Year: 1873

or local law " granting 10 any C0rpOratlOh'
association, or individual the right to lay
down railroad tracks, or granting to any
private corporation, association, or individual
any exclusive privilege, immunity, or fran
chise whatever The provision respecting
street railways seems to us carefully drawn.
There is to be no moro lobbying for a charter
at the State capital but all such railways are
to be authorized under a general law, on
condition that they have the consent. 1, of the
local corporate authorities, and, 2, of the
owners of at least one-half in value of the
property along the proposed route, or if that
cannot be obtained then of three commission
ers, residents of another county, appointed by
the Supreme Court in General Term.


The Governor is TO be elected for three
years instead of two, and to receive. besides
a house, a salary of $4,000, instead of the
present meager pay of $4,000, which is not
fixed by the Constitution but by statute. The
Lieutenant G Governor is also to be elected for
three wears, and the evident intention of the
Commission is to give him salary of $4,000;
by an awkward construction of the section
this allowance, however, is made to apply only
to the temporary President of the Senate.
No change is indicated i'll the duties or quail
fications of the Governor or Lieutenant-Gov-
ernor. 1t is provided, however that the Gov
ernor may veto separate items of an appro-
priaton bill without vetoing the whole bilb
and to pass any bill or part of bill over the
veto shall require a vote OF two-thirds of all
the members elected, and not merely, as now,
of the members present These two amend
ments are among the most valuable in the
whole report.


With respect to the other executive officers
the changes are radical. The Controller is the
only one to be elected by the people. He is
TO hold Office three years, and to receive a
salary of S6,OO0 The Secretary of State,
Attorney General, and State Engineer and
Surveyor, are to be appointed by the Gov
ernor, with the consent of the Senate. The
State Prison Inspectors are replaced by a
Superintendent appointed by the Governor
and Senate for five years, but removable by
the Governor at any time for cause. The
Treasurer is to be chosen by the Legislature
in Joint session for three years. The Con-
troller Secretary of State, Attorney General,
Treasurer, and Engineer and Surveyor shall
be Commissioners of the Land Office, and shall
also form, with the addition of the Superin-
tendent of Public Works, the Canal Board.
The duties of Commissioner of the Canal Fund
shall be discharged by the Controller. The
Superintendent Of Public Works shall be ap-
pointed by the Governor with the consent of
the Senate, and shall have the management of
the canals. All these changes seem well de-
vised to fix responsibility upon the Governor,
to simplify the administration of public affairs,
al md will 6nnh ga
meet with general approval.


The Judiciary article of the Constitution as
it now stands was framed by the Constitu-
tional Convention of 1S67-6S, and adopted at
the general election of 1869. 1t leaves the
most important of all reforms in this depart
ment of the Government to be settled at the
general election of next November when we
are to decide whether the elective judiciary,
with all its enormous evils, shall be retained,
or the power of appointment be placed where
it belongs in the hands of the Governor and
Senate. The Commission accordingly makes
no change in this section, except by striking
out the provision that justices of the peace
and district court judges shall be elected, and
enacting that in cities of not less than 100000
inhabitants all judges of courts not of record
SDdll Dt dppOlHtcu W thO pV'Si"VA "''i WV
consent of the Senate.


The only important changes in the Article
on the Canals are that the Legislature may
sell or lease any of those works except the
Erie, OswegO, Champlain, or Cayuga and Sen
eca Canal-a step in the right direction, but
not long enough One-and that no extra
compensation shall be made to any contractor.
The charters of savings banks are to be made
to conform to general and uniform law, and
some stringent provisions are proposed for
their management. Neither the State, nor
any county, city, town, or village shall lend
its credit or money to any individual or cor
poratiOn. Members of the Legislature and
all executive and judicial officers must take,
besides the oaths now required of them,
another to the effect that they have not paid,
promised, nor offered, directly or indirectly,
any money or other valuable thing for the
giving or Withholding of any vote; and an
additional article makes bribery or corruption
in Office felony. The devices for carrying
this provision into effect are judcious. The
person who offers bribe shall not be privi-
legged from testifying against the officer who
receives it, but if he testify he shall not be
liable to prosecution for the 0ffense. A dis
trict attorney who shall fail to prosecute
person charged in his county with violation
of this Article of the Constitution shall be
removed from office.


No portion of the labors of the Commission,
however, will be studied with greater interest
than the amendments proposed to Article XIV.
on the government of cities. These strike at
the root of one of our greatest troubles by
summaTily abolishing the special legislation
whereby charter makers are continually at
tempting to turn to the benefit of partisan
cliques OF swindling rings the whole patronage