I have invariably sent men back to the wards
they moved from in such cases.
Mr. STIRLING. Certainly; that is exactly
what I say.
Mr. SANDS. I think it is important that
the convention should understand this matter.
If they will look at the old constitution they
will see that it was intended lo secure a vote
to the citizen of the State wherever he might
be. it was meant to secure to him the privi-
lege of voting wherever he might be. If he
had gone out of one county into another, and
had not been in the new county the six
months required to give him a residence there,
he could go back to the county from which
he moved and vote there, the counties being
in the same congressional district. A gentle-
man from Baltimore county moves over into
Howard county, in the same congressional
district, and not having been in Howard
county six months, be cannot vote there; but
this article of the old constitution enabled
him to go back and vote in Baltimore county
for the Congressman in the same congressional
district with himself. The only difficulty
that ever arose was from the ambiguity from
the omission of this very word " not." The
committee after full discussion of this matter
put in this word as healing the ambiguity and
making perfectly plain that which was not
plain before,
Mr. STIRLING. It applies to the case of a
man moving into a different district.
Mr. SANDS. No, sir; twenty-four hours
gives a residence in the district. You may
go from number one to number two, and vote
in twenty-four hours,
Mr. STIRLING. In the city of Baltimore
the wards are divisions into election districts;
and it has been decided that in order to ena-
ble a man to vote fora constable or a magis-
trate even, he must have six months residence
in the ward.
Mr. SANDS. Any amendment that may be
required to meet the wants of Baltimore city,
I shall be satisfied with.
Mr. STIRLING. The constitution expressly
pays that a man must reside six months in the
district; and if in the election of constables
and magistrates the divisions of the county
are not districts, I do not know what are.
Mr HEBB. In my opinion the phraseology
of the old constitution is the correct one,
The first part of the sentence is :
" And in case any county or city shall he
so divided as to form portions of different elec-
toral districts for the election of Congressmen,
senator, delegate or other officer or officers,
then to entitle a person to vote for such offi-
cer, he must have been a resident of that part
of the county or city which shall form a part
of the electoral district in which he offers to
vote, for six months next preceding the elec-
tion;"
Then it stops there, with a semicolon, and
proceeds:—"but a person who shall have ac- |
quired a residence in such county or city, en-
titling him to vote at any such election, shall
be entitled to vote in the election district from •
which he removed, until he shall have ac-
quired a residence in the part of the county
or city to which he has removed."
The first part of the paragraph refers to the '
dividing of a county so as to form portions of
different electoral districts, one distinct sub-
ject matter; the latter portion of the para-
graph refers to the election districts of a
county, it provides that if a person shall
have resided three months in one election dis-
trict, and then removed to another election
district in the same county and resided there
three months, having resided six months in
the county, and thus acquired a residence in
such county, he shall be entitled to a vote in
the election district from which he removed ;
and may vote there until he shall have resided
full six months in the election district to
which lie has removed. That is the meaning
of it; and I think the word "not" which
the committee have inserted, destroys the sense.
Mr. STIRLING. I have always understood
it that way, certainly. If a man has been
six months in a county it fixes his right to
vote somewhere; and if he has acquired a
residence in a county, and has moved into a
different district in the same county, he must
go back to vote to the place from which he
came, until he acquires a residence in the
election district to which he goes.
The PRESIDENT. I can only say that the
interpretation in my county has been very
different from that. A man living in one
district moving into another, is there but a
single day; he can vote in the old district
within the rule. A man who goes from Car-
oline to Talbot, who has been in Talbot five
months can go back to Caroline and vote,
under the interpretation that has been given
to this constitution. He cannot vote now in
Talbot county, for he hag not acquired a
residence there; but he has not lost his resi-
dence in Caroline.
Mr. STIRLING. The constitution never
meant (anything of the sort. It never meant
that a man should have the right to go back
from one county to another.
The PRESIDENT. I always understood that
to be the interpretation given to it by the
last convention. I have understood that that
was the unanimous opinion of the last con-
vention. I will ask the gentleman from Bal-
timore county, who was a member of that
convention.
Mr. RIDGELY That has been the prac-
tice under that understanding in my county.
Mr. MAYHUGH called for the previous ques-
tion.
The PRESIDENT ruled the call not to be in
order.
Mr. STIRLING, I shall certainly vote. to
strike out the word " not" if the amendment
is offered. |
