The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-01-10
THE GOVERNORS MESSAGE
TOUCHES UPON MANY IMPORTANT
 TOPICS.

Topics That Have Notable Bearing
 Upon the Interests of Our Common.
 yyeaIth-Au the Leading Features O1
 the Document.
 The. message of Governor Mclean tc
 the general assembly was read before
 the joint convention of the senate and
 house in the chamber of the house yes
 terday afternoon. Governor Mclean
 began the reading of the document at
 about o'clock and concluded in about
 three quarters of an hour. Besides the
 members of the general assembly many
 distinguished visitors were present. Oc-
 cupying the speakers platform with
 Governor Mclean were the retiring
 governor, George E. I4ounsbury Chief
 Justice Andrews, Lieutenant Governor
 Keeler. who presided at the joint con
 vention; Speaker John H. Light, Sec
 retary of State Charles G. R. Vinal;
 Comptroller Abiram Chamberlain, l Treasurer Gallup, and Executive Sec 1 retary Day Occupying chairs in front
 on the floor of the house were Hon. O.
 R. Fyler, chairman of the republican l state central committee; ex-Governor l Bulkeley, Hon. MT. Colt, of New Lon- l don; Judge L. M. Hubbard, of Walling- | ford; General E. s. Greeley, of this
 3ity; ex-Senator Dwight Futile, of East Haven; County Commissioner Hart D. Munson, of this city; William Gay, of this city; Postmaster Allen, of Middle town, and many other well known men. The senators occupied their chairs plac- ed in the front part of the house. The gallery was packed with spectators, mostly ladies. The hundreds of extra rhairs which had been placed on the floor of the house were all occupied by spectators. Altogether it was an inn pressive scene. The governor read his message in an easy, yet firm and we'll modulated voice, and made most fav- orable impression. All the leading feat ures of the message follow:
 CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM.
 The Constitution of the state of Con necticut like those of her sister repub- lies, always has been, is now and al- ways will be, complained against by good and patriotic men.
 The state of Connecticut is, however, by the testimony of all her loyal sons, as good a state to live in as there is in the Union.
 Many of her blessings are due to the wealth and variety of her natural en- dowments, but many more are due to the wisdom of the fathers who laid the foundations of her government in the adamant of morality and justice.
 For more than two centuries the fun damental law of, Connecticut has been the admiration and inspiration of the representative republics of the world. And if the citizens of Connecticut have preferred stability to uncertain change their choice has brought them great prosperity and the the reputation of be- Ing people of steady habits which, with Gods help, may they long retain.
 Nothing is so destructive of credit and the general well-being of society ns constant modification of fundamen- tai law, and injustiees in a constitution offending theory only may we'll be pre- ferred to experimental attempts at iIn- possible ideals.
 The general plan of our constitution in it's protection against the wrong kind of liberty is in the Judgment of many, better than that possessed by any other state in the Union. I do not say that it is perfect. Perfection is hard to find in temples made with hands
 We are told that perfect form of | government Is possible, and that it will | be the one that runs in exact harmony with the immutable laws of nature. | This may be true. and when discovered | still be unsatisfactory, for some of the ! hnGt of n will o1 G,l sion to criticise natural regulations
 On the other hand, we need never | fear to remedy a manifest wrong in law, if that wrong clearly | affects majority of the people. And | the minority, however dearly it may cherish the }aw that causes that wrong, should rememper that the very life of depends upon the patriotic | obedience of all to the will of the ma iority. We must expect to amend our for years, if not for centu- riesto come. We should be willing and even glad to do so when natural causes that could not be foreseen have, in the course of time, rendered an amendment l plain duty.
 In 1899, when the state had but three
 
 ties to the general court, and it was further provided in the first of written that whatever other owns should thereafter be added to Connecticut, "They shall send so many deputies as the court should judge meet ! reasonable proportion to the number 'f freemen that are in the said towns )eing." It was then the definite expressed purpose of the founders of the state to rive to each town such number of dep lties as would be in reasonable propor- , ion to the number of freemen therein, md to every town some representation. :, t cannot be denied that the apportion- nent was conservative, wise and just. , At present, owing to very large in- , rease in the population of some towns , md very little, if any, in others, it is z possible for less than 20 Ter cent. of the people of Connecticut o elect a clear majority of both | branches of the general assembly, and J o secure absolute control of the entire | tate government, and as an adjunct to ; his unanticipated departure from the I riginal intent of the founders, some . owns having population of less than ve hundred retain two representatives 1hile others having ten times that [ umber are entitled to but one. | Some of you may be tempted to point | ) the proposed increase in the senate 6 s fully satisfying the spirit of the con 0