The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1862-04-12
The New Constitution.

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honestly what would be the effect of it
adoption or rejection; and while larg
numbers, doubtless, would regard tn
adoption Of its unique and radical prov
sions as calamitous, we undertook to poin
out how, at the same time, its rejection
would be calamitous by leaving US withou
any constitutional provision or restrain
upon the subject of banks, but leaving tn
legislature, with the corrupting ,nfuenc
of all the usual lobby machinery, perfect
free to pass such bank bills and charter
as they pleased.
We now turn to the new Constitution
and comparing it with the old, propose tt
point out to our readers exactly VIVA
changes have been made; and, as far a:
may seem apparent to our mind, to explain
the object and probable effect OF such
changes. Of course, to go over the whole
instrument in this way will take up more
space than we can devote to the subjec,
in single issue; so that we shall be
obliged to give it in broken doses of q
chapter each week. To begin at the be-
ginning:
ARTICLE l." Boundaries" This is an
exact copy of the old Constitution, and
needs no further remark.
ART. II.-This, in the new Constitution,
is the " Bill of Rights" which, in the old
Constitution, was the last article. We
find, on comparison of the two, that few
alterations have been made
Sec l is amended by adding few few
words in the beginning so as to make the
language correspond exactly with that of
the Declaration of Independence. The
words are, ave Lold these truths to be
selfevident: That all men are created
equal" &c The meaning Of the section
remains the same.
After Sec. 6, the following section is
added
SEC T. A jury shall, in all cases, consist
of twelve men, unless otherwise agreed by
the parties; but the General Assembly
may provide for a jury of a less number, in
civil cases before justices of the peace.
Sec. 26 of the "Bill of Rights" in the
old Constitution, which required the adj
dition of the "duelling clause to all
official oaths, is omitted in the new; and
the following sections are added to the
Bill of Rights:
SEC. q. Private property shall ever be
held involate, but subservient to the public
welfare. When the same shall be taken
in time of war, or other imminent public
danger, imperatively requiring its immedi-
ate seizure, or for the purpose::of making or
repairing roads, which shall be open to the
public, without charge, a compensation
therefor, to be ascertained by jury, shall
be made to the owner in money. and in
all other cases, in which private property
shall be taken for public use a compensa-
ton therefor shall first be made in money,
or first secured by deposit of money
and such compensation shall be assessed
lay jury offreeholders, without deduction
for benefits to any property Of the owner
SEC. %. Private roads may be opened In
the manner to be prescribed by law; but
in every case the necessity for the same
and the amount of demages to be sustain
ed by the opening thereof, shall be first
determined by jury of freeholders and
such amount, together with the expenses,
shall be paid by the person to be benefited,
without deduction for benefits to any pro-
perty of the owner.
SEC. %. The General Assembly shall so
provide that fifteen of the most competent
of the permanent citizens of each country
shall be summoned as grand jury, twelve
OF whom must concur to find an Indictment.
SEC. 80 The people Of this State have
the exclusive right OF governing tn emselves,
as a sovereign and Independent State. and
do, and forever shall, enjoy and exercise
every power pertaining thereto, which is
not, and may not hereafter be, by them,
expressly delegated to the Uuited States
of America, or prohibited to the State by
the Constitution of the United States.
SEC. 81. That the people of this State
regard the union of the States, under the
Federal Constitution, as permanent and
indissoluble, from which no State has a
right to withdraw or secede.
The effect of the first two Of these sec
tons, the intelligent reader can see at
glance, will be to reyolutionize the present
system Of assessing damages to property
for railroad, canal, or other
public purposes, as it does away with the
whole system of offsetting damages by
supposed benefits to accrue from the im-
provements. 1t is provision which will
unquestionably find great favor among
land owners, but may prove serious
drawback to the enlargement of our rail-
road system, opening public roads, &c.
The 10th section reduces the number of
grand jurors to Is. Sec 80 and 81 state
undoubtedly the correct doctrine Of state
CONGRATULATIONS Union" the motto
of our State; and which are thus recon
ciled and shown to be consistent with
each other, while halfbred traitors and
among us have attempted to
draw from our State motto recognition
Of the odious traitor doctrine Of the consti-
tutional right of secession. The explicit,
condemnation of this pre-
tense by the Convention shows that what
ever may have been the insinuations of
reckless republican prints against the
genuine loyaly of a majority of that body,
nothing could have been more false and
We shall take up Art. Ill, DC, ia our
next.
Uncle Sans Elephant.
The halcyon days of negro emancipation,
when the negroes can come north with
ont f,rthar p,aJ of tho froni1aco,, ood