cancies not otherwise provided for, the general assembly may fill the same any manner they may deem proper.

SEC. 9. Vacancies from any cause in the senate or house of representatives ay be filled by a new election.

SEC. 10. In all elections held by the people under this constitution, a ajority of all the electors voting shall be necessary to the election of the perns voted for.12

ARTICLE IX.

OF QUALIFICATIONS FOR OFFICE.

SECTION 1. No person shall be eligible to any civil office (except the office school committee) unless he be a qualified elector for such office.

SEC. 2. Every person shall be disqualified from holding any office to which may have been elected, if he be convicted of having offered, or procured any her person to offer, any bribe to secure his election, or the election of any other

rson.

SEC. 3. All general officers shall take the following engagement before they t in their respective offices, to wit: You being by the free te of the electors of this State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, cted unto the place of do solemnly swear (or affirm) to be true d faithful unto this state, and to support the constitution of this state and the United States; that you will faithfully and impartially discharge all the ties of your aforesaid office to the best of your abilities, according to law: help you God. Or, this affirmation you make and give upon the peril of the alty of perjury.

SEC. 4. The members of the general assembly, the judges of all the courts, I all other officers, both civil and military, shall be bound by oath or affirman to support this constitution, and the constitution of the United States. SEC. 5. The oath or affirmation shall be administered to the governor, lieutant-governor, senators and representatives, by the secretary of state, or, in his sence, by the attorney-general. The secretary of state, attorney-general, and eral treasurer shall be engaged by the governor, or by a justice of the supreme irt.

SEC. 6. No person holding any office under the government of the United ites, or of any other state or country, shall act as a general officer, or as a mber of the general assembly, unless at the time of taking his engagement shall have resigned his office under such government; and if any general cer, senator, representative or judge shall, after his election and engagement, ept any appointment under any other government, his office under this shall be nediately vacated; but this restriction shall not apply to any person appointed take depositions or acknowledgment of deeds, or other legal instruments, by authority of any other state or country.

ARTICLE X.

OF THE JUDICIAL POWER.

SECTION 1. The judicial power of this state shall be vested in one supreme trt, and in such inferior courts as the general assembly may, from time to e, ordain and establish.

SEC. 2. The several courts shall have such jurisdiction as inay from time to e be prescribed by law. Chancery powers may be conferred on the supreme urt, but on no other court to any greater extent than is now provided by law. 13 SEC. 3. The judges of the supreme court shall, in all trials, instruct the y in the law. They shall also give their written opinion upon any question law whenever requested by the governor, or by either house of the general embly,13

SEC. 4. The judges of the supreme court shall be elected by the two houses 12 Section 10 was annulled and superseded by Article X of the Amendments, pted in 1893.

1 Sections 2 and 3 were superseded and annulled by sections 1 and 2 of Article I of the Amendments, adopted in 1903.

in grand committee. Each judge shall hold his office until his place be declare! vacant by a resolution of the general assembly to that effect; which resolution, shall be voted for by a majority of all the members elected to the house in who it may originate, and be concurred in by the same majority of the other hote Such resolution shall not be entertained at any other than the annual session for the election of public officers, and in default of the passage thereof - at- sit session, the judge shall hold his place as is herein provided. But 4 judge of any court shall be removed from office, if, upon impeachment, be shall be found guilty of any official misdemeanor.

SEC. 5. In any case of vacancy by death, resignation, removal from t state or from office, refusal or inability to serve, of any judge of the suprem court, the office may be filled by the grand committee, until the next annual ele tion, and the judge then elected shall hold his office as before provided. In eres of impeachment or temporary absence, or inability, the governor may appr a person to discharge the duties of the office during the vacancy caused thereby SEC. 6. The judges of the supreme court shall receive a compensation for their services, which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.

SEC. 7. The towns of New Shoreham and Jamestown may continue to es their wardens as heretofore. The other towns and the city of Providence La elect such number of justices of the peace, resident therein, as they may de proper. The jurisdiction of said justices and wardens shall be regulated by law, The justices shall be commissioned by the governor.

ARTICLE XI.

OF IMPEACHMENTS.

SECTION 1. The house of representatives shall have the sole power of peachment. A vote of two-thirds of all the members elected shall be require for an impeachment of the governor. Any officer impeached shall thereby suspended from office until judgment in the case shall have been pronounced & SEC. 2. All impeachments shall be tried by the senate; and when sitt for that purpose, they shall be under oath or affirmation. No person shal convicted except by vote of two-thirds of the members elected. When the ernor is impeached, the chief or presiding justice of the supreme court, for time being, shall preside, with a casting vote in all preliminary“questions.

SEC. 3. The governor and all other executive and judicial officers sha liable to impeachment; but judgment in such cases shall not extend further to removal from office. The person convicted shall, nevertheless, be liable indictment, trial, and punishment, according to law.

ARTICLE XII.

OF EDUCATION.

SECTION 1. The diffusion of knowledge, as well as of virtue, among people, being essential to the preservation of their rights and liberties, it shi be the duty of the general assembly to promote public schools, and to adopt a! means which they may deem necessary and proper to secure to the people → advantages and opportunities of education.

SEC. 2. The money which now is or which may hereafter be appropr by law for the establishment of a permanent fund for the support of pen. schools, shall be securely invested, and remain a perpetual fund for that FIC pose.

SEC. 3. All donations for the support of public schools, or for other purpose of education, which may be received by the general assembly, shall be pote according to the terms prescribed by the donors.

SEC. 4. The general assembly shall make all necessary provisions by law carrying this article into effect. They shall not divert said money or fund fr the aforesaid uses, nor borrow, appropriate, or use the same, or any part there. for any other purpose, under any pretense whatsoever.

ARTICLE XIII.

OF AMENDMENTS.

The general assembly may propose amendments to this constitution by the es of a majority of all the members elected to each house. Such propositions. - amendments shall be published in the newspapers, and printed copies of them ill be sent by the secretary of state, with the names of all the members who all have voted thereon, with the yeas and nays, to all the town and city clerks the state. The said propositions shall be, by said clerks, inserted in the rrants or notices by them issued, for warning the next annual town and rd meetings in April; and the clerks shall read said propositions to the electors en thus assembled, with the names of all the representatives and senators o shall have voted thereon, with the yeas and nays, before the election of ators and representatives shall be had. If a majority of all the members ted to each house, at said, annual meeting, shall approve any proposition is made, the same shall be published and submitted to the electors in the de provided in the act of approval; and if then approved by three-fifths of electors of the state present and voting thereon in town and ward meetings, shall become a part of the constitution of the state.

ARTICLE XIV.

OF THE ADOPTION OF THIS CONSTITUTION.

SECTION 1. This constitution, if adopted, shall go into operation on the t Tuesday of May, in the year one thousand eight hundred and forty-three. first election of governor, lieutenant-governor, secretary of state, attorneyeral and general treasurer, and of senators and representatives under said stitution, shall be had on the first Wednesday of April next preceding, by electors qualified under said constitution. And the town and ward meetings refor shall be warned and conducted as is now provided by law. All civil military officers now elected, or who shall hereafter be elected, by the gen1 assembly, or other competent authority, before the said first Wednesday April, shall hold their offices and may exercise their powers until the said t Tuesday of May, or until their successors shall be qualified to act. utes, public and private, not repugnant to this constitution, shall continue in e until they expire by their own limitation, or are repealed by the general mbly. All charters, contracts, judgments, actions and rights of action shall as valid as if this constitution had not been made. The present government Il exercise all the powers with which it is now clothed, until the said first sday of May, one thousand eight hundred and forty-three, and until the ernment under this constitution is duly organized. SEC. 2. All debts contracted and engagements entered into, before the ption of this constitution, shall be as valid against the state as if this conution had not been adopted.

All

SEC. 3. The supreme court, established by this constitution, shall have same jurisdiction as the supreme judicial court at present established, and I have jurisdiction of all causes which may be appealed to, or pending in same; and shall be held at the same times and places, and in each county, he present supreme judicial court, until otherwise prescribed by the general mbly.14

SEC. 4. The towns of New Shoreham and Jamestown shall continue to enthe exemptions from military duty which they now enjoy, until otherwise ribed by law.

Done in convention, at East Greenwich, this fifth day of November, A. D. thousand eight hundred and forty-two.

JAMES FENNER, President.

MAS A. JENCKES,

HENRY Y. CRANSTON, Vice-President.

TER W. UPDIKE, Secretaries.

14 Section 3 was annulled by Article XII of the Amendments, adopted in 1903

ARTICLES OF AMENDMENT.

ARTICLE I.

It shall not be necessary for the town or ward clerks to keep and transm? to the general assembly a list or register of all persons voting for gener officers; but the general assembly shall have power to pass such laws on the subject as they may deem expedient.15

ARTICLE II.

The governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, shall here after exclusively exercise the pardoning power, except in cases of impet ment, to the same extent as such power is now exercised by the general ** sembly, 16

ARTICLE III.

There shall be one session of the general assembly, holden annually, con mencing on the last Tuesday in May, at Newport, and an adjournment fnt. the same shall be holden annually at Providence.17

ARTICLE IV.

Electors in this state who, in time of war, are absent from the state. the actual military service of the United States, being otherwise qualified, så have a right to vote in all elections in the state for electors of president vice-president of the United States, representatives in congress, and genera officers of the state. The general assembly shall have full power to provide law for carrying this article into effect; and until such provision shall be mad by law, every such absent elector on the day of such elections, may deliver written or printed ballot, with the names of the persons voted for thereon, his christian and surname, and his voting residence in the state, written length on the back thereof, to the officer commanding the regiment or compe to which he belongs; and all such ballots, certified by such commanding off to have been given by the elector whose name is written thereon, and retur:s by such commanding officer to the secretary of state within the time I' scribed by law for counting the votes in such elections, shall be received counted with the same effect as if given by such elector in open town, wh or district meeting; and the clerk of each town or city, until otherwise pri vided by law, shall, within five days after any such election, transmit to secretary of state a certified list of the names of all such electors on th respective voting lists.18

ARTICLE V.

The manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors to be used as a beverag shall be prohibited. The general assembly shall provide by law for carrying th article into effect.19

ARTICLE VI.

All soldiers and sailors of foreign birth, citizens of the United States. served in the army or navy of the United States from this state in the civil war, and who were honorably discharged from such service, shall have

15 Articles I, II and III were proposed and adopted by the general assembly January, 1854, re-adopted by the general assembly of June, 1854, and ratified at th election of November, 1854. Modified by Article XI of the Amendments, adopted}

1900.

1 See section 4 of Article VII of the Constitution; also Note No. 15.

See Section 3, Article IV of the Constitution, superseded by Section 1, Arfa XI, of the Amendments, adopted in 1900; see Note No. 15.

18 Proposed and adopted by the general assembly of January, 1864, re-adoptel ** the general assembly of June, 1864, and ratified at the August election, 1966 S Article II of the Constitution and Articles VI, VII and X of the Amendments.

19 Proposed and adopted by the general assembly of 1885. re-adopted by the eral assembly of 1886, and ratified at the election of April 7, 1886. Annulled by Arti VIII of the Amendments, adopted in 1889.

ht to vote on all questions in all legally organized town, district or ward etings, upon the same conditions and under and subject to the same restrictions native born citizens.20

ARTICLE VII.

SECTION 1. Every male citizen of the United States of the age of twentyyears who has had his residence and home in this state for two years, I in the town or city in which he may offer to vote six months next preing the time of his voting, and whose name shall be registered in the town or where he resides on or before the last day of December, in the year next eding the time of his voting, shall have a right to vote in the election of civil officers and on all questions in all legally organized town or ward meet: Provided, that no person shall at any time be allowed to vote in the election he city council of any city, or upon any proposition to impose a tax, or for expenditure of money in any town or city, unless he shall within the year t preceding have paid a tax assessed upon his property therein, valued at least ne hundred and thirty-four dollars.

SEC. 2. The assessors of each town and city shall annually assess upon every on, who, if registered, would be qualified to vote, a tax of $1, or such sum with his other taxes shall amount to $1, which tax shall be paid into the sury of such town or city and be applied to the support of the public schools ein: Provided, that such tax assessed upon any person who has performed tary duty shall be remitted for the year he shall perform such duty; and tax assessed upon any mariner for any year while he is at sea, or upon person who by reason of extreme poverty is unable to pay said tax, shall 1 application of such mariner or person be remitted. The general assemshall have power to provide by law for the collection and remission of said

SEC. 3. This amendment shall take, in the constitution of the state, the e of sections 2 and 3 of article II, “Of the qualification of electors," which sections are hereby annulled.21

ARTICLE VIII.

Article V of the amendments to the constitution of this state is hereby illed.22

ARTICLE IX.

SECTION 1. Hereafter the general assembly may provide by general law the creation and control of corporations: Provided, however, that no cortion shall be created with the power to exercise the right of eminent domain. › acquire franchises in the streets and highways of towns and cities, except pecial act of the general assembly upon a petition for the same, the peny whereof shall be notified as may be required by law.

SEC. 2. This amendment shall take in the constitution of the state the place ction 17 of article IV, "Of the legislative power," and shall be deemed to iamendment of said section and article.23

ARTICLE X.

SECTION 1. In all elections held by the people for state, city, town, ward, istrict officers, the person or candidate receiving the largest number of ̧ ; cast shall be declared elected. SEC. 2.

This amendment shall take, in the constitution of the state, the *Proposed and adopted by the general assembly of 1885, re-adopted by the genassembly of 1886, and ratified at the election of April 7, 1886. Obsolete; see le II of the Constitution and Articles IV. VII and X of the Amendments.

‚1 Proposed and adopted by the general assembly of 1887, re-adopted by the genassembly of 1888, and ratified at the election of April 4, 1888. See Articles Rand X of the Amendments.

* Proposed and adopted by the general assembly of March, 1889, re-adopted by eneral assembly of May, 1889, and ratified on June 20, 1889.

Proposed and adopted by the general assembly of March, 1892, re-adopted by the tal assembly of June, 1892, and ratified on November 8, 1892.