the taxes. This is simply false. The New Constitution does not touch the matter of the poll-tax, but leaves it exactly where the old Constitution does, a matter of statute law,—and the towns will have precisely the same power to assess poll-taxes under the New Constitution as under the old. None but the most thoroughly fossilized fogies voted against this proposition, and it passed by a vote of 206 to 65.

But it will be said, as Mr. Ilillard said in the Convention, "I contend that there is no man in this State who cannot afford to pay the trifling sum of a poll-tax, unless he be disabled by his vicious or profligate habits." I cannot better answer this than in the language of Col. Schouler. He said :

"Now, Sir, my colleague, (Mr. Hillard,) stated this morning, that there was no man who was worthy of casting a vote but could well afford to pay his nine shillings a year. I take issue with him upon that assertion. I believe there are many men in this community, in this good city of Boston, who would feel that the payment of this nine shillings was a burden. A man with a large family, who works for his dollar a day, and who, in the dark winter months, is without employment a part of the time-and there are thousands of such in this city, and in all the great cities of the Commonwealth, good, true, honest men, not disreputable men, not dissipated men, not licentious men-has his rents to pay, his fire-wood to buy, and all the necessaries for his family to purchase, out of his small earnings. Now, when the month of November comes, and, perchance, finds him with the nine shillings in his pocket, with his family on, the one side, his hearth unsupplied with fire-wood, and perhaps his little children wanting a new dress or a new coat, and the question is put to him, Shall I pay this nine shillings for the right to vote, or shall I expend it for the needs of my family, think you he will not feel it a burden to pay it for the privilege of voting?

"Sir, I have known hundreds of instances of that kind, for I was brought up with that class, and I know it is a fact. Sir, I wish to take that restriction off of the poor man. He ought to have the right to vote without paying this personal tax, because every day's labor of his, in ship-building, in digging the foundations of our manufacturing establishments, in levelling our railroads, and in perfecting other improvements, adds to the wealth of the Commonwealth, and to the great taxable property of the State. All this property is created by his hard labor, and shall we deprive him of the right to vote, if he is in all other respects qualified, and shall we deprive him of the right of expressing his sentiments upon the political questions of the day, and of a voice in the election of his rulers, unless we first, as it were, with constable or sheriff, jerk nine shillings out of his pocket?"

The New Constitution provides that the State elections shall be held on the Tuesday next after the first Monday of November, being the same day on which the presidential election is held; thus bringing both elections on the same day, and saving one day once in four years. Another clause requires " the Legislature to provide for the

ENLARGEMENT OF THE SCHOOL FUND,

until it shall amount to a sum not less than two millions of dollars; and the said fund shall be preserved INVIOLATE, and the income thereof shall be annually appropriated for the

AID AND IMPROVEMENT OF THE COMMON SCHOOLS of the State, and for no other purpose."

The school fund, made up of one-half the proceeds of the sale of our public lands in Maine, now amounts to something over one million of dollars. The people have justly guarded this fund with great jealousy. Still, it is not safe unless put beyond the reach of any combinations which might be formed in the Legislature to pervert it to other purposes. This can be done only by protecting it in the organic law.

Gentlemen may, perhaps, recollect, that, in the year 1847, Amherst College applied to the Legislature for an appropriation of five thousand dollars a year for five years. Every-body knows that up to that time Amherst College never could get a penny from the Legislature—I will not say what the reason was; but it is well known, that previous to. 1847 there was an influence from some quarter or other which was sufficiently powerful to prevent Amherst College from getting one dollar of the public money. But in 1847 she got the $25,000. I always supposed-I suppose now-that at that time there was some general understanding between Amherst College and all the other colleges in the Commonwealth, that they would let Amherst come in and get this appropriation in 1847, and then they would all come in 1848 and start fair for a large haul. Williams had previously received grants, and Harvard; but up to that time Amherst had never got anything. I do not mean that there was an express bargain, but that was the idea. "Let Amherst get her portion this year, and next year we will all come in and make a general attack, and see if we cannot get a handsome sum for us all." Well, that was just what was done. Gentlemen will recollect that the next year after Amherst got her appropriation, all three colleges came in and made a concerted attack upon the proceeds of the public lands, and they came very near getting several hundred thousand dollars; they got almost a unanimous report from the committee in favor of it, and the thing was urged by the powerful and combined interest of the friends of these three institutions-Amherst, Williams, and Harvard, all being ably represented. It was rather wonderful to me at the time that they did not succeed.

The New Constitution renders futile any such attempt hereafter.
Another provision relates to

and is as follows:

HARVARD COLLEGE,

"The Legislature shall always have full power and authority, as may be judged needful for the advancement of learning, to grant any farther powers to the President and Fellows of Harvard College, or to alter, limit, annul, or restrain any of the powers now vested in them: provided, the obligation of contracts shall not be impaired."

Harvard College was founded by the State; has received from the State, from time to time, several hundred thousand dollars. For one hundred and seventy years, the Legislature of the Colony, Province, and Commonwealth, exercised the absolute control of the College in every respect whatever. Within forty years the claim has been set up that the corporation has the entire government of the College. The result of this has been that the College has passed into the hands of a single sect in religion, and a single party in politics. This amendment deprives the College of none of its rights, but declares that the State shall have the same power over Harvard College that it has over the other Colleges of the State.

Another important change is that providing for the

ELECTION BY THE PEOPLE

of a large class of officers now appointed by the Governor, or chosen by the Legislature, under the present Constitution, Judges of the Supreme and Common Pleas Courts Attorney-General, Judges of Probate, Police Judges, Trial Justices, Registers of Probate, Commissioners of Insolvency, and District-Attorneys, are all appointed by the Governor. The number of these officers throughout the State is very large, and the patronage-power of the executive growing out of it enormous. Everybody knows how, with every change of administration, the lobbies of the Council-Chamber are thronged with applicants for office; and even admitting that the executive is incapable of corruption, he is at least liable to make these appointments under improper influences. All the abovenamed officers, except Judges of the Supreme and Common Pleas Courts, are made elective by the people.

The Secretary of State, Treasurer, Auditor, and Councillors, are now chosen by the Legislature. These, by the New Constitution, are made elective by the people. In a word, every State, County and District officer, except Judges of the Supreme and Common Pleas Courts, Justices of the Peace for the purposes of acknowledging instruments and issuing warrants in civil cases, Commissioners to qualify Civil Officers and Coroners, is made elective by the people.

The Convention changed the

LIFE TENURE

of the offices of Judges of the Supreme and Common Pleas Courts, and a

LIMIT OF TEN YEARS.

The experience of other States proves conclusively that when the term of a good judge expires, he will always be reappointed or re-elected; if a poor judge, ten years is long term enough. Upon this point, I cannot do better than quote the language of Mr. Giles, of Boston, in the Convention :

"The truth is, Mr. President, that a freehold office, with a life tenure, is repugnant to American liberty. I might say that it is abhorrent to American liberty, but I will only say that it is abhorrent to my own heart; and, Sir, against that tenure of our judiciary, the great popular heart of American liberty beats, beats, beats, and mine beats in sympathy with it. And that, Sir, has swept away and is sweeping away, and will sweep away, that foundation stone of our liberty, unless that objection be removed."

The New Constitution asserts the rights of the people to hold Conventions for

FUTURE AMENDMENTS OF THE CONSTITUTION,

without leave first had and obtained of the Legislature. The fogie doctrine has been, that the people had no right to call a Convention to revise their organic law except at the time and in the manner prescribed by the Legislature. The New Constitution provides that the question shall be submitted to the people in 1873, and every twenty years after, "Shall there be a Convention to revise the Constitution ?" and that whenever a majority of the voters in "towns or cities containing not less than onethird of the qualified voters of the Commonwealth shall request that a Convention be called, it shall be the duty of the next Legislature to pass an act for the calling of the same, and submit the question to the

qualified voters," &c. This great right of the people-as our Bill of Rights declares-"the incontestible, unalienable, and indefeasible right of the people alone to institute government, and to reform, alter, or totally change the same, when their protection, safety, prosperity and happiness require it"—is placed beyond the reach of partisan folly.

The Revised Constitution abolishes the old and absurd system of

FILLING THE VACANCIES IN THE SENATE

by the Legislature. How many times, during the last ten years, have the people of Norfolk County elected their Senators? I think not over three. What greater absurdity than that the Legislature should elect the Representatives of the people of Norfolk County in the Upper Branch? You all know the workings of the present system. All that is necessary to secure the election of a favorite ticket for the Senate is, for the wirepullers to pack or manage the County Convention so as to carry their nomination; and then they don't care whether the people elect them or not; as parties have been, there will be no choice by the people, and if their party is in the majority in the Legislature, their ticket goes in. This is a very pleasant arrangement for politicians; but it is a burlesque upon representation. The effect of it has been to place in our Senate, under the old Whig dynasty, a set of pliant tools of leading partisans, and to make that body the butt of universal ridicule.

The New Constitution changes all that by providing for the

ELECTION OF SENATORS IN SINGLE DISTRICTS,

and by plurality, so that hereafter the people, and not the Legislature, will elect the Senators.

Under the New Constitution we shall never see the WHOLE SENATE TO BE OF ONE PARTY, AND THAT PARTY IN THE MINORITY in the State. In 1846, 47, 48 and '49, every member of the Senate was Whig; and yet, for two of those years, the Whig party was in a minority of several thousand votes. Hereafter the whole people will be fairly represented in the

Senate.

Another change of the utmost importance is

THE ABOLITION OF THE ODIOUS GENERAL TICKET SYSTEM, by districting cities and large towns. The accomplishment of this alone is enough to justify the calling of the Convention. From 1850 to 1860, under the present Constitution, Boston elects forty-four Representatives on one ticket; from 1860 to 1870, she will elect fifty; from 1870 to 1880, she will elect fifty-five. Of course they are all of one party. Worcester County is entitled to elect forty-four Representatives every year. What sort of a representation would it be if they were all elected on one ticket, and of course all of the one party which happened to be in the majority? So of the other counties.

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One of the worst effects of the General Ticket System is, that it transfers the political power entirely to cliques and cabals. The people of Boston have nothing to do with selecting their Representatives. Once a year the Whig voters are notified to meet in some Hall to choose their Nominating Convention." Two or three hundred of the twenty thousand voters of Boston get together and elect this "Nominating Convention.” Here was the agency of the people. This "Nominating Convention," consisting of seventy-six, all told, meets in secret conclave a couple of weeks before election, and concocts the tickets of six Senators and forty-four Representatives; this man is put on to represent the "Or

thodox" interest, that the Universalist interest, the other the Unitarian, another the Baptist, &c. ; here is a "boss" mechanic or two, to humbug the working men to vote the Whig ticket, and there two or three temperance men gone to seed, to do the same service with the temperance folk; and all, all devoted, body and soul, to State Street. When ever was there a mechanic on the Boston ticket who dared stand up for the rights of the working man? Who ever heard a speech in the Legislature in favor of labor as against capital? If such a voice should dare once to differ from the money lords, it would be never heard there again. This Nominating Convention has an unerring instinct in selecting flunkies, who, under the name of mechanics, always play into the hands that feed them."

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And thus the ticket is made up; and about a week before election the people are informed, by the publication of the list in the Whig newspapers, that they are to vote for such and such gentlemen; and there is the usual amount of grumbling, and men with some little manliness left, meet at the corners of the streets, and swear they won't stand it any longer. But what can they do? A few scratch some of the most obnoxious names; but the mass of Whig voters go it blind, walk up to the polls and just register the edict of the Whig Nominating Convention. And these forty-four Representatives and six Senators-in electing whom the people exercise about the same volition that they do in appointing the President's cabinet, fill the vacancies in the Senate, choose the Governor, Councillors, &c., and control the whole State Government.

Why, to illustrate the entire absence of responsibility to the voters which this system necessitates, a few years ago a dead man was actually elected Representative from Boston. He died the night before the election ; but his name was printed on the ticket; his death was unknown to the managers, or it was too late to change it, and he was elected!

It is against this power of a secret, irresponsible cabal, that we protest. It is against this system which gives the election of fifty Senators and Representatives to a bare majority, and prohibits forever the minority. from any voice in the government, that every instinct of justice rebels. Five thousand voters in Boston, representing the interests and sentiments of sixty thousand people, have never had, and under this system never can have, a single Senator or Representative, and have no more voice in framing the laws by which they are governed than if they lived in Russia.

But divide Boston, as the New Constitution provides, into districts elecing two or three Representatives each, and the power of this" Convention is gone forever, and the laboring classes even of Boston will send to the Legislature men with interests and sympathies allied to their own. Retain the old Constitution, and you not only retain this monstrous injustice, but it increases anew every census. Suffolk County now elects fortysix every year; in 1860, she will elect fifty-four, and in 1872, sixty-two; while Worcester County, now electing forty-four every year, in 1860 can elect but thirty-eight, and in 1870, but thirty-seven; Hampden, now electing thirteen, in 1870 will elect only nine; Franklin, now electing six, in 1870 will elect only two; Berkshire, now electing thirteen, in 1870 will elect eight. And so with all the rural Counties; while Boston and suburbs gain under every census, they all lose.

But the subject which most severely taxed the wisdom of the Convention, was the

BASIS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

All agreed that there must be essential change. Not a delegate risked his reputation in attempting a defence of the present system. The whole