The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1873-01-24

I
ment BY the last clause of section o,
| article g, Of tho constitution, 1t is declared
that neither the governor, licutenant-gov-
ornor, auditor of public accounts, secretary
of state, superintendent of public instruc-
ton, nor attorney general shall be eligible
, TO any other office during the period for
which he shall have been elected. THAT the
position of senator in congress of this
United States is an Office none will deny,
and ii would DO supcrlluous to say that it
i, another and different office from that of
governor OF the state of Illinois. The un-
designed are not permitted to forget that
those who deny their obligation to support
and obey the constitution "a it Is written
assert the Office of senator in the congress
of the United States was not created by
tue constitution and the laws Of the state
of Illinois, but by the constitution of the
United States, and that, therefore, the
trainers OF the constitution of the state
could not have intended, by the language
of the 9th section of the 9th article of the
constitution, to render the governor of the
state ineligible thereto. The undersigned
consider it to be a matter Of profound re.
greet that it should be found necessary at
any time or for any reason, to depart
from the language employed in the con-
stitution to find its meaning, or that limit
ations to the scope of its provisions should
be supplied by conjecture but even those
who insist upon dsregarding the letter of
the constitution in obedience TO an inter-
probation they give to it, upon the ground
that its trainers failed TO employ the Ian
guage proper to express their real mean
ing, are bound to succeed TO those who
prefer TO be governed by the constitution
/ IL. al.
in the congress Of the United States from
the state of Illinois actually existed
when the clause under consideration was
adopted, and that its existence was
known to the trainers of the constitution,
and that the language employed is broad
enough to include that office and that the
members of the constitutional convention,
the most eminent as well rs the most ex-
perienced citizens of the state, may well
be presumed to have known that n seat in
the senate might hereafter be considered
by ambitious men to be prize of such
magnitude that the governor, in its pur-
suit. would forget the interests of the peo-
pie of the state, disregard the duties of
his Office. or shrink from their fearful peo-
Torrance, or use the appointing power
bestowed upon his office Tor the public
good as means Of securing supporters or
in rewardng their services; SO that in
pursual of place he might fail to remem-
Der that he was the chief executive mag
istrate of free state, and become the
servile follower who would regard fidelity
to mere party as the highest duty of the
place to which he might aspire.
These considerations, in the judgement
Of the undersigned, afford the most con-
vincing reason for believing that the
trainers of the constitution used the broad
language found in that clause quoted with
full knowledge of its actual comprc.
hension and meaning, and TO effect an Oh
iect which they considered TO be in the
highest sense important to the well-being
Of the people of the state. MOI are the
undersigned unaware that il is urged that
tho people of the state of Illinois have no
power 10y the constitution TO declare any
citizen ineligible 10 tho Office of senator in
tho congress of the United States, or, us
the proposition is sometimes stated, the
states have no power TO prescribe the
qualifications of a senator. and the under
sIgned are ready TO admit the proposition
wncn stated in either mode to be true
The office of senator ia created by the con-
stltutlon of the United States, and the
qualifications of senator are Ire
scribed by that Instrument and no state
can 10y It's constitution or otherwise dis
pense with the qualifications required by
the constitution vi the United States, or
insist upon qualification IN addition to
those prescribed by that instrument but
the people OF the state may, beyond all
question, provide by their constitution
that any clLlzen elected 10 the office of
governor shall, by his acceptance of that
Office, incnpacItulo himself from the ac-
ceptance of any other Office during that
period for which ho was elected, and they
may by declaring him Ineligible to any
other oiiico during his term make It their
own duty, and that OF their representa-
uyes III the general assembly, TO with
hold their votes for another office from n
| person thus declared Ineligible or incapa-
| bic.
We have already adyerted to some Of
the considerations that might be sufficient
to satisfy the people OF the state that
sound political policy demanded that GER
tam officers should not be permitted to
hold any other office during the period
for which they were elected, and they
might, a, they have done in the 9TH Sec
ton OF the 9th article of the constitution,
declare that 10 be their will and such u
provision does not, in any manner that
we can perceive, conflict with the rule Of
the constitution of the United States,
already adverted TO.
The undersigned will not discuss the
force of the argument urged by those who
insist that on some former occasion in the
history Of the state the general assembly
Of the state disrcgarded the constitution
anu elected a citizen 10 II scat in tho sem
ate OF the United States in opposition to
one of its provisions nor will they UNDER
take 20 determine the value of the reason.
ing by which it is sought to distinguish
the case referred to from that of the cleo
ton Of the governor of the state to an
other Office within the first month after he
and the members Of the general assembly
here bad taken an oath to support the con-
stltution. Tho undersigned, for
themselves, deny the authority
of all pretended presidents that are with
out the support of sound principles
They deny that the people OF the state are
to be forever bound by the erroneous act.
of past legislatures, but insist that it is the
; duty Of the present general assembly to
perceive and obey the prevailing impulse
OF the public mind, 20 correct abuses, de.
nounce bad precedcnts, and again to recuI
? TO the principles Of policy and constitu
tional construction so obviously demanded
. by the Intelligent and earnest freemen o.
! the state.
Here followed the names of the Liberia
! members Of the house.
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