New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1846-10-14
The Amended Constitution.

The Amended Constitution.
The State Constitution formed by the Conven
ton which has just adjourned differs from the ex
isting Constitution mainly in the following partic
ulars:
|. General Provisions
J. RELIGIOUS FREEDoM,-Tbe New Constitution
provides more effective safeguards for absolute Lib
erty of Conscience, and that no person shall be
rendered incompetent to be witness on account
of his opinion on matters of religious belief The
time has been, and that not long ago, when erone
ous belief. or want of belief was held &c disquaiy
men altogether for giving testimony, so that
gang of rufians might have outraged and murdered
the wife and daughters OF disbeliever in the pre-
scribed creed before his very eyes, and utterly de
fed and escaped alegal penalties therefor Pub
lie Opinion has in good part corrected this mon
strous judicial absurdity; the New Constitution
utterly annihilates il and provides against its re
curence
g. LAND THANKSGIVING the existing titles
aud rights Of oil laDdhoders carefully preserved
and guaranteed, provision has been made against
any future creation of Agricultural Leasehold Els
tates, and the Feudal stipuations in existing
Leases have been formally abolished reserving the
landlord rights to Rents or Services certain. We
consider these provisions Of great practical wei
as theoretical value.
g. RESTORATION OF CLERGYMEN's KIGuTs-
Hitherto Clergyman, no matter how competent
or qualified, has not been eligible to any Office I'M
der the State not even that OF School Commission.
or or Inspector. This most unwse restriction lori
ginaly crotchet of the great and good John Jay,
L.. III, Do
pie are left free TO require reject the services OF
Clergymen in Political capacity, the same us other
citizens. We deem this great Improvement Do
you say Clergymen ought TO devote themselves ex
clnsively TO their calling We answer, that is
their business the State has no right TO make or
neddle with ecclesiastical matters. True there
have been cases in which men have abandoned n
clerical career to devote themselves to Politics but
we do not think Religion lost any thing thereby for
ifthey carried their Religionin Politics they could
not have taken it where it was more needed; and II
they did not having none to carry the sooner they
left the pulpit the better, clergyman may prop
ery decline Office which draws him from his higher
vocation, or the People may refuse. unless in spe
eial cases, to elect clergymen to Office, deeming
their training and mental habits not such would
but all this will better adjust itself in the absence
of nm arbitrary Constitutional restriction than 9th
crwise.
g. OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES has been made for
the appointment Of three Commissioners to ere
duce into systematic CoDE the whole body OF the
Law of this State" or so much thereof as shall
seem practicable. II the right men shall be Sc
lected as Commissioners, there is great reason 10
hope that the time is not far distant when every
citizen who can read may learn what the laws are
which he is required to obey, and which define
and protect his own rights as well as the rights of
others.
IL The Eiec,ipe Franchise
/. NATuRALlzArIoN,-The New Constitution re-
Suires that each elector shall have been n citizen
at least ter days before he entitled to vote This
viii put stop to the widely prevalent practice OF
naturalizins men by hundreds and thousands mere.
" to carry an election, whereby Mayors OF this
City and Members of Congress from Brooklyn have
alorctime been chosen remuneration of Foreign
allegiance and acceptance of American citizenship
is an important and solemn act. Ii should be de-
fiberase and unbought act When party Com.
naittee being in need OF votes in the heat Of Po
6tical contest, casts its drag net over the cellars
and alleys of great city, and hauls up all the i'm
migrants from Europe who can be induced TO nc
cept of free Naturalization (otten garnished with
free hquor) it gains its own immediate end at the
expense of the dignity and purity OF Republican
institutions, The provso to effect thoroughly its
object should have required sixty days Naturali-
cation before voting but even il is II will great
" subserve and promote the purity of our Elec.
tioas. We believe 1t viii greatly diminish the a..
grcgate OF fraudulent Naturalzations includins
the numerous cases in which the person Natural.
ICED imperfecsly not at all understands our Ian,
guage and swears what is no, true without being
conscious of its falsehood
Q. PIpE-LArtSa-While considerable number
Of our citizens, who have hitherto moved out OF OF
into the City, or from any one County to another.
less than six bat more than four months before an
important Election will hereby be enabled to vote
the corrupt and mischievous practice OF removing
voters from one Ward or Township to another. in
dents Of the latter viii be stopped by the require
mens Of thirty dogs residence in the District ~
which the candidate for whom, he votes is to oe
chosen or rejected That is TO say, he may vose in
the Election Distric. wherein he actually resides
on the day OF Election. and no where else; ha,.
unless he has livei thirty days in the Town "
Ward, he csnno, vote for Town or Ward Officers,
and unless he has lived thirty days in the Election
District he cannot vote for Inspectors OF Election
Sec Soia this City, man who has moved a DOZEN
times from one part o. the City TO another within
the month preceding the Election may vote in tina;
District wherein he actually resides Election Dsy
for Governor Mayor and al officers elective by the
whole State or whole City; and, if he has been
thirty days in the Congress District he may vote
for Member of Congress also; so with ressrd to
the Senate District and voting for Senator; so with
regard 10 Member of Assembly or Wsrd Officers
We do not see how the utmost hberaiity % the