themselves by the proportion of direct taxes paid by the said districts, and timely make known to the inhabitants of the state the limits of each district.

The freeholders and other inhabitants of each district, qualified as in this constitution is provided shall annually give in their votes for a senator, at some meeting holden in the month of March.

The senate shall be the first branch of the legislature; and the senators shall be chosen in the following manner, viz. Every male inhabitant of each town, and parish with town privileges, and places unincorporated, in this state, of twenty-one years of age and upwards, excepting paupers, and persons excused from paying taxes at their own request, shall have a right, at the annual or other meetings of the inhabitants of said towns and parishes, to be duly warned and holden annually forever in the month of March, to vote in the town or parish wherein he dwells, for the senator in the district whereof he is a member.

Provided nevertheless, That no person shall be capable of being elected a senator, who is not of the Protestant religion, and seized of a freehold estate, in his own right, of the value of two hundred pounds, lying within this state, who is not of the age of thirty years, and who shall not have been an inhabitant of this state for seven years immediately preceeding his election, and at the time thereof he shall be an inhabitant of the district for which he shall be chosen. And every person, qualified as the constitution provides, shall be considered an inhabitant for the purpose of electing and being elected into any office or place within this state, in the town, parish, and plantation, where he dwelleth and hath his home.

And the inhabitants of plantations and places unincorporated, qualified as this constitution provides, who are or shall be required to assess taxes upon themselves towards the support of government, or shall be taxed therefor, shall have the same privilege of voting for senators, in the plantations and places wherein they reside, as the inhabitants of the respective towns and parishes aforesaid have. And the meetings of such plantations and places for that purpose, shall be holden annually in the month of March, at such places respectively therein as the assessors thereof shall direct; which assessors shall

have like authority for notifying the electors, collecting and returning the votes, as the selectmen and town clerks have in their several towns by this constitution.

The meetings for the choice of governour, council, and senators, shall be warned by a warrant from the selectmen, and governed by a moderator, who shall, in the presence of the selectmen, (whose duty it shall be to attend) in open meeting, receive the votes of all the inhabitants of such towns and parishes present, and qualified to vote for senators; and shall, in said meetings, in presence of the said selectmen, and of the town clerk, in said meeting, sort and count the said votes, and make a public declaration thereof, with the name of every person voted for, and the number of votes for each person; And the town clerk shall make a fair record of the same at large, in the town book, and shall make out a fair attested copy thereof, to be by him sealed up and directed to the secretary of the state, with a superscription expressing the purport thereof: And the said town clerk shall cause such attested copy to be delivered to the sheriff of the county in which such town or parish shall lie, thirty days at least before the first Wednesday of June, or to the secretary of the state at least twenty days before the said first Wednesday of June: And the sheriff of each county, or his deputy, shall deliver all such certificates by him received into the Secretary's office, at least twenty days before the first Wednesday of June.

And that there may be a due meeting of senators on the first Wednesday of June annually, the governor, and a majority 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 first Wednesday of June, he shall issue his summons to such persons as appear to be chosen senators, by a majority of votes, to attend and take their seats on that day.

Provided nevertheless, That for the first year the said returned copies shall be examined by the president, and a majority of the council then in office; and the said president shall, in like manner, notify the persons elected, to attend and take their seats accordingly.

And in case there shall not appear to be a senator elected by a majority of votes, for any district, the deficiency shall be supplied in

the following manner, viz. The members of the house of representatives, and such senators as shall be declared elected, shall take the names of the two persons having the highest number of votes in the district, and out of them shall elect, by joint ballot, the senator wanted for such district; and in this manner all such vacancies shall be filled up, in every district of the state, and in like manner all vacancies in the senate, arising by death, removal out of the state, or otherwise, shall be supplied, as soon as may be after such vacancies happen.

The senate shall be final judges of the elections, returns, and qualifications, of their own members, as pointed out in this constitution. The senate shall have power to adjourn themselves, provided such adjournment do not exceed two days at a time.

Provided nevertheless, That whenever they shall sit on the trial of any impeachment, they may adjourn to such time and place as they may think proper, although the legislature be not assembled on such day, or at such place.

The senate shall appoint their president, and other officers, and determine their own rules of proceedings: And not less than seven members of the senate shall make a quorum for doing business; and when less than eight senators shall be present, the assent of five, at least, shall be necessary, to render their acts and proceedings valid.

The senate shall be a court, with full power and authority to hear, try, and determine, all impeachments made by the house of representatives against any officer or officers of the state, for bribery, corruption, mal-practice, or mal-administration, in office; with full power to issue summons, or compulsory process, for convening witnesses before them: But previous to the trial of any such impeachment, the members of the senate shall respectively be sworn truly and impartially to try and determine the charge in question, according to evidence. And every officer, impeached for bribery, corruption, malpractice, or mal-administration in office, shall be served with an attested copy of the impeachment, and order of senate thereon with such citation as the senate may direct, setting forth the time and place of their setting to try the impeachment; which service shall be made by the sheriff, or such other sworn officer as the senate may appoint, at least fourteen days previous to the time of trial; and such citation

being duly served and returned, the senate may proceed in the hearing of the impeachment, giving the person impeached, if he shall appear, full liberty of producing witnesses and proofs, and of making his defence, by himself and counsel, & may also, upon his refusing or neglecting to appear hear the proofs in support of the impeachment, and render judgment thereon, his non-appearance notwithstanding; and such judgment shall have the same force and effect as if the person impeached had appeared and pleaded in the trial. Their judgment, however, shall not extend further than removal from office, disqualification to hold or enjoy any place of honour, trust, or profit, under this state; but the party so convicted, shall nevertheless be liable to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to the laws of the land.

Whenever the Governor shall be impeached, the chief justice of the supreme judicial court shall, during the trial, preside in the senate, but have no vote therein.

EXECUTIVE POWER.

GOVERNOR.

There shall be a Supreme Executive Magistrate, who shall be styled the Governor of the State of Newhampshire, and whose title shall be HIS EXCELLENCY.

The Governor shall be chosen annually in the month of March; and the votes for Governor shall be received, sorted, counted, certified and returned, in the same manner as the votes for senators; and the secretary shall lay the same before the senate and house of representatives, on the first Wednesday of June to be by them examined, & in case of an election by a majority of votes thro' the state, the choice shall be by them declared and published.

And the qualifications of electors of the governor shall be the same as those for senators; and if no person shall have a majority of votes, the senate and house of representatives shall, by joint ballot elect one of the two persons having the highest number of votes, who shall be declared governor.

And no person shall be eligible to this office, unless, at the time of his election, he shall have been an inhabitant of this state for seven years next preceeding, and unless he shall be of the age of thirty years, and unless he shall, at the same time have an estate of the value of five hundred pounds, one half of which shall consist of a freehold, in his own right, within this state, and unless he shall be of the protestant religion.

In cases of disagreement between the two houses, with regard to the time or place of adjournment or prorogation, the governor, with advice of council, shall have a right to adjourn or prorogue the general court, not exceeding ninety days at any one time, as he may determine the public good may require, and he shall dissolve the same seven days before the said first Wednesday of June.

And, in case of any infectious distemper prevailing in the place where the said court at any time is to convene, or any other cause, whereby dangers may arise to the health or lives of the members from their attendance, the governor may direct the session to be holden at some other the most convenient, place within the state.

Every bill which shall have passed both houses of the general court, shall, before it become a law, be presented to the governor, if he approve, he shall sign it, but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to that house in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it; if, after such reconsideration, two thirds of that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with such objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that house, it shall become 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 bill shall be entered on the journal of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the governor, within five days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the legislature, by their adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.

Every resolve shall be presented to the governor, and, before the same shall take effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved