The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1875-11-28
JAr1ailg 4erala
DALLAS, TEXAS,
-
SUNDAY M0RAlSG $3.50 NOV, gS.
ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OF
TEXAS.

ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OIL
TEXAS.
FEIIOW-ClplZENs The undersIgn
ed, members Of the Constitutional Con
ventlon, have been appointed Com
mitlee by that body 10 address you II
explanation OF the New Constitution
and Ordinances adopted 10y II aud nov
submitted Ioyou for ratification. Thi
we shall do ~ briefly as Is ronsisten
with the great Importance of III,
subject
OUR PAST AND PRESENT CONDITION.
For six years the people have born
the blrthens and expressions innugu
rated by the seml-military Conslilu
ton of 1869 The evils fastened upon
the State by that instrument are gen
orally understood. Hevy taxation
an unwleldy and expensive judicla
system, impoverishing to both tn,
state aud It's cOuntes---a vast pOllticn
and partisan scheme under The prelenst
Of sustaining free public schools III
unwise, expensive ind irritating sys
,em Of registration--a vicious, partisan
aud mercenary State Police, multi
tudee Of Irresponsible partisan aud use
less officers, Irregularities, COMMISSIONS
ignorance aud prejudlces, and In some
eases corruption pervading the various
departments Of the public administra
ton, money subsidies voted to rail,
roads to the enormous sum Of twelve
millions of dollars Of the peoples
money-high salaries, even to petty
ana useless officers in the school de
partment--comblned, until the inau.
guratlon OF the present State Govern
ment in January, l&7!, with a partisan
oppressive and often vicious admins
tration Of the laws, thrice accompa
MED by declarations Of martial law
and the suspension Of the gront writ OF
right, the hd6c0s coypuS-these, fellow.
citizens, were some Of the evils com.
planned of by you, the freemen of Tex
as, under the Constitution Of 1863.
THE PRESENT CONVENTION.
On the first Monday in August last
the people, IN order to relieve them
selves of such an accumulation OIL
wrongs, and re-establish In the state u
just, wise and economical system OF
elected delegates to u
to form new Consttu-
tion. AT the same time, by majority
of two'thlrds, they distinctly voted in
favor of holding the convention. On
Monday, the sixth day Of September,
your chosen delegates, ninety in num-
Ter, from all parts of the State--somc
living Il thousand miles apart
assembled in the city Of Austin and
entered upon the discharge Of their
grave and Responsible daties. We ven
ture to assert, with the most perfect
that no representative body
of like number has ever assembled in
this State or any other State in the
Union, more fully resolved upon a con
isoharge of the duties de-
volving upon them. Differences, truly,
have arisen in the discussion Of the
best means of accomplishing the COM
mon desire of all--the formation of n
which ST olld secure the
rights, liberties and happiness of the
people. But a spirit of patriotic conccs-
sion has served to harmonic them sub
upon II common ground. -
Every member, as in all-wise delibera-
tive bodies, has yielded more or less of
his individual opinions 10 the aggreg-
ate voice of the whole.
So feeling, we are emboldened to ap-
peal to the people of the State for full
and thorough examination into the
work ofthe Convention. We invoke
you to take the new Constitution and
.he Ordinances of the Convention, of
which thousands OF copies are being
printed for free circulation, TO your
homes and examine them as u whole.
Compare them carefully with the sys-
EN- under which we heve lived for six
ears Heed not the silly, unjust and
possibly suG0rned assaults of those who
rave denounced the convention in ad
,ance Of its work; but read, scrutini1e
md decide for yourselves as intelligent,
freemen, jealous Of
our rights and liberties. lfyou will do
o we are confident in the
,elief that there will be such
II uprising of the people at
he ballot box in favor Of RArlFICATIoN
s has never been witnessed in Texas.
WORK or THE CONVENTION.
Let us glace at few of the i'm por-
ant points achieved by the Conven.
ion.
The first act was to cut down the
ay of its own members SO per day,
nd the second was to relieve the peo-
lie of an entire new registration prior
0 December, and to postpone gem
raj election in that month for a Leg
stature under the old constitution, at
+ about the same time the people
,ould be voting to ratify the new con-
titution and elect n new Legislature
nder its provisions. BY this action
re not only avoid the risk of having
wo rival legislatures at the same
ime, but saved the people from an
ther humiiating registration and a
seless election throughout the State,
in time and money, at a
Moderate estimate, TO three hnrdred
housand dollars. 1t ID true, and
hould be so stated, that some Of the
blest and purest members of the con-
ention, upon strictly legal principles,
enied the power of the convention to
xercise this function; but none de-
led otherwise its wisdom or its great
economy to the people. Over two
birds of the body, however, held to
he opposite view, and passed the Or
nance of September "A, postponing
be Deem Der election.
THE NEW CONSTITUTION.
Fellow.citizens, we invite you first
|, examine the "Bill of Rights"
herein you will see that the liberty
t the citizen, as inherited from our
ncestors, is asserted and protected oy
very safeguard known to constitu-
ional law. The government of Texas
, restored to the people of Texas, a
ladpe tn Won that YOU, your children |