-
sumed that the first election would take place
this fall. He presumed that it was not in the
contemplation of any individual here, that there
should be no meeting of the Legislature for the
next year.
The Convention had declard, by a positive
vote, (and he thought the gentleman himself
contended for it,) that for the next three years
to come, there should not be annual elections.
They had also refused that there should he an-
nual sessions of the Legislature for the same
length of time, and had determined that the
sessions of the Legislature should be biennial,
and that for the first two terms they should
have unlimited discretion to remain in session
as long as they might think necessary, or as
long as the public interests might require. Now
he asked, if there was any honorable member
of that body who was going to vote to procras-
tinate any session for twelve months or more,
and after the ratification of the Constitution?
There would be many things left by the Con-
stitution to be carried out by the Legislature in
detail, and the public interests required that
the Legislature should meet as early as possible,
and it would have to meet next winter. He
presumed that the ordinary time agreed upon,
was the first of January, 1853, and then they
would have to vote at the first election under
the Constitution, in the fall of 1851. If they
should adopt the proposition of the gentleman
from Kent, (Mr. Chambers,) they would have
to reverse every thing they have done upon Le-
gislative sessions; they would have to control
all antecedent action. The first election must
necessarily take place in the fall of 1851, and
the next in the fall of 1853, &c. And the ques-
tion, he repeated, was, whether they should
have the Governor elected when the Delegates
to the Legislature were elected, or whether
they would have him elected at the time when
the President of the United States is elected. |
