Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1846-02-19
be only altered or abolished in the mode

This first section of the Declaration of
Rights affirms, "that all government of right
originates from the people, is founded IN
compact only, and instituted solely for the
good of the whole" The convention was
then framingea Constitution and Form Of
Government, and to the Legislative Depart
ment of the Government they determined
to give the power to change or abolish it
in the mode prescribed, and in no other.
They were themselves exercising a revolu-
tionary power, under which they claimed
and exerted the right to destroy the pre-ex-
listing government, and adopt a new one
founded upon principle of human liberty.
In order to avoid the necessity of having
recourse to this extreme remedy again, they
thought fit TO give to the Legislature about
to be created the power to alter the funda-
mental law, whenever the changed circum-
stances of society or the public good should
require it. They did not deem it necessary
to reserve to the people, in terms, the right
of revolution to relieve themselves from in
tolerable oppression, because that was an
unalienable right, of which they could not
divest themselves if they would; but in
order to guard against the necessity of hav-
ing recourse to such remedy, they i'm
parted to the Constitution self-healing
power, by which unforeseen mischief might
be cured, as they should arise.
But for this provision in the Constitution,
restricting the power of alteration or change,
to the Legislature. it is confidently believed,
it never would have been adopted. Ac-
cordng to the distribution of political pow
er then made, it was believed the small and
thinly-settled counties would be able to
protect themselves against the larger and
more populous.
Each county was to be entitled to four
Delegates to the General Assembly. Nine
Senators were to be taken from the West
ern, aud six from the Eastern Shore, to be
chosen by an Electoral College, to which
each county was entitled to send two; and
the Governor was to be elected annually,
by the joint ballot of both branches of the
Legislature, thus constituted. This was the
government, and this the compact, into which
the people of the different counties of the
State, through their Delegates to the con-
vention, entered when the Constitution was
adopted, and there is little risk in affirming
that it never would have been assented to
but for those provisions. The proviso to
the 59th article of the Constitution, the
whole of which has been already quoted,
is especially applicable to this view of the
subject, SO far as the Eastern Shore is con-
cerned-that proviso is, 'that nothing in
this Form of Government, which relates to
the Eastern Shore particularly, shall at any
time hereafter be altered, unless for the al
teration and confirmation thereof at least
two-thirds,of all the members of each branch
Of the General Assembly shall concur"
The undersigned think that the insertion
of this provision must have materially in
Auenced the Delegates from the Eastern
Shore, in giving their assent to the Consti-
tuition, and that TO violate it, by changing
that instrument in any Other way than the
mode prescribed, would be a breach of the
compact for which there could be no excuse.
But if, as the advocates of convention
assert, the restriction in the 59th article is
only applicable to changes of the Constitu-
ton by the Legislature; whence is derived
the power to that body to call conven-
ton for that purpose? If the Legislature
can itself only alter the instrument in the
mode prescribed, how can they confer pow
er over it 10 another? they cannot surely
confer an authority upon convention
which they do not possess themselves, be-
cause this would be doing indirectly what
they are prohibited from doing directly-a
mode of exercising power which the I'M
dersigned could not think of recommending.
If, however, it be said, that the conven-
ton is not itself to form Constitution, but
TO recommend such alterations or modfca-
tons to the General Assembly as to them
may seem expedient, then we respectfully
submit, that the labor and expense attend
ing such an assemblage would most prob
ably be thrown away, as there is no reason
to believe that such recommendations, COM
ing from convention, would lie more likely
to find favor with the Legislature than sug-
gestions made in different way. If, on
the contrary, it be the design that Jew
Constitution, or alterations in the present,
Constitution, are to be adopted by the con-
vention, and submitted directly to the peo-
pie for their ratification or rejection, and
this under the authority of a Legislature,
expressly restricted in the mode of chang
ing that instrument, then we submit, the at
tempt is to procure from the Legislature, by
indirection, that which in terms they are
clearly prohibited from doing directly, and
consequently it is asking them to violate
the oath which they took when they quail
fed as members.
There is another view ofthe subject which
the undersigned think cannot fail to have
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