Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1870-06-24

,ice the vote was. ayes 124, nays IS. Among
the ayes are the names of many delegates from
small towns, who so voted on the plea, lndustrl-
ously urged, that there is no danger. The same
plea, urged upon men equally cre1ulous IN Iu-
ture Houses of Representatives, will secure the
proposition Of an amendment to destroy the right
Of the towns TO equal representation In tne
House; and then, erery branch will De ID the
hards Of bare majority Of the people, and the
minority will have - no rights that the majority
will be bound 10 respect II IS not pleasaht
prospect for the future peace and welfare ol Tue
State, and we regret that it has been forced upon
our contemplation. But we must do Justice 10 tne
Convention: there lcere good grounds for dislIk-
ing the Council Of Ceusors. We must also DO
Justice to the people by the remark, that they'
TOO. have been at fault They should hsye been
careful to elect better men to the Council.
As to the rights Of the people, to elect and be
elected 10 office. the result is that they are strip
pei Of exactly half Of all their old opportunities
to exercise the right of suffrage and OF beng
elected to state, county, and certain town oihces-
Another effect Of the amendments Is, That no
amendment of the Constitution can be maze ior
the next thirteen years; nor csr an amendment
ever be constltutionally made if the oenste shall
choose to say 50.
We are not unwilling TO erect q very pain nc
jqcei to the Council of Censors but on the
tombstone Of the constitutional Convention we
would iuscribe an honorable epitsph. Never, IN
all previous time, hss it been guilty Of any nm
deity to the rights sni interests Of the people Of
Vermont and Of this lsst Convention We Will
say, that it certainly intended no inhdeliiy.
The above Is mainly repetition OF the
arguments (?) used by cur friend, Mr.. Wal
ton. in the Convention. We must suppose
the Wat-bnqu to be sincere in this view Of
the case, vet how it can be seriously main
tanned, after the need of special pleading
has passed, passes our comprehension.
The Wq'a61aau says by the old process
the people at large initiated amendments.
Docs our contemporary mean to aver that the
people at large initiated the Woman Suffrage
amendment, for instance? Is it not fact
that not one in ten Of the amendments pro-
posed by the various Councils have ever been
aiorted by the Conventions, as they would
have allbeen likely to be if initiated by the
PEOPLE at large? The truth is that by the
old process. nine men Of body of thirteen,
elected in practice by a very small minority /
Of the voters, originated the amendments. |
How can this he any safer than to give the |
r,xsr of originating amendments to the Sen /
are of thirty members, elected always by |
majority Of the voters What our contcm-
Ioiarg means by saying that the majority OF
the people III each torn had the power of
adoption or rejection, we DO not know. Ia
the people had that power. how is it that
they have been stripped of half Of their
rights and opportunities against their viii,
by this convention? The IVafotmar should
the rather be thankful that nothing of the SOFT
can happen again. for hereafter the people
.. W ,1ri torn" will vote directly On all pro
posed amendments.
gain our friend says " The right of the
several towns to equal representation has no
possible protection under this system, except
a power IN the House to noa-c1ncur with the
senate" This is as if one should say
that the Government Of the United States
hos ., ,.,..ib,s rr,+e,-i1n a...,in-t foreign az
.r.s.-, nm .,,e,t the army and navy. The
.,,..o.t;,, ,br. crc,rti,rallv alluded TO j.
..-,,..- NOW than ever lef,-e 4
.,,,,.1 has lee,r.. r,,y called. and had liz
-,.i..,.,,v ., .,,,.,-;,, ol..,s.i i., districts
,o. ..ur.,ti,r 81. called ya-c5 itself instar-
e..-;...-.,... 1.... -l., now ONO If -re