Upon this question Mr. STOCKBRIDGE called
for the yeas and nays, which were ordered.
The question was then taken, by yeas and
nays, and resulted—yeas 37, nays 33—as
follows:
Yeas—Messrs Annan, Baker, Billingsley,
Blackiston, Bond, Briscoe, Carter, Chambers,
Clarke, Crawford, Davis, of Charles, Dent,
Duvall, Hoffman, Hollyday, Hopkins, Hopper,
Horsey, Johnson, King, Lansdale, Larsh,
Mayhugh, Negley, Parker, Parran, Peter,
Ridgely, Smith of Carroll, Smith, of Dorchester,
Sneary, Sykes, Todd, Turner, Val-
liant, Wilmer, Wooden—37.
Nays—Messrs. Goldsborough, President;
Abbott, Audoun, Barron, Brooks, Brown,
Cunningham, Cushing, Daniel, Dellinger,
Ecker, Farrow, Galloway, Hatch, Hebb,
Hodson, Keefer, Kennard, Lee, Markey, Mc-
Comas, Mullikin, Pugh, Purnell, Russell,
Schlosser, Scott, Smith, of Worcester,
Stirling, Stockbridge, Swope, Thomas, Wickard
—33.
The amendment was accordingly adopted.
Mr. ABBOTT, when his name was called,
said: Believing that this is a matter entirely
for the legislature, I vote " no."
Mr. DANIEL. I am alike interested in the
county as the city. But believing that this
amendment may do harm to the city I shall
vote "no."
No further amendment was offered to this
section.
Section two was then read as follows :
"The general assembly shall provide, by
general law, for dividing the counties into
towns or permanent municipal corporations,
in place of the existing election districts, prescribing
their limits and confiding to them
all powers necessary for the management of
their public local concerns; and whenever the
organization of these township corporations
shall be perfected, all officers provided for in
this constitution, but whose official functions
shall have been superseded by such organiza-
tions, shall be dispensed with, and the affairs
of such towns and of the counties as affected
by the action of such towns, shall be trans-
acted in such manner as the general assembly
shall direct."
Mr. CHAMBERS. I find in this section the
following:
''The general assembly shall provide, by
general law, for dividing the counties into
towns or permanent municipal corporations,
in place of the existing election districts, pre-
scribing their limits and confiding to them all
powers necessary for the management of their
public local concerns," etc.
This subject seems to have been acted upon
while I was absent. I think it may not have
attracted as much attention as it deserved
The consequences, perhaps, bad not been re-
garded as seriously as they merit. From the
early history of our State, we have been di-
vided into counties and parishes. Many of |
our old acts of assembly have recognized
those territorial divisions of the State, and
many of their provisions necessarily connect
themselves with that division. Subsequently
election districts were introduced, and the
whole State is now divided into election dis-
tricts. Our people are familiar with this ar-
rangement. I have not beard that it has pro-
duced the slightest inconvenience. We have
had corporations that have transacted all our
county, parish and district concerns, without
the slightest exception being taken, so far as
I have learned, to their efficiency.
But now the proposition is introduced to
adopt the system which prevails in the north-
ern States, converting all this into a different
order of things, by the creation of townships.
This system, I believe, universally prevails
at the north, where each township is a sort of
province by itself; where they do all their
business, impose their taxes, and regulate all
their concerns, as an independent, and to a
certain extent a sort of sovereign community.
Now all this is utterly unknown to our peo-
ple. It does not comport at all with the hab-
its of any who have been educated here. And
gentlemen who come among us from the
north, can very soon fall into our habits. 1
have heard of none of them objecting to our
system, or failing to migrate here because of
this difference in our organization.
Now if this proposition is adopted, you
subvert the ideas of very many amongst us;
yon bring about a state of confusion,
for which I do not perceive the slightest
necessity upon the face of the earth. Why
make this change? What is it to effect?
How is it to promote the interests of the
State? Who demands it? To what end is
it to be brought about? Are gentlemen
aware that this will require the whole State
to he cut up in a different manner altogether,
with a different style altogether of gov-
erning the State; adifferent set of officers
altogether, just by this simple provision? A
very few words comprise all this. But I tell
gentlemen that those few words are of most
tremendous import, it is the introduction
of a new system of governing the State in
its internal affairs. Sec what it provides:
"And dividing the counties into towns, or
permanent municipal corporations, in place
of the existing election districts, prescribing
their limit?, and confiding to them all pow-
ers necessary for the management of their
public local concerns."
It is a complete revolution; an entire
change, of course to be followed by the neces-
sary consequences. Whenever these town-
ships shall be perfected, then the officers pro-
vided for in this constitution, but whose
official functions shall be superseded by such
organization, as they all will be, your county
commissioners and everything of that sort,
will all be dispensed with. It so provides.
'•And whenever the organization of these |
