1892. ] OF THE SENATE. 565

The 31st section of the same Article, in relation to
the Supreme Bench of Baltimore city, provides that
the Judges thereof "shall each receive an annual
salary of $3, 500, payable quarterly, which shall not
be diminished during their term of office, but authority
is hereby given to the Mayor and City Council of Bal-
timore to pay to each of said Judges an annual addi-
tion of $500 to their respective salaries, provided that
the same being once granted shall not be diminished
nor increased during the continuance of said Judges
in office. "

These provisions, in our opinion, give the General
Assembly the power to increase the salaries of the
Judges above the sums mentioned in the Constitution,
and such action can be validly taken in the form of a
statute.

Under the Constitution adopted by the Convention
of 1776, which was in force from November 11th, 1776,
until June 4th, 1851, the amount of the salaries of the
Judges was fixed by the Legislature.

The 30th section of the Bill of Rights provided
"that salaries liberal but not profuse ought to be
secured to the Chancellor and the Judges during the
continuance of their commissions, in such manner and
at such times as the Legislature shall hereafter direct
upon consideration of the circumstances of this
State. "

Under the authority thus granted to the Legisla-
ture the salaries were provided in the method pre-
scribed, which continued until the adoption of the
Constitution of 1851.

By the 4th section of Article 4, of the Constitution
of 1851 it was provided, "the salary of each of the
Judges of the Court of Appeals shall be $2, 500 an-
nually and shall not be increased nor diminished dur-
ing their continuance in office. " The same phraseology
was used in regard to the Circuit Judges. (Article 4,
section 9. )

The Constitution of 1864 prescribed that there
should be no increase or diminution of the salaries
paid to the Judges of the Circuit Courts, and did not
contain any provision in this respect in regard to the
salaries of the Judges of the Court of Appeals.