566 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS [Mar. 8,

It will be seen that from the provisions of: the Con-
stitution of 1851 and 1864, the judicial salaries as
fixed could neither be increased nor diminished by
Legislative action. When the present Constitution
was adopted, the inhibition upon the increase of
salaries was omitted, and thai upon a diminution was
alone retained The natural and reasonable construc-
tion of the provisions of the present Constitution
looking to the prior constitutional requirements is,
that the General Assembly may increase these sala-
ries to such a sum as it may deem proper, as the only
restraint imposed upon it is that it shall not make
them less than the sum named in the Constitution.

A reference to the debates upon this subject in the
Convention of 1851, will make it very clear. hat when
the Legislature is only forbidden to diminish the
salary, it has the power to increase it. When the
Convention which formed the Constitution of 1851
met, the entire subject had been within the control of
the Legislature, which could fix, and did fix at differ-
ent times, the salaries of the Judges. As reported
from the Judiciary Committee, the proposed Article
on salaries, closed as follows:

'And shall not be diminished during their con-
tinuance in office. " (Debates, 1st vol., p. 239. )

This was amended so as to read:

"And shall not be increased or diminished during
their continuance in office. " (Debates, 2nd vol.,
p. 557. )

A motion was made to reconsider the vote of the
convention by which the words "increased or" had
been inserted. This motion was made by Mr. William
A. Spencer, of Queen Anne's county, and on the spe-
cific ground that he was in favor of the Legislature
having the power to increase the salary, and was op-
posed to the restriction which would be placed upon
it, by these words. The argument was, that by strik-
ing out the prohibition on the Legislature to increase
the salaries, it left the power to make the increase
when it should think proper, and would place it pre-
cisely as it was under the old Constitution.

He said: "It seems to me that if you fix it so that
it shall hot be diminished while in office, and give the