from 1851 to 1867 171

to have no right to sit on the trial courts; thirteen
judicial circuits, with one judge for each, were
provided for trial work.

The convention's product had little chance of
adoption by the popular vote, especially because
of its broad disfranchising clauses ;⁷ and there was
a majority of the civilian vote against adoption
of 1,995, or 29,536 to 27,541. The constitution it-
self, however, contained a provision for taking
the votes of soldiers in the federal service, and the
result of those votes was a majority of 2,370, or
2,633 to 263—and this carried the adoption of the
constitution by a majority of 375 votes.

The first session of the court under the consti-
tution of 1864, was held on January 24, 1865, at
a special term called under an act of assembly of
that year, chapter 24. The only change in the
membership was that made by the addition of one
judge, and the new one was Daniel Weisel, of
Washington County, elected on November 8, 1864.
Judge Weisel had been an associate judge of the
fourth circuit, which included his county, and had
served in that position until his election to the
Court of Appeals. The court which first met
under the new constitution of 1864, then, was com-
posed of Richard Johns Bowie, Chief Judge, and
Judges Bartol, Goldsborough, Cochran and Wei-
sel, the first four having held over through the
adoption of the constitution.

An act of 1865, chapter 114, prescribed an oath
to be taken by all attorneys, and on April 4 groups
of them began to appear before the court for the
purpose. On that day appeared, Oliver Miller,

7. Article 1, section 4.