14               The Maryland Constitution of 1851.             [392

vention had long been agitated among the people of Mary-
land, and had been largely mixed with party movements
and purposes. From 1820 to the Civil War the State was
a close one in regard to the numerical strength of the
respective political parties. In general the Whigs were
stronger. As one party secured the control of the gov-
ernment, the other agitated the question of " conventional
reform," as it was alleged, " to ride into office."

In the movement of 1835-36 for constitutional reform,
which resulted in the radical amendments of the constitu-
tion of 1836, a portion of the people.of the State were pre-
pared to effect the proposed amendments without the aid
of the legislature. Local conventions were held in several
counties of the State urging the necessity of constitutional
reform, and for the purpose of selecting delegates to a
state convention to be held in the city of Baltimore in the
spring of 1836. The purpose of this convention was to
bring pressure to bear on the legislature in order to obtain
the desired changes in the constitution. On the 6th of
June, 1836, the State Reform Convention, composed of
representatives from both political parties, assembled in
Baltimore City. In this convention Cecil, Harford, Balti-
more, Frederick, Montgomery, and Washington counties,
and Baltimore City were represented. The convention
adopted a set of resolutions recommending to the voters of
the State not to support any candidate for the state legis-
lature who did not pledge himself to introduce and sup-
port a bill in the legislature providing for taking the vote
of the people on the question of reforming the constitution
of the State. The convention resolved: "That if within
forty days after the commencement of its session the legis-
lature shall refuse or neglect to provide for ascertaining the
sense of the people of the State upon this important ques-
tion, and for calling a convention as prescribed in the
previous resolutions, the president of the convention is
hereby requested forthwith to convene this convention for
the adoption of such ulterior measures, as may then be