selves well, and that they should have honorable salaries Salaries. ascertained and established by standing laws. legislative XXX. In the government of this Commonwealth, the Separation of exlegislative department shall never exercise the executive and ecutive, judicial, judicial powers, or either of them: the executive shall never departments. exercise the legislative and judicial powers, or either of them the judicial shall never exercise the legislative and executive powers, or either of them: to the end it may be a government of laws, and not of men. PART THE SECOND. The Frame of Government. The people, inhabiting the territory formerly called the Title of body Province of Massachusetts Bay, do hereby solemnly and politic. mutually agree with each other, to form themselves into a free, sovereign and independent body politic or state, by the name of THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS. CHAPTER I. THE LEGISLATIVE POWER. SECTION I. The General Court. partment. ART. I. The department of legislation shall be formed Legislative deby two branches, a Senate and House of Representatives; each of which shall have a negative on the other. Art. X. The legislative body [shall assemble every year on the See amendments,. last Wednesday in May, and at such other times as they shall judge necessary; and shall dissolve and be dissolved on the day next preceding the said last Wednesday in May; and] shall be styled, THE GENERAL COURT OF MASSACHUSETTS. II. No bill or resolve of the senate or house of represen- Governor's veto... tatives shall become a law, and have force as such, until it shall have been laid before the governor for his revisal; and if he, upon such revision, approve thereof, he shall signify his approbation by signing the same. But if he have any objection to the passing of such bill or resolve, he shall return the same, together with his objections thereto, in writing, to the senate or house of representatives, in whichsoever the same shall have originated, who shall enter the objections sent down by the governor, at large, on their records, and Bill may be pass. proceed to reconsider the said bill or resolve; but if, after ed by two-thirds such reconsideration, two-thirds of the said senate or house notwithstanding of representatives shall, notwithstanding the said objections, of each house, See amendments, General court may constitute agree to pass the same, it shall, together with the objections, be sent to the other branch of the legislature, where it shall also be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of the members present, shall have the force of a law: but in all such cases, the votes of both houses shall be determined by yeas and nays; and the names of the persons voting for or against the said bill or resolve, shall be entered upon the public records of the Commonwealth. And in order to prevent unnecessary delays, if any bill or resolve shall not be returned by the governor within five days after it shall have been presented, the same shall have the force of a law. III. The general court shall forever have full power and authority to erect and constitute judicatories and courts of courts of record, record, or other courts, to be held in the name of the Com judicatories, &c. monwealth, for the hearing, trying and determining of all manner of crimes, offences, pleas, processes, plaints, actions, matters, causes and things, whatsoever, arising or happening within the Commonwealth, or between or concerning persons inhabiting or residing, or brought within the same; whether the same be criminal, or civil, or whether the said crimes be capital or not capital, and whether the said pleas be real, Courts, &c., may personal or mixed; and for the awarding and making out of administer oaths. execution thereupon: to which courts and judicatories are hereby given and granted full power and authority, from time to time, to administer oaths or affirmations, for the better discovery of truth in any matter in controversy, or depending before them. General court may enact laws, &c., IV. And further, full power and authority are hereby given and granted to the said general court, from time to time, to make, ordain and establish all manner of wholesome and reasonable orders, laws, statutes and ordinances, directions and instructions, either with penalties or without, so as not repugnant to the same be not repugnant or contrary to this constitution, as they shall judge to be for the good and welfare of this Commonwealth, and for the government and ordering thereof, and of the subjects of the same, and for the necessary support and defence of the government thereof; and to name the constitution; the election or duties; and settle annually, or provide by fixed laws, for the naming may provide for and settling, all civil officers within the said Commonwealth, appointment of the election and constitution of whom are not hereafter in officers; this form of government otherwise provided for; and to set prescribe their forth the several duties, powers and limits, of the several civil and military officers of this Commonwealth, and the forms of such oaths, or affirmations as shall be respectively administered unto them for the execution of their several offices and places so as the same be not repugnant or contrary to this constitution; and to impose and levy propor- impose taxes; tional and reasonable assessments, rates and taxes, upon all the inhabitants of, and persons resident, and estates lying, within the said Commonwealth; and also to impose and levy duties and exreasonable duties and excises upon any produce, goods, wares, merchandise and commodities whatsoever, brought into, produced, manufactured, or being within the same; to to be disposed of be issued and disposed of by warrant, under the hand of the tection, &c. governor of this Commonwealth, for the time being, with the advice and consent of the council, for the public service, in the necessary defence and support of the government of the said Commonwealth, and the protection and preservation of the subjects thereof, according to such acts as are or shall be in force within the same. cises; for defence, pro tates once in ten And while the public charges of government, or any part Valuation of esthereof, shall be assessed on polls and estates, in the manner years, at least, that has hitherto been practised, in order that such assess- while, &c. ments may be made with equality, there shall be a valuation of estates within the Commonwealth, taken anew once in every ten years at least, and as much oftener as the general court shall order. elected. [ART. I. There shall be annually elected, by the freeholders and Senate, number other inhabitants of this Commonwealth, qualified as in this constitution of, and by whom is provided, forty persons to be councillors and senators, for the year ensuing their election; to be chosen by the inhabitants of the districts, See amendments, into which the Commonwealth may, from time to time, be divided by the Arts. XIII, general court for that purpose: and the general court, in assigning the numbers to be elected by the respective districts, shall govern themselves by the proportion of the public taxes paid by the said districts; and timely make known, to the inhabitants of the Commonwealth, the limits of each XVI. and XXII, Counties to be districts, until, &c. district, and the number of councillors and senators to be chosen therein: provided, that the number of such districts shall never be less than thirteen; and that no district be so large as to entitle the same to choose more than six senators. And the several counties in this Commonwealth shall, until the general court shall determine it necessary to alter the said districts, be districts for See amendments, the choice of councillors and senators, (except that the counties of Dukes Arts. XIII. and county and Nantucket shall form one district for that purpose,) and shall elect the following number for councillors and senators, viz :— XXII. Manner and time of choosing sena lors. See amendments. Arts. II., X., XXIII. and Suffolk, six; Essex, six; Middlesex, five; Hampshire, four; Plymouth, three; Barnstable, one; Bristol, three; York, two; Dukes county and Nantucket, one; Worcester, five; Cumberland, one; Lincoln, one; Berkshire, two.] II. The Senate shall be the first branch of the legislators and council- ture; [and the senators shall be chosen in the following manner, viz. there shall be a meeting on the first Monday in April, annually, forever, of the inhabitants of each town in the several counties of this Commonwealth, to be called by the selectmen, and warned in due course of law, at least seven days before the first Monday in April, for the purpose See amendments, of electing persons to be senators and councillors; and at Arts III., XX., such meetings every male inhabitant of twenty-one years of age and upwards, having a freehold estate, within the Commonwealth, of the annual income of three pounds, or any estate of the value of sixty pounds, shall have a right to give in his vote for the senators for the district of which he is an Word "inhabi. inhabitant.] And to remove all doubts concerning the meaning of the word "inhabitant," in this constitution, every person shall be considered as an inhabitant, for the purpose of electing and being elected into any office or place within this State, in that town, district or plantation where he dwelleth or hath his home. tant" defined. side at town meetings. Selectmen to pre- The selectmen of the several towns shall preside at such meetings impartially, and shall receive the votes of all the inhabitants of such towns, present and qualified to vote for senators, and shall sort and count them in open town meeting, and in presence of the town clerk, who shall make a Return of votes. fair record, in presence of the selectmen, and in open town meeting, of the name of every person voted for, and of the number of votes against his name; and a fair copy of this record shall be attested by the selectmen and the town clerk, and shall be scaled up, directed to the secretary of the ComSee amendments. monwealth, for the time being, with a superscription expressing the purport of the contents thereof, and delivered by the town clerk of such towns, to the sheriff of the county in which such town lies, thirty days at least before [the last Wednesday in May, annually; or it shall be delivered into Art. II. Amendments, the secretary's office seventeen days at least before the said last Wednesday in May; and the sheriff of each county shall deliver all such certificates, by him received, into the secretary's office, seventeen days before the said last Wednesday in May.] unincorporated may vote. ings. And the inhabitants of plantations unincorporated, quali- Inhabitants of fied as this constitution provides, who are or shall be plantations, who empowered and required to assess taxes upon themselves pay State taxes, toward the support of government, shall have the same privilege of voting for councillors and senators, in the plantations where they reside, as town inhabitants have in their respective towns; and the plantation meetings for that pur- Plantation meetpose shall be held, annually, [on the same first Monday in See amendments, April,] at such place in the plantations, respectively, as the Art. X. assessors thereof shall direct; which assessors shall have Assessors to nolike authority for notifying the electors, collecting and tify, &c. returning the votes, as the selectmen and town clerks have in their several towns, by this constitution. And all other persons living in places unincorporated, (qualified as aforesaid,) who shall be assessed to the support of government, by the assessors of an adjacent town, shall have the privilege of giving in their votes for councillors and senators, in the town where they shall be assessed, and be notified of the place of meeting, by the selectmen of the town where they shall be assessed, for that purpose, accordingly. Governor and amine and count votes, and issue counell to ex summonses. See amendments, III. And that there may be a due convention of senators [on the last Wednesday in May,] annually, the governor, with five of the council, for the time being, shall, as soon as may be, examine the returned copies of such records; and fourteen days before the said day, he shall issue his summons Art. X. to such persons as shall appear to be chosen by a majority of voters, to attend on that day, and take their seats accordingly; [provided, nevertheless, that for the first year, the said returned copies shall be examined by the president and five of the council of the former constitution of government; and the said president shall, in like manner, issue his summons to the persons so elected, that they may take their seats as aforesaid.] final judge of bers. IV. The senate shall be the final judge of the elections, Senate to be returns and qualifications of their own members, as pointed elections, &c., out in the constitution; and shall, on the said [last Wednes- of its own memday in May,] annually, determine and declare who are elected by each district to be senators, [by a majority of votes: and See amendments, in case there shall not appear to be the full number of sena- and XXIV. tors returned, elected by a majority of votes, for any district, the deficiency shall be supplied in the following manner, Arts. X., XIV. |