The Portland daily press., 1866-12-07
DAILY PRESS.
PORTLAN ND.
Friday Morning December 7, 1855.
Am Important Constitutional Amend
meMt.
PORTLAND.

Readers have doubtless observed that Rep
resentative Lawrence, OF Ohio, has introduced
a bill to repeal SO much of the civil Appfo-
priation act of the last session as relates 10
the increased compensation of members OIL
Congress Mr.. Schenck offered an amendment
providing for the retunding of the extra COM
pensatlon received, and the whole matter was
referred to the Judiciary Committee, where
there is perhaps some danger that it may
quietly sleep. Mr.. Lawrence also introduc-
ed bill to reduce the mileage, which was re-
fered to the Mileage Committee, and which
the country will hope to hear from again.
As expenses now range, it is alleged that
the compensation fl zed by the obnoxious acI
is not excessive. Probably it is not. That Is
an unreasoning economy which seeks 10 Sc
cure the services Of first-class men at second
class prices. 1t will be an unhappy day for
the country when nobody can afford to serve
in Congress, except men who are willing to
nav roundly tor the honor. But bargain is
a bargain. Members OF the Thirty-ninth Con-
eress were elected with distinct knowledge of
the compensation towhich they were entitled.
If they think that compensation too little, they
can increase it for the benefit of the next Con-
gress, but it was not becoming TO raise their
own salaries. They accepted their nomina
tions knowing that if they were elected they
would be expected to serve for fixed salary
To increase that salary for their own advan.
tage was an infraction of the tacit understand
ing between them and their constituents.
1t is still in the power of the States to pre-
vent the recurrence OF such proceeding. In
the appendix to Lanmans useful dictionary OF
Congress, we find subjoined to the first ten
amed dments to the Constitution, two others
proposed at the same time but never adopted
These twelve amendments were proposed to
the State Legislatures when there were but
eleven States in the Union. While they were
still pending, the eleven increased to fourteen
and at the critical moment just before they be-
came fifteen, il was found that ten of the Sc
ries had been ratified by eleven States. In
this manner the first ten amendments now
belonging to the Constitution were barely
saved, eleven being three fourths of fourteen,
but not three fourths OF fifteen. The other
two have not been further acted on and are
still pending, neither accepted nor definitely
rejected. One of them, the second in the Sc
ries, as originally proposed, reads thus:
No law varying the compensation for the
services of the Senators and Representatives
shall take effect until an election of Represen-
tatives shall have intervened.
This amendment has received the assent of
the Legislatures of seven States-Vermont,
New Hampshire, Delaware, Maryland, Vir-
ginia, North Carolina and South Carolina
Four States-Rhode Island, New York, New
Jersey AMI Pennsylvania-rejected it while
accepting the other ten. Massachusetts, Con-
necticut and Georgia never acted ON any of
the cries. and the twenty-five States since
admitted have never acted ON this. A cores
pondent of the Boston Advertiser thinks this
would be proper time for the twenty five
States which have never acted ON this amend
ment to take it up, and for the four States
which rejected it to reconsider and perhaps
reverse their action. In no better way GER
tainly could the people mark their deliberate
sense ofthe improperly ofthe measure crowd
ed through at the close of the last session,
than by decreeing through their State legsla-
lures that the act shall not be repeated