then we can take proper action upon it. I
make that motion, that a committee of five,
of which the President shall be chairman, be
appointed to take this 39th section into con-
sideration, and report to the convention upon
the subject.
The PRESIDENT. If you refer any portion
of the article to a committee, it carries the
whole article. You may create a committee
for the purpose of reporting independently
upon the proposition, and postpone the con-
sideration of this question from day to day
until the committee shall report.
Mr. NEGLEY. Then I will move that a
special committee of five be appointed.
The PRESIDENT. The gentleman may move
the appointment of a special committee on
incorporated institutions of the State, and
then introduce an order instructing that com-
mittee to report particularly upon the Balti-
more and Ohio Railroad, the Chesapeake and
Ohio Canal, and the selling of these different
interests of the State.
Mr. MILLER. Does their report necessarily
become a part of the report on the legislative
department? Must it not be acted upon sepa-
rately ?
The PRESIDENT. Or the gentleman may
refer this whole article to that committee,
with the understanding that it shall take this
particular section under consideration,
Mr. THOMAS. Suppose a special committee
is appointed and they do not report until
we are through, and the section is excluded.
Will it not then be within the exclusive con-
trol of the legislature, not being mentioned
in the constitution ?
The PRESIDENT. Of coarse the legislature
would then have the power to control it.
Mr. NEGLEY, Of course the special com-
mittee would go to work and prepare a proper
article to be inserted here, and report in two
or three days. They could be instructed to
do it.
The PRESIDENT. The gentleman proceeds
upon the supposition that every member of
this house attends punctually upon the ses-
sions of the convention; and I presume that
the members will hereafter attend, it being a
violation of one of the standing rules of the
house for a member to absent himself unless
he is sick or indisposed.
Mr. NEGLEY. The gentlemen appointed
upon the committee, knowing the feeling of
the convention, will go to work at once, and
I have no doubt they would be able to report
in two or three days.
The PRESIDENT. If the convention does
not desire to act further upon the legislative
article until after a report from the special
committee on this subject, it may be a
well to refer the whole article to that com
mittee.
Mr. KENNARD. Is it in order to fix a time
within which the committee shall report ?
The PRESIDENT. It is not usual until a |
committee has been in session some time, to
fix a day for their report.
Mr. CUSHING. Will this special committee
be any more likely to reach a conclusion sat-
isfactory to the house than the legislative
committee who made this report?
The PRESIDENT. That is not in the power
of the President to ascertain.
Mr. CUSHING. Then I hope we shall accept
the report of the legislative committee, and
strike out the amendments, and thus dispose
of the question.
Mr. NEGLEY, having been requested to re-
duce his motion to writing, submitted in
place thereof the following :
" Resolved, That a special committee of
five, of whom the President shall be chair-
man, shall be appointed upon the incorpo-
rated institutions of this State."
Mr. ABBOTT. I hope the gentleman will
change the number to nine.
Mr. STIRLING. That is a resolution, and
most lie over.
The PRESIDENT. It must lie over one day
under the rule.
Mr. RIDGELY. I would suggest that if the
house would informally pass over this article
and proceed with the remaining portion of
the report on the legislative department, and
dispose of it entirely, then we can refer the
Article to the committee as suggested,
Mr. CUSHING. Why refer the whole report
of the legislative committee? Why not refer
the 39th section ?
The PRESIDENT. Part of the report cannot
be referred without referring the entire re-
port. The report consists of a variety of
subjects, and you cannot refer one of them
to a committee for alteration or amend-
ment without referring the entire report.—
You can reach the same object by creating a
special committee for the purpose of taking
any particular subject into consideration;
and when their report is made, you can sub-
stitute that in the legislative article for this
section.
Mr. JONES, of Somerset. I would like to
have a test vote upon the subject whether or
not there is a majority of this convention that
is in favor of selling out the State's interest
in the works of internal improvement and
the banks. For myself I am against the
whole plan of proceeding, and I should like
to know how many there are who coincide
with me in that view.
Mr. BERRY, of Prince George's. Would not
the gentleman from Washington county (Mr.
Negley) carry out his object by withdraw-
ing his resolution and offering an order that
the chair appoint a committee to consider
the subject?
Mr. SANDS. I will ask for information
whether, if this legislative report be referred
to a special committee with instructions to
report on a single article, that will prevent
i the possibility of their action upon others? |
