III.

In accordance with the eighth section of the twelfth ar-
ticle of the new Constitution, Governor Bradford on Sep-
tember 9, 1864, issued a proclamation calling an election
on October 12 and 13 for the purpose of ascertaining the
sense of the people in regard to the adoption or rejection
of the document. Copies of the Constitution were imme-
diately distributed throughout the state, and a fierce polit-
ical campaign was entered upon in regard to it. The radical
Union men very generally approved of the work of the
Convention, but many of the more conservative citizens,
including some of those who had hitherto supported the
Unconditional Union party, came out publicly in open op-
position and used their influence to prevent the adoption
of the Constitution. Hon. Reverdy Johnson is perhaps
the most striking instance of this latter class. He
strongly condemned the requirement of the test oath in
the vote on the Constitution, and declared that the Con-
vention in requiring it exceeded its powers by thus acting
in a legislative capacity. The Democrats of the state re-
ceived the Constitution with a storm of indignation, and
at once entered vigorously upon an attempt to defeat it
in the coming election. This movement was doubtless
precipitated by the action of the thirty-five minority mem-
bers of the Convention, who immediately after the ad-
journment of that body, and before they had returned to
their homes, drew up and published¹ a unanimous pro-
test, addressed "To the Voters of Maryland," in which
they denounced the Convention and the new Constitution
in the strongest terms. After arguing that the period of
a civil war was not the time in which to make any or-

¹ See "Sun," Sept. 10, 1864.