The Convention also once adopted an amendment giving the defendant in a criminal trial the last appeal to the jury, but afterwards this was stricken out.

The committee on industrial interests recommended the adoption of the following section, drawn by Mr. Wales: "The legislature may pass laws authorizing and permitting parties owning or occupying lands to construct agricultural drains across the lands of other parties when such drains shall be necessary; and under proper restrictions, and under proper remuneration." When the Bill of Rights was under consideration Mr. Duganne moved to amend § 7 by providing for the construction of agricultural drains and ditches. On the first test the amendment was rejected, but it was afterwards renewed by Mr. Lapham, and adopted with modifications, and was included in the Constitution proposed by the Convention. Mr. Lapham, Judge Comstock, and others supported the amendment, and it was opposed by several delegates, among them Mr. Livingston, who objected to it because under it private property might be taken for private use, and he thought the Constitution should not attempt to sanction such a doctrine. Mr. Livingston's suggestion is important in view of the opinions expressed by judges of the court of appeals in a case construing a similar provision in the Constitution. of 1894.

The Convention adopted an important amendment on motion of David Rumsey, which declared that "the fee of land taken for railroad tracks, without the consent of the owners thereof, shall remain in such owners, subject to the sole possession of the railroad company while used for such purposes." Mr. Rumsey said the amendment was intended to apply to railroads the rule governing highways, namely, that, on the discontinuance of the highway, the land reverted to the owner; it was not in

tended to apply to land taken for buildings, but only to land taken for tracks.

Mr. S. Townsend offered a section providing that "faithful conduct in the civil and military service of this state shall be recognized by a suitable compensation when, from inability, the individual may be no longer qualified to discharge such service;" but the Convention declined to adopt it. The principle of this amendment has been adopted and applied in several municipal statutes, and was included in the Constitution and applied to the compensation of judges of the higher courts.

The Convention also declined to accept an amendment offered by Mr. Wales, conferring on resident aliens the same rights relating to property as were enjoyed by native-born citizens. The Convention, without debate, increased the limit of agricultural leases from twelve to twenty years. An amendment proposed by Mr. Bell was adopted, providing that "the right to take fish in any of the international waters bordering on this state shall not be denied or restrained." A section in a somewhat different form had been reported by the committee on industrial interests, and, in support of it, the committee said it was recommended for the reason that "certain lakes and rivers of the state are so located as to be accessible, for fishing purposes, to the inhabitants of an alien country, as well as to our own citizens, and, in consequence of this fact, no restrictions upon our citizens can restrain aliens from taking fish in the same waters, but they will only operate to give the said aliens an undue advantage over citizens of this state." The Convention declined to adopt an amendment offered by Mr. S. Townsend, that "remedies existing when a contract is made shall not be disturbed or impaired by subsequent legislation." Judge Comstock proposed to add to the first section of the Constitution a provision that "the

elective franchise and the right of the citizen to hold office are determined by this Constitution, and no test or official oath not herein provided for shall ever be required." This proposition seems to have been suggested, at least in part, by the provision in the Convention act requiring a challenged voter to swear to his loyalty, and Judge Comstock thought that, where the Constitution prescribes the qualifications of voters, the legislature should not have the power to require any other qualification or test. The proposition was rejected by a vote of 40 to 65. Mr. Landon proposed to prohibit the imprisonment of witnesses to insure their attendance, if they give security therefor; “and, if unable to give security, their testimony shall be taken in a manner to be provided by law, in the presence of the accused, and thereupon they shall be discharged." The Convention once agreed to this amendment, but later, on motion of Mr. Veeder, it was stricken out, and the original provision concerning detention of witnesses was restored. The Convention declined to adopt a suggestion by Mr. Livingston, that "the title of a citizen to real estate shall not be impaired by reason of the alienism of any person through whom such title is derived." The Convention also rejected Mr. S. Townsend's proposed amendment making counties liable for the damages caused by mobs. The legislature in 1855, by chapter 428, had provided for this class of cases, and that statutory provision is still in force.

SUFFRAGE.

Horace Greeley, chairman of the committee "on the right of suffrage and the qualifications to hold office," presented a majority report on the 28th of June, containing an article on suffrage, which modified in many important respects the existing constitutional provisions

on this subject.

The general qualifications of voters were stated as follows:

"Every man of the age of twenty-one years, who shall have been an inhabitant of this state for one year next preceding an election, and for the last thirty days a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the election district where he may offer his vote, shall be entitled to vote at such election, in said district, and not elsewhere, for all officers elected by the people."

It will be observed that this provision omits the requirement of residence for a stated period in a county; the voter must have resided in the state one year, in the election district thirty days, and must have been a citizen thirty days. Residence in the state was the general standard, and the voter must have been a citizen during all the required residence in an election district. The section then excludes from the right of suffrage idiots, lunatics, persons under guardianship, felons, persons convicted of bribery, persons who have been paupers thirty days next preceding an election, and persons who "shall receive, expect to receive, pay, or offer to pay, any money or other valuable thing to influence or reward a vote to be given at an election;" and the legislature was authorized to exclude from the right of suffrage persons who should make or be interested in a bet or wager depending on the result of the election. The majority plan also continued the provision that, "for the purpose of voting, no person shall be deemed to have gained or lost a residence by reason of his presence or absence while employed in the service of the United States, nor while engaged in the navigation of the waters of this state, of the United States, or of the high seas, nor while kept in any almhouse or other asylum at public expense, nor while confined in any public prison;" and also the pro

vision adopted in 1864 concerning the soldier vote in time of war. The plan required a registration of voters to be completed at least six days before election, and to be uniform throughout the state. The provision requiring elections to be by ballot was continued from the Constitution of 1846 without change. The plan required an office holder to be an elector, and continued the official oath prescribed by the existing Constitution.

Mr. Cassidy and Mr. Schumaker presented a minority report expressing their dissent from certain propositions contained in the majority report, but without submitting any sections in detail. They expressed their preference for the existing provisions of the Constitution concerning the qualifications of voters, for the reason that they were familiar, and had already received judicial interpretation.

The suffrage article was considered at great length, and involved a protracted debate on its different features; and, during the progress of this debate, numerous amendments were offered, sometimes of a substantial, and sometimes of a verbal, character, sometimes relating to the article as a whole, and again to separate parts of it. The article naturally divides itself into several subjects, somewhat distinct, though related to the general plan, and it will doubtless be most convenient to examine these subjects separately.

Qualifications.

a. In general.—Mr. C. C. Dwight proposed to substitute the sections in the existing Constitution, relating to the qualifications of voters and bribery, for the first section reported by the committee. While the section on qualifications of voters was under consideration, Judge Comstock moved to strike out the clause, "for all officers that now are, or hereafter may be, elected by the people." The effect of this would have been to