2. Duty of Selectmen respecting Lists of Voters. The Selectmen must, within ten days from the first of March, revise and correct the lists of voters furnished them by the Assessors, so as to make them as complete as possible, and publish them at least fourteen days before the first Monday in April, by causing copies of them to be posted up in two or more places in their respective towns or districts. (St. 1803, March 7) At the meeting for the choice of Governor, &c. they must have a complete list, corrected before the opening of the meeting, of all the qualified voters for the election then to be made. For the purpose of receiving evidence of the qualifications of persons whose names have not been entered on the lists, they must be in session at some convenient place immediately preceding the meeting, (ibid) and in towns where the number of qualified voters exceeds 1000, on the Saturday preceding, and on as many other days as they shall judge necessary [St. 1805, March 15]; of the time and place of which session they must give notice when they publish the lists.

3. Calling of Meetings. The election of Governor, [Con. ch. 2, § 1, art. 31Lieut. Governor, [§ 2, art. 1] Counsellers and Senators, [ch. 1, 2, art. 2] takes place on the first Monday in April annually. For which purpose the Selectmen are required to call meetings on that day, of the inhabitants of their respective towns, at an hour and place by them appointed [St. 1786, March 23, §5]; but, unless where the qualified voters exceed five hundred, [St. 1805, March 15] not at an earlier hour than eleven o'clock. [St. 1803, March 7] The inhabitants must be notified at least seven days before the day of meeting, [Con. ch. 1, § 2. art. 2] by Constables or other persons appointed, by warrant from the Selectmen, or the major part of them, in such manner as has been agreed on by the town, [St. 1786, March 23, § 5] or has been usual in the town. The penalty for neglecting to call a meeting is from forty to eighty dollars on each of the Selectmen. [St. 1796, Feb. 24]

4 Mode of Conducting the Meeting. The Selectmen must preside at the meeting and receive the votes, [Con. ch. 2, § 1, art. 3] No person must be permitted by the Selectmen, under the penalty of two hundred dollars, to give in his vote, until they shall have had opportunity to enquire his name, and shall have ascertained that it is in the list of qualified voters, and shall have had time to check the same. [St. 1813, ch. 68, §4.] Any one who votes contrary to this provision, or gives a false answer, becomes liable to a penalty of thirty dollars. The Selectmen may not receive any votes unless delivered in writing by the voter in person, under a penalty of one hundred dollars. [St. 1798, June 29.] They may not, without the consent of the voter, examine, or permit any one to examine, a ballot, with a view of ascertaining the name of the candidate voted for, before the poll is closed under penalty of twenty dollars [St. 1811, ch. 9. § 3.] If any person put in more than one vote or ticket, he shall pay a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars. [St. 1813, ch. 68, § 2] The Governor and Lieutenant Governor may be voted for separately, or on one ticket, or on the same ticket with the Counsellors and Senators. But in voting for Counsellors and Senators, the Selectmen must call on the voters to give in their votes

on one list for as many persons as are to be chosen Counsellors and Senators for the senatorial district in which the meeting is holden. [St. 1801, March 7] The Town Clerk, in the presence and with the assistance of the Selectmen, must sort and count the votes, and form a list of the persons voted for, with the number of votes for each person against his name; and make a fair record of the same in the town books and a public declaration thereof in the meeting; and in the presence of the inhabitants, seal up copies of the list attested by the Selectmen [Con. ch. 2, § 1, art. 3]; making and sealing up a separate list of the persons voted for as Governor and Lieutenant-Governor [St. 1806, ch. 26, § 1]; and likewise a separate list of the persons voted for as Counsellors and Senators. [§ 21 These lists, so sealed up must be directed to the Secretary of the Commonwealth, with a superscription expressing the purport of the contents thereof [Con. ch. 1, § 2. art 2.] If the Selectmen refuse or neglect to preside at the meeting, or to receive the votes of the qualified electors present, or neglect to ascertain, declare and certify the number of votes, or shall wilfully make any false declaration or certificate thereof, to the prejudice of the rights of the electors, each Selectman, so offending, shall forfeit from forty to, eighty dollars, according to the aggravation of the offence. [St.1796 Feb. 24, 2] A law passed 28th Feb. 1814, stating, "that if any person, who is by law authorized to preside at any meeting, or to receive votes at any meeting, which may be holden for the choosing of Governor, Lieut. Governor, Senators and Counsellors, Representatives to Congress or to the Gen. Court, or any Town Officers, shall knowingly receive the vote of any person, who is in the military service of the U..States, and who is not qualified to vote agreeably to the Constitution and Laws of this Commonwealth in choosing as aforesaid; such person so presiding or receiving any vote as aforesaid, shall forfeit and pay one hundred dollars to be recovered by information to be filed, and prosecuted by the Attorney Gen. and Solicitor Gen. in the S. J. Court, or by indictment in said Court.”

5. The Return of Votes. The Lists of Votes made and sealed up by the Town-Clerk, in the presence of the inhabitants, must be by the Selectmen transmitted to the Sheriff of the County thirty days at least, or to the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth seventeen days at least, before the last Wednesday in May annually. The Sheriff of each county must deliver all lists by him received into the Secretary's Office, seventeen days at least before the last Wednesday in May. [Con. ch. 1, § 2, art. 2, & ch. 2, § 1, art. 3.] The lists when received at the Secretary's Office must be kept entire, with the seals.unbroken, until delivered as is hereafter described. [St. 1806, ch. 26.]

6. Counting the Votes and announcing the Result. As soon as may be after the return of the votes into the Secretary's Office, the Governor and Council are required to examine the returns of votes for Counsellors and Senators. [Con. ch. 1, § 2, art. 3.] For which purpose the Secretary is required to deliver the lists, or certificates received at his office, which are designated as the lists of persons voted for as Counsellors and Senators, with the seals unbroken, into the hands of the Governor and Council, or to the Executive

Government of the Commonwealth for the time being; [St. 1806, ch. 26.] and the Governor is required, fourteen days before the last Wednesday in May, to issue his summons to such persons as appear to be chosen Counsellors and Senators by a majority of voters, to attend on that day and take their seats accordingly. [Con. ch. 1, § 2]

On the last Wednesday in May, the Secretary is required to lay the lists or certificates of votes for Governor and Lieutenant Governor which have been received at his office, with the seals unbroken, [St. 1806, ch. 26.], before the Senate and House of Representatives, to be by them examined, and in case of an election by. a majority of all the votes returned, the choice must be by them declared and published. [Con. ch. 2, § 1, art. 3.]

7. Mode of electing, when there is no choice by the People. If on examination by the Senate and House of Representatives, it shall appear that no person has received a majority of votes for Governor the House of Representatives are required to elect two of the four persons who had the highest number of votes, and of these two the Senate are required to elect one, who shall be declared Governor. [Con. ch. 2, 1, art. 3] In the same manner the Lieutenant Governor shall be elected, if there be no choice by the People. [§2, art. 1]

If there be not the full number of Senators elected by a majority of votes for any district, the Representatives and such Senators as are declared elected, shall take the names of the persons not elected who received the highest number of votes in that district, amounting to twice the number of Senators wanting, and from them, elect by ballot so many Senators as shall be required to supply the vacancies. In this way all vacancies in the Senate, which happen in any way, must be supplied. [ch. 1, § 2, art. 4 ]

CHAP. V.—MANNER OF ELECTING REPRESENTATIVES.

CONGRESSIONAL RERESENTATIVES.

I. The Commonwealth is divided into twenty districts, each district entitled to one Representative.

2. Time and manner of calling, and mode of conducting the meeting, &c. &c. The districting act states, "That the Selectmen of the several towns and districts within this Commonwealth shall, in manner as the Law directs for calling town-meetings, cause the inhabitants of their respective towns and districts, duly qualified to vote for Representatives in the Gen. Court of this Commonwealth, to assemble on the first Monday of November, biennially, beginning in Nov. next, to give in their votes for their respective Representatives to the Selectmen, who shall preside at said meetings; and the Selectmen, or a major part of them, shall, in open town-meeting, sort and count the votes, and shall form a list of the names of the persons voted for, with the number of votes for each person, written in words, at length, against his name; and the Town Clerk shall make a record thereof, and the Selectmen shall, in such meeting, make public declaration of the persons voted for, and of the number of votes they respectively have, and shall, in open

Town-meeting, seal up the said list certified by the selectmen, and express upon the outside of said list, the district in which the votes were given, and shall transmit the same, within fourteen days after such meeting, to the Sec'ry of the Commonwealth, or to the Sheriff of the County in which such town or district lies, who shall transmit the same to the Secretary of the Commonwealth within forty days next after the time of holding such meeting."-" And the Selectmen of such towns and districts as lie within any county in which there may be no Sheriff, shall return such list to the Secretary's office, within the same term of time as Sheriffs are required to do.”

3 Mode of electing when there is no choice by the People, or vacancies. -When there is no choice, or when vacancies happen, the Governor to issue precepts to the Selectmen, directing the time to come to a new choice, and requiring returns by a day to be fixed by him; and which new election and return to be as before stated. When there is a choice, the Governor to transmit a certificate of such choice to the person so chosen.

4. Penalty of Neglect, &c.-Sheriffs are subject to forfeit and pay a sum not exceeding 2,000 dols. nor less than 200 dols. ; and Selectmen in a like manner a sum not exceeding 200 dis. and not less than 30 dls. for any neglect of the duties enjoined upon them by said act. Assessors of districts and plantations where there may be no Selectmen, have the same powers and to perform the same duties, as required of selectmen, and subject to like penalties. This act extends to plantations only which shall choose Assessors to assess the public taxes which shall be set to such plantation in the tax act next preceeding the several elections.

"No person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the U States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen." [U. S. Const, act 1, Sec. 2]

GENERAL COURY REPRESENTATIVES.

1. Time and manner of calling the Meeting. The Members of the House of Representatives of this Commonwealth must be chosen annually, in the month of May, and ten days at least before the last Wednesday of that month. [Con. ch. 1, § 3, art. 5.] For this purpose, a meeting of the inhabitants of such towns as have a right to be represented, must be convened by the Selectmen, in such a manner, in each town, as is there legally established for calling other town-meetings. [St. 1796, Feb. 24] The penalty for neglect is from forty to eighty dollars. If the meeting be not called in the manner previously agreed on, or which has been usual in the town, the election is void. [Rep. Cont. Elec. 1813, p. 19] This meeting must not be called on any day on which by law the Militia are specially required to do military duty, under a penalty upon the Selectmen, not exceeding one hundred dollars. [St. 1798, June 29] Except in towns where the number of qualified voters exceeds five hundred, [St. 1805, March 15.] the meeting must not be opened

at an earlier hour than 11 o'clock in the afternoon. [St. 1805, March 7]

2 Duty of Selectmen previous to the Meeting. The Selectmen are required to furnish themselves, before the opening of the meeting, with complete lists of the voters qualified to vote at the election. For the purpose of receiving evidence of the qualifications of persons whose names have not been entered on the lists published by them in March, as prescribed in the 2d section of the preceding chapter, it is their duty to be in session at some convenient place immediately preceding the meeting, for so long time as they shall judge necessary. [st. 1803, March 7.] In towns where there are more than one thousand voters, they must hold this session on the day preceding, or if that be Sunday, on the Saturday preceding the meeting, and on so many other days previous as they shall judge necessary. [St 1805. March 15]

3 Manner of conducting the Meeting The Selectmen present must preside at and regulate the meeting. [St. 1796, Feb. 24] On any question whether the town will send a Representative, and on all questions involving the number of Representatives the town will send, those only are entitled to vote, who are qualified to vote in -the choice of Representatives. [St 181, ch 26, §6.] The Selectmen must openly receive the written votes of all the inhabitants present who are qualified to vote for Representatives [St. 1796, Feb. 4]; taking care before receiving any baliot, under a penalty for neglect of a fine not exceeding two hundred dollars, to ascertain the name of the voter, and to check it on the list. [St 18:3, ch. 26, §4] Persons who vote without giving the presiding Selectmen an opportunity to ascertain and check their names, or who give false answers or false names, subject themselves to a fine not exceeding thirty dollars [S4] If any person who knows himself not qualified, wilfully votes or attempts to vote, he forfeits a fine not exceeding fifty dollars, and his wilful aiders and abettors a fine not exceeding thirty dollars. (§3) The Selectmen must sort and count the votes; forth with publicly declare the person or persons elected; and cause the election to be recorded in the town records, together with the whole number of votes given in, and for whom they were given. If they neglect any of these duties, they forfeit a sum not exceeding eighty dollars, nor less than forty dollars each. (St. 1796, Feb. 24)

4. Notice to persons elected and certificates of election. The Selectmen are required to cause the person or persons elected to be notified thereof, by a Constable of the town, or any other person by them specially authorized, within three days next after the clection. The Selectmen present at the meeting, or the major part of them, must make and sign a certificate and return of the election, and cause it to be delivered into the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, on or before the last Wednesday of May; or they must certify the election to the House of Representatives to their acceptance. (St. 1796, Feb. 24) Where the return is informal the House will permit it to be amended by the proper certifying offi ers, and suffer the Members returned to hold their seats in the mean time. (Rep. Cont. Elec. 1812.)

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