136 CONSTITUTION OF MARYLAND. [ART. III

Sec. 42. The General Assembly shall pass laws necessary
for the preservation of the purity of elections.

Sec. 43. The property of the wife shall be protected from
the debts of her husband.

Schindel v Schindel, 12 Md. 294 Steffey v. Steffey, 19 Md. 9 Kennedy
v Lange, 50 Md. 91. Clark v. Wootton, 63 Md. 113 Beall v Fiank, 93 Md
335.

Sec. 44. Laws shall be passed by the General Assembly to
protect from execution a reasonable amount of the property of
the debtor, not exceeding in value the sum of five hundred
dollars.

Sec. 45. The General Assembly shall provide a simple and
uniform system of charges in the offices of Clerks of Courts
and Registers of Wills, in the Counties of this State and the
City of Baltimore, and for the collection thereof; provided,
the amount of compensation to any of the said officers in the
various Counties shall not exceed the sum of three thousand
dollars a year, and in the City of Baltimore thirty-five hundred
dollars a year, over and above office expenses, and compensa-
tion to assistants; and provided further that such compensa-
tion of Clerks, Registers, assistants and office expenses shall
always be paid out of the fees or receipts of the offices, respec-
tively.

Banks v. State, 60 Md 305. Vansant v State, 96 Md 127

Sec. 46. The General Assembly shall have power to receive
from the United States any grant or donation of land, money,
or securities for any purpose designated by the United States,
and shall administer or distribute the same according to the
conditions of the said grant.

Sec. 4-7. The General Assembly shall make provisions for
all cases of contested elections of any of the officers, not
herein provided for.

State v. Jarrett & Harwood, 17 Md. 308. Groome v. Gwinn, 43 Md. 572.

Sec. 48. Corporations may be formed under general Laws ;
but shall not be created by special act, except for municipal
purposes, and except in cases where no general Laws exist,
providing for the creation of Corporations of the same general
character, as the corporation proposed to be created; and any
act of incorporation passed in violation of this section shall
be void. And as soon as practicable, after the adoption of
this Constitution, it shall be the duty of the Governor to
appoint three persons learned in the Law, whose duty it shall