same time, except as expressly directed or permitted by this Constitution.

Sec. 7. Absence on business of the State or of the United States, or on a visit or on necessary private business, shall not cause a forfeiture of residence once obtained.

Sec. 8. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to regulate by law in what cases and what deductions from the salaries of public officers shall be made for neglect of duty in their official capacity.

Sec. 9. The General Assembly shall have no power to create any permanent State office not expressly provided for by this Constitution.

Sec. 10. Returns for all elections for officers who are to be commissioned by the Governor and for members of the General Assembly, except as otherwise provided by this Constitution, shall be made to the Secretary of State.

Sec. 11. The Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney-General, judges of the Supreme Court, judges of the Circuit Court, Commissioners of State Lands and prosecuting attorneys shall each receive a salary, to be established by law, which shall not be increased or diminished during their respective terms, nor shall any of them, except the prosecuting attorneys, after the adoption of this Constitution, receive to his own use any fees, costs, perquisites of office or other compensation; and all fees that may hereafter be payable by law for any service performed by any officer mentioned in this section, except prosecuting attorneys, shall be paid in advance into the State Treasury. Provided, That the salaries of the respective officers herein mentioned shall never exceed per annum:

For Governor the sum of $4,000.00; for Secretary of State the sum of $2,500.00; for Treasurer the sum of $3,000.00; for Auditor the sum of $5,000.00; for Attorney-General the sum of $2,500.00; for Commissioners of State Lands the sum of $2,500.00; for judges of the Supreme Court, each, the sum of $4,000.00; for judges of the Circuit Courts and chancellors, each, the sum of $3,000.00; for prosecuting attorneys the sum of $400.00.

And provided, further, that the General Assembly shall provide for no increase of salaries of its members which shall take effect before the meeting of the next General Assembly.

Sec. 12. An accurate and detailed statement of the receipts and expenditures of the public money, the several amounts paid, to whom and on what account, shall, from time to time, be published as may be prescribed by law.

Sec. 13. All contracts for a greater rate of interest than ten per centum per annum shall be void, as to principal and interest, and the General Assembly shall prohibit the same by law; but when no rate of interest is agreed upon the rate shall be six per centum per annum.

Sec. 14. No lottery shall be authorized by this State, nor shall the sale of lottery tickets be allowed.

Sec. 15. All stationery, printing, paper, fuel, for the use of the General Assembly and other departments of government, shall be furnished, and the printing, binding and distributing of the laws, journals, department reports and all other printing and binding, and the repairing and furnishing the halls and rooms used for the meetings of the General Assembly and its committees, shall be performed under contract to be given to the lowest responsible bidder, below such maximum price and under such regulations as shall be prescribed by law. No member or officer of any department of the government shall in any way be interested in such contracts, and all such contracts shall be subject to the approval of the Governor, Auditor and Treasurer.

Sec. 16. All contracts for erecting or repairing public buildings or bridges in any county, or for materials therefor, or for providing for the care and keeping of paupers where there are no alms-houses, shall be given to the lowest responsible bidder under such regulations as may be provided by law.

Sec. 17. The laws of this State, civil and criminal, shall be revised, digested, arranged, published and promulgated at such times and in such manner as the General Assembly may direct.

Sec. 18. The General Assembly by suitable enactments shall require such appliances and means to be provided and used as may be necessary to secure as far as possible the lives, health and safety of persons employed in mining and of persons traveling upon railroads and by other public conveyances, and shall provide for enforcing such enactments by adequate pains and penalties.

Sec. 19. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to provide by law for the support of institutions for the education of the deaf and dumb and of the blind, and also for the treatment of the insane.

Sec. 20. Senators and Representatives and all judicial and executive, State and county officers, and all other officers, both civil and military, before entering on the duties of their respective offices, shall take and subscribe to the following oath or affirmation: "I, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that

I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Arkansas, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of -, upon which I am now

about to enter."

Sec. 21. The sureties upon the official bonds of all State officers shall be residents of and have sufficient property within the State not exempt from sale under execution, attachment or other process of any court to make good their bonds; and the sureties upon the official bonds of all county officers shall reside within the counties where such officers reside, and shall have sufficient property therein not exempt from such sale to make good their bonds.

Sec. 22. Either branch of the General Assembly at a regular session thereof may propose amendments to this Constitution, and, if the same be agreed to by a majority of all the members elected to each house, such proposed amendments shall be entered on the journals with the yeas and nays, and published in at least one newspaper in each county, where a newspaper is published, for six months immediately preceding the next general election for Senators and Representatives, at which time the same shall be submitted to the electors of the State for approval or rejection; and if a majority of the electors voting at such election adopt such amendments the same shall become a part of this Constitution; but no more than three amendments shall be proposed or submitted at the same time. They shall be so submitted as to enable the electors to vote on each amendment separately.

Sec. 23. No officer of this State, nor of any county, city or town shall receive, directly or indirectly, for salary, fees and perquisites more than five thousand dollars net profits per annum in par funds, and any and all sums in excess of this amount shall

be paid into the State, county, city or town treasury as shall hereafter be directed by appropriate legislation.

Sec. 24. The General Assembly shall provide by law the mode of contesting elections in cases not specially provided for in this Constitution.

Sec. 25. The present seal of the State shall be and remain the seal of the State of Arkansas until otherwise provided by law, and shall be kept and used as provided in this Constitution. Sec. 26. Militia officers, officers of the public schools and notaries may be elected to fill any executive or judicial office.

Sec. 27. Nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prohibit he General Assembly from authorizing assessments on real property for local improvements in towns and cities under such regulations as may be prescribed by law, to be based upon the consent of a majority in value of the property holders owning property adjoining the locality to be affected; but such assessments shall be ad valorum and uniform.

SCHEDULE.

Section 1. All laws now in force which are not in conflict or inconsistent with this Constitution shall continue in force until amended or repealed by the General Assembly, and all laws exempting property from sale on execution or by decree of a court which were in force at the time of the adoption of the Constitution of 1868 shall remain in force with regard to contracts made bfore that time. Until otherwise provided by law, no distinction shall exist between sealed and unsealed instruments concerning contracts between individuals executed since the adoption of the Constitution of 1868, provided that the statutes of limitation with regard to sealed and unsealed instruments in force at that time continue to apply to all instruments afterward executed until altered or repealed.

Sec. 2. In civil actions no witness shall be excluded because he is a party to the suit or interested in the issue to be tried. Provided, That in actions by or against executors, administrators or guardians in which judgment may be rendered for or against them, neither party shall be allowed to testify against the other as to any transactions with or statements of the testator, intestate or ward, unless called to testify thereto by the opposite party.

Provided, further that this section may be amended or repealed by the General Assembly.

Sec. 3. An election shall be held at the several election precincts of every county of the State on Tuesday, the 13th day of October, 1874, for Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney-General, Commissioner of State Lands for two years, unless the office is sooner abolished by the General Assembly, chancellor and clerk of the separate chancery court of Pulaski county, chief justice and two associate justices of the Supreme Court, a circuit judge and prosecuting attorney for each judicial circuit provided for in this Constitution, Senators and Representatives to the General Assembly, all county and township officers provided for in this Constitution; and also for the submission of this Constitution to the qualified electors of the State for its adoption or rejection.

Sec. 4. The qualification of voters at the election to be held as provided in this schedule shall be the same as is now prescribed by law.

Sec. 5. The State Board of Supervisors hereinafter mentioned shall give notice of said election immediately after the adoption of this Constitution by this convention by proclamation in at least two newspapers published at Little Rock and such other newspapers as they may select. And each county board of supervisors shall give public notice in their respective counties of said election immediately after their appointment.

Sec. 6. The Governor shall also issue a proclamation enjoining upon all peace officers the duty of preserving good order on the day of said election and preventing any disturbance of the same.

Sec. 7. Augustus H. Garland, Gordon N. Peay and Dudley E. Jones are hereby constituted a State Board of Supervisors of said election, who shall take an oath faithfully and impartially to discharge the duties of their office, a majority of whom shall be a quorum, and who shall perform the duties herein assigned them. Should a vacancy occur in said board by refusal to serve, death, removal, resignation or otherwise, or if any member should become incapacitated from performing said duties, the remaining members of the board shall fill the vacancy by appointment. But, if all the places on said board become vacant at the same