of a witness upon the ground that he was
not a believer in the Christian religion,
But the court would not allow that question
to go to the jury, because it did not disqual-
ify the witness, and therefore would not al-
low the question for the purpose of discred-
iting, The courts may not allow you to
ask such a question, unless it absolutely
disqualifies a man from being a witness
I think, therefore, that this ought to dis
qualify a man in toto, and that we ought
not to open the door wider than it now is'
that we ought to have all the checks which
can be part around this subject, and even
then, as common experience shows, how
much false swearing and perjury there is
in every court of justice If you allow a
man to come in and testify without any just
sense of his responsibility to his God, and
without any belief in future rewards and
punishments, you will be encouraging this
false swearing and perjury. I am for
strengthening tightening those checks,
rather than loosening them in any respect.
I hope, therefore, that no amendment will
now be adopted that will have a tendency
to loosen the restraints we now have.
Mr. MILLER. I do not wish to be misap-
prehended in relation to the motives with
which I offer this amendment. I believe
myself as firmly as any mania the existence
of God; that every man will be held
morally accountable for his acts, not only
here but hereafter. But our legislation,
and our bill of rights as amended in 1850,
allows a class of persons to come into courts
of justice as witnesses, and prohibits the
Legislature from excluding them from the
witness stand, who do not believe in any
future state of reward and punishments—
that is, after this life. It allows that class
of persons who call themselves Universal-
ists, or Unitarians, a certain class who hold
that all our sinful acts will be punished in
this world, and not in any future world
And most of the States have gone as far as
the State of New York, in whose Constitu-
tion I find the words of the amendment I
have proposed That is, that in reference
to the mere question of giving testimony in
a court of justice, the Legislature shall
not exclude any man from the witness stand
on account of any opinion be may enter
tain in relation to matters of religions be
lief. A Turk, a Jew, or an infidel, who
does not believe atallin the Christian re-
ligion, seeing some act of crime committed
or knowing some important fact connected
with it, might be excluded by the legisla-
ture, under this article, from testifying to
that fact in a court of justice. The tenden
cy of all constitutional legislation in this
country has been to open the door and let
in all such persons as witnesses. Then the
question of creditability on account of his
religions belief, as to whether he holds |
himself morally accountable here and here-
after for his acts, or whether he believes in
the existence of a God at all—let that be
considered by the jury, and not by the
court. I desire this amendment to be adop-
ted, but I want to have my motives distinctly
understood in offering it.
The question being; then taken on the
amendment of Mr. Miller, it was not agreed
to.
No farther amendment being offered to
Article 35—
Article 36 was read us follows :
" That no other test or qualification ought
to be required on admission to any office
of trust or profit, than such oath of office
as may be prescribed by this Constitution
or by the laws of the State, and a declara-
tion of belief in the Christian religion; and
if the party shall profess to be a Jew, the
declaration shall be of his belief in a future
state of rewards and punishments,"
Mr. STIRLING. I desire to offer a slight
amendment to this article. I move to insert,
after the words, "than such oath of
office" the words "and qualification," so
that it will read " than such oath of office
and qualification as may be prescribed by
this Constitution, or by the laws of the
State " I do not think there can be any
objection to it. It carries out the idea of
the first part of the section, " that no other
test or qualification ought to be required,"
&c.; but it makes it plainer.
The question being taken upon the
amendment, it was agreed to.
OATH OF OFFICE—RELIGIOUS TEST.
Mr. RIDGELY. I move to amend article
36, by striking out all after the word
" State," so that the article will then read—
" That no other test or qualification ought
to be required on admission to any office
of trust or profit, than such oath of office
and qualification as may be prescribed by
this Constitution or by the laws of the
State."
Mr. CLARKE. I move, before this amend-
ment is voted upon, to amend the portion to
be stricken out as follows: strike out all
alter the words " Christian religion " and
insert the words, "or in a future state of
rewards and punishments." That part of
the section will then read—"and a decla-
ration of belief is the Christian "religion, or
in a future state of rewards and punish-
ments."
My object in mowing this amendment is
to get rid of this provision which especially
singles out the Jew, and provides the mode
in which he shall declare his belief, in or-
der to be permitted to hold an office. The
Jews are a large and respectable class of the
people of the State of Maryland, and I
know that some thought there was rather
an invidious mention made of their religion
or their denomination, by expressly provid- |
