Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-12-25

from Its perverse and disloyal plumbers
would be classed in history among the
monumental farces. And now we come
IN our rapid survey to the convention
OF 1865. Most Of the Virginians now
living never lived under any other
constitution. In the place of the great
MARSHALL sat the rapacious Underwood
Hunnicut and Buyne disgraced the
places once occupied by Henry and
JEFFERSON. 1t is said that the constitu-
tlon they framed is copy of the New
York constitution. 1t is surely not
adapted to the needs of sparsely set
tied State like Virginia. Its distin-
gushing feature is, as might have been
expected from such a body. the number
OF officers 1t created. The smallest
county must have thirty-iive officers,
And the stranSest thing of all is that
Virginians should have been content to
live under it for thirty-siX years.
In few months another constitu-
tional convention will meet. OF what
sort OF material will it be composed :?
The answer TO the question will de-
pend on whether men are to be chosen
with reference to their fitness. or
whether we are to descend TO the low
plane of availability. There rs no lack
or good material in the State. We do
not need a long constitutions; the
shorter and more comprehensive It's
provisions the better The restriction
OF the suffrage, the organization of the
judiciary and the county governments
the preservation of the oyster rocks
and the remodelling of the public free
school system will be the overshadow-
ing questions which will engage the Mt
tention of the convention.
NlrS1nianS should be mindful of the
greatness of the men who have framed
all her organic laws Except the pres
net constitution and elect men to the
coming convention whose soul recon-
mendatlon is their fitness to frame n
proper constitution for the State. 1t
would be sad catastrophe to frame
constitution which would be declar-
cd unconstitutional by the Supreme
Court of the United States because 1t
CONNECTS with some provision of the
FEDERAL constitution. Great constitu-
tional questions will, of necessity, have
TO be considered by the convention
The last Democratic State convention
held in Norfolk seems to have declar-
ed for what is commonly called the
grandafther's clause" that is. that
suffrage shall be limited by an educa-
tlonal qualification, provided no person
snail be thereby disqualified whose
father or grandfather could vote in
1867. This clause may be obnoxious to
the fifteenth amendment to the con-
stitution of the United States. The
III.
The Hon. William a. Anderson in his
splendid address before the Virginia
Bar Association, made n valuable sug-
gestion. worthy of the greatest CON
sideration, viz. not only-to except
from the operation of the disfranchis-
ing clause the voters of 1867 and their
descendants, but also all citizens of
the State, and their descendants
who have heretofore been soldiers and
sailors in the military service of Vir-
ginia, or of the United States in time
Of actual war. The proba bilities are
that this would remove any conten-
ton that the 'grandafthers clause"
was obnoxious to any provision of the
Federal constitution.
Let us. then, send men to the con-
vention whose sole aim will be to pro-
mote the grandeur. glory and material
welfare of the grand old Common
wealth.