The Placer herald., 1857-03-28
AUBURN, MARCH %, 1857.
The Constitutional Convention.

General Election tins year, or the people,
upon the question of calling a Convention
to revise our Constitution. We have here
tofore given our views upon some of the
alterations necessary to be made in our fun
damental law, and expressed our belief that
they could not DO effected without the agency
of a Convention. We should have been
glad to avoid the expense of a Convention,
but between that and having no amend
ments, we consider it by far the least of the
evils
Whoever knows anything Of the difficulties
of legislation will readily, we think, concede
the fact that, it would be next to i'm
possible to obtain amendments Of any extent
that were intelligent, connected, and harmo
NOUS Let a member of the Legislature di
gest in his room, a law upon any subject of
general interest, couched in words culled
with care and with view to the judicial
construction of every word and sentence;
each section in its proper order and embrac-
ing portion of the act, explanatory of and
necessary to the law as whole; the law it.
self made with view to other acts now on
the statute book; let him introduce such an
act into tie House of which he is a men,
Der, and it passes into the hands of com
mittee, not member of which has ever
given an hours thought to the particular
subject, they commence tinkering with it,
altering, amending, striking out, &c, DC,
and finally report upon it to the House or
Senate. then it runs another gauntlet, where
men alter, strike out, add to, &c, who have
not had an opportunity to know anything
about it; pass the bill then to the other
branch of the Legislature, where the mover
has no opportunity to be heard, here it is
again subject to more tnkerng and if it
pass both Houses and receive the Governors
signature it is lucky bill, but in the mean
time, the originator of the measure, will not
be able in one case out otten, to recognise, in
the bungled up, garbed, senseless act, the bill
matured by himself with so much prudence
and study. Suppose that this state of things
should continue through two sessions instead
of one where, in the name of all that is rea-
sonable, would be the original idea by the
time the Governor got it into his hands,
One of the modes provided for amending the
Constitution subjects the proposition to Just
such round. Here is the language:
''Any amendment or amendments to this Con-
sttutiOn. may be proposed in tho Senate or AS
sembly; and if the same shall he agreed to by a
majority Of lie members elected to each of the
two Houses such proposed amendment or amend
ments shall be entered OH their journals. with the
yeas and nays taken thereon, and referred to the
Legislature then next to be chosen and shall be
published for three months next preceding the
time of making such choice. And if in the Leg
islature next chosen, as aforesaid such proposed
amendment or amendments shdU be 0greed to 6Y
majority Of all the members elected to each
House. then it shall be the duty of the Legislature
to submit such proposed amendment amend
ments to the people, &c, Nc.
Is it not palpable that no remedy can be
practically reached through such befogged,
obstructed, and muddy channel. The other
mode provided for remodelling this instru-
ment sets forth that "if at any time, t,co-
thirds Of the Senate and assembly shall think
it necessary to revise and change this entire
constitution, they shall recommend to the
electors at the next election for members
of the Legislature, to vote for or against the
Convention; and if it shall appear that a
majority of the electors voting at such elec-
ton have voted in favor of calling conven-
ton, the Legislature shall, at its next session,
provide by law for calling Convention, to
be holden within six months after the pas
sage of such law" DC, DC. This seems a
straight forward mode of getting at the
work, and in our opinion, the Legislature
have acted wisely in adopting it-thus bring
ing tho question directly before the people.
So far as we know, there is but one voice
upon the matter, and that is hearty amen
to the move.
Perhaps We are hardly courteous in saying
that it is an unanimous aye, for there are
very few who have been endeavoring to show
that it is neither polite or safe, to trust the
people with such power, at this time. And
some of those persons are saying that al
though the bill passed the Senate by vote
Of 2l to 10, that it has not become law by
the constitutional majority required. 1t Is
not contended but what the bill passed the
Senate by vote of two-thirds of working
quorum, but that it should have passed by a
majority of twothirds of the Senators elected.
If there is anything in the objection it has
it's foundation in the words we have itaiicised
in our quotations. By reference to them it
will be seen that the word elected is used in