of New York, in force on the 20th day of April, one thousand, seven hundred and seventy-seven, which have not since expired, or been repealed or altered, and such acts of the legislature of this state as are now in force, shall be and continue the law of this state, subject to such alterations as the legislature shall make concerning the same. But all such parts of the common law, and such of the said acts, or parts thereof as are repugnant to this Constitution, are hereby abrogated; and the legislature, at its first session after the adoption of this Constitution, shall appoint three commissioners, whose duty it shall be to reduce into a written and systematic code, the whole body of the law of this state, or so much and such parts thereof as to the said commissioners shall seem practicable and expedient. And the said commissioners shall specify such alterations and amendments therein as they shall deem proper, and they shall at all times make report to the legislature, when called upon to do so; and the legislature shall pass laws, regulating the tenure of office, the filling of vacancies therein, and the compensation of the said commissioners; and shall also provide for the publication of the said code, prior to its being presented to the legislature for adoption. Sec. 18. All grants of land within this state, made by the King of Great Britain, or persons acting under his authority, after the fourteenth day of October, one thousand, seven hundred and seventy-five, shall be null and void; and nothing contained in this Constitution shall affect any grants of land within this state, made by the authority of the said King or his predecessors, or shall annul any charters to bodies politic and corporate, by him or them made, before that day; or shall affect any such grants or charters since made by this state, or by persons acting under its authority, or shall impair the obligation of any debts contracted by this state, or individuals, or bodies corporate, or any other rights of property, or any suits, actions, rights of action, or other proceedings in courts of justice. ARTICLE II. Sec. 1. Every male citizen of the age of twenty-one years, who shall have been a citizen for ten days, and an inhabitant of this state one year next preceding any election, and for the last four months a resident of the county where he may offer his vote, shall be entitled to vote at such election, in the election district of which he shall at the time be a resident, and not elsewhere, for all officers that now are or hereafter may be elective by the people; but such citizen shall have been for thirty days next preceeding the election, a resident of the district from which the officer is to be chosen, for whom he offers his vote. But no man of color, unless he shall have been for three years a citizen of this state, and for one year next preceding any election shall have been seized and possessed of a freehold estate of the value of two hundred and fifty dollars, over and above all debts and incumbrances charged thereon, and shall have been actually rated and paid a tax thereon, shall be entitled to vote at such election. And no person of color shall be subject to direct taxation unless he shall be seized and possessed of such real estate as aforesaid. Sec. 2. Laws may be passed, excluding from the right of suffrage, all persons who have been, or may be, convicted of bribery, of larceny, or of any infamous crime; and for depriving every person who shall make, or become directly or indirectly interested in any bet or wager depending upon the result of any election, from the right to vote at such election. Sec. 3. For the purpose of voting, no person shall be deemed to have gained or lost a residence, by reason of his presence or absence, while employed in the service of the United States; nor while engaged in the navigation of the waters of this state, or of the United States, or of the high seas; nor while a student of any seminary of learning; nor while kept at any alms house, or other asylum, at public expense; nor while confined in any public prison. Sec. 4. Laws shall be made for ascertaining, by proper proofs, the citizens who shall be entitled to the right of suffrage hereby established. Sec. 5. All elections by the citizens, shall be by ballot, except for such town officers as may by law be directed to be otherwise chosen. ARTICLE III. Sec. 1. The legislative power of this state shall be vested in a Senate and Assembly. Sec. 2. The Senate shall consist of thirty-two members, and the senators shall be chosen for two years. The Assembly shall consist of one hundred and twenty-eight members, who shall be annually elected. Sec. 3. The state shall be divided into thirty-two districts, to be called senate districts, each of which shall choose one senator. The districts shall be numbered from one to thirty-two inclusive. District number one shall consist of the counties of Suffolk, Richmond and Queens. District number two shall consist of the county of Kings. Districts number three, number four, number five, and number six, shall consist of the city and county of New York; and the board of supervisors of said city and county shall, on or before the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and forty-seven, divide the said city and county into the number of senate districts to which it is entitled, as near as may be of an equal number of inhabitants, excluding aliens and persons of color, not taxed, and consisting of convenient and of contiguous territory; and no assembly district shall be divided in the formation of a senate district. The board of supervisors, when they shall have completed such division, shall cause certificates thereof, stating the number and boundaries of each district, and the population thereof, to be filed in the office of the Secretary of State, and of the clerk of said city and county. District number seven shall consist of the counties of Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland. District number eight shall consist of the counties of Dutchess and Columbia. District number nine shall consist of the counties of Orange and Sullivan. District number eleven shall consist of the counties of Albany and Schenectady. District number twelve shall consist of the county of Rensselaer. District number thirteen shall consist of the counties of Washington and Saratoga. District number fourteen shall consist of the counties of Warren, Essex, and Clinton. District number fifteen shall consist of the counties of St. Lawrence and Franklin. District number sixteen shall consist of the counties of Herkimer, Hamilton, Fulton, and Montgomery. District number seventeen shall consist of the counties of Schoharie and Delaware. District number eighteen shall consist of the counties of Otsego and Chenango. District number nineteen shall consist of the county of Oneida. District number twenty shall consist of the counties of Madison and Oswego. District number twenty-one shall consist of the counties of Jefferson and Lewis. District number twenty-two shall consist of the county of Onondaga. District number twenty-three shall consist of the counties of Cortland, Broome, and Tioga. District number twenty-four shall consist of the counties of Cayuga and Wayne. District number twenty-five shall consist of the counties of Tompkins, Seneca, and Yates. District number twenty-six shall consist of the counties of Steuben and Chemung. District number twenty-seven shall consist of the county of Munroe. District number twenty-eight shall consist of the counties of Orleans, Genesee, and Niagara. District number twenty-nine shall consist of the counties of Ontario and Livingston. District number thirty shall consist of the counties of Allegany and Wyoming. District number thirty-one shall consist of the county of Erie. District number thirty-two shall consist of the counties of Chautauque and Cattaraugus. Sec. 4. An enumeration of the inhabitants of the state shall be taken, under the direction of the legislature, in the year one thousand, eight hundred and fifty-five, and at the end of every ten years thereafter; and the said districts shall be so altered by the legislature, at the first session after the return of every enumeration, that each senate district shall contain, as nearly as may be, an equal number of inhabitants, excluding aliens, and persons of color not taxed; and shall remain unaltered until the return of another enumeration; and shall at all times consist of contiguous territory; and no county shall be divided in the formation of a senate district, except such county shall be equitably entitled to two or more Senators. Sec. 5. The members of Assembly shall be apportioned among the several counties of this state, by the legislature, as nearly as may be, according to the number of their respective inhabitants, excluding aliens, and persons of color not taxed, and shall be chosen by single districts. The several boards of supervisors, in such counties or this state, as are now entitled to more than one member of Asseblmy, shall assemble on the first Tuesday of January next, and divide their respective counties into assembly districts, equal to the number of members of Assembly to which such counties are now severally entitled by law, and shall cause to be filed in the offices of the Secretary or State, and the clerks of their respective counties, a description of such assembly districts, specifying the number of each district, and the population thereof, according to the last preceding state enumeration, as near as can be ascertained. Each assembly district shall contain, as nearly as may be, an equal number of inhabitants, excluding aliens, and persons of color not taxed, and shall consist of convenient and contiguous territory; but no town shall be divided in the formation of assembly districts. The legislature, at its first session, after the return of every enumeration, shall re-apportion the members of Assembly, among the several counties of this state, in manner aforesaid, and the boards of supervisors, in such counties as may be entitled, under such re-apportionment, to more than one member shall assemble, at such time as the legislature making such re-apportionment shall prescribe, and divide such counties into assembly districts, in the manner herein directed; and the apportionment and districts, so to be made, shall remain unaltered, until another enumeration shall be taken, under the provisions of the preceding section. Every county, heretofore established and separately organized, except the county of Hamilton, shall always be entitled to one member of the Assembly, and no new county shall be hereafter erected, unless its population shall entitle it to a member. The county of Hamilton shall elect with the county of Fulton, until the population of the county of Hamilton shall, according to the ratio, be entitled to a member. Sec. 6. The members of the legislature shall receive, for their services, a sum not exceeding three dollars a day, from the commencement of the session; but such pay shall not exceed, in the aggregate, three hundred dollars for per diem allowance, except in proceedings for impeachment. The limitation as to the aggregate compensation, shall not take effect until the year one thousand, eight hundred and forty-eight. When convened in extra session, by the Governor, they shall receive three dollars per day. They shall also receive the sum of one dollar for every ten miles they shall travel, in going to, and returning from, their place of meeting, on the most usual route. The speaker of the Assembly shall, in virtue of his office, receive an additional compensation, equal to one-third of his per diem allowance as a member. Sec. 7. No member of the legislature shall receive any civil appointment within this state, or to the Senate of the United States, from the Governor, the Governor and Senate, or from the Legislature, during the term for which he shall have been elected; and all such appointments, and all votes given for any such member, for any such office or appointment, shall be void. Sec. 8. No person, being a member of Congress, or holding any judicial or military office under the United States, shall hold a seat in the legislature. And if any person shall, after his election as a member of the legislature, be elected to Congress, or appointed to any office, civil or military, under the government of the United States, his acceptance thereof shall vacate his seat. Sec. 9. The elections of Senators and members of Assembly, pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution, shall be held on the Tuesday succeeding the first Monday of November, unless otherwise directed by the legislature. Sec. 10. A majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to do business. Each house shall determine the rules of its own proceedings, and be the judge of the elections, returns, and qualifications of its own members; shall choose its own officers; and the Senate shall choose a temporary president, when the Lieutenant Governor shall not attend as president, or shall act as Governor. Sec. 11. Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and publish the same, except such parts as may require secrecy. The doors of each house shall be kept open, except when the public welfare shall require secrecy. Neither house shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than two days. Sec. 12. For any speech or debate, in either house of the legislature, the members shall not be questioned in any other place. Sec. 13. Any bill may originate in either house of the legislature, and all bills passed by one house, may be amended by the other. Sec. 14. The enacting clause of all bills shall be, "The people of the state of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows," and no law shall be enacted except by bill. Sec. 15. No bill shall be passed, unless by the assent of a majority of all the members elected to each branch of the legislature, and the question upon the final passage, shall be taken immediately upon its last reading, and the yeas and nays entered on the journal. Sec. 16. No private or local bill, which may be passed by the legislature, shall embrace more than one subject, and that shall be expressed in the title. Sec. 17. The legislature may confer upon the boards of supervisors, of the several counties of the state, such further powers of local legislation and administration, as they shall from time to time prescribe. ARTICLE IV. Sec. 1. The executive power shall be vested in a Governor, who shall hold his office for two years; a Lieutenant Governor shall be chosen at the same time, and for the same term. Sec. 2. No person, except a citizen of the United States, shall be eligible to the office of Governor; nor shall any person be eligible to that office, who shall not have attained the age of thirty years, and who shall not have been five years next preceding his election, a resident within this state. Sec. 3. The Governor and Lieutenant Governor shall be elected at the times and places of choosing members of the Assembly. The persons respectively having the highest number of votes for Governor and Lieutenant Governor, shall be elected; but in case two, or more, shall have an equal, and the highest, num ber of votes for Governor, or for Lieutenant Governor, the two houses of the legislature, at its next annual session, shall. forthwith, by joint ballot, choose one of the said persons, so having an equal and the highest number of votes for Governor, or Lieutenant Governor. Sec. 4. The Governor shall be commander-in-chief of the military and naval forces of the state. He shall have power to convene the legislature, (or the Senate only.) on extraordinary occasions. He shall communicate, by message, to the legislature, at every session, the condition of the state, and recommend such matters to them, as he shall judge expedient. He shall transact all necessary business with the officers of government, civil and military. He shall expedite all such measures, as may be resolved upon by the legislature, and shall take care that the laws are faithfully executed. He shall, at stated times, receive for his services, a compensation to be established by law, which shall neither be increased nor diminished, after his election, and during his continuance in office. Sec. 5. The Governor shall have the power to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons, after conviction, for all offences, except treason and cases of impeachment, upon such conditions, and with such restrictions and limitations, as he may think proper, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law, relative to the manner of applying for pardons. Upon conviction for treason, he shall have power to suspend the execution of the sentence, until the case shall be reported to the legislature, at its next meeting, when the legislature shall either pardon, or commute the sentence, direct the execution of the sentence, or grant a further reprieve. He shall annually communicate to the legislature, each case of reprieve, commutation, or pardon, granted; stating the name of the convict, the crime of which he was convicted, the sentence, and its date, and the date of the commutation, pardon, or reprieve. Sec. 6. In case of the impeachment of the Governor, or his removal from office, death, inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said office, resignation, or absence from the state, the powers and duties of the office shall devolve upon the Lieutenant Governor, for the residue of the term, or until the disability shall cease. But when the Governor shall, with the consent of the legislature, be out of the state, in time of war, at the head of the military force thereof, he shall continue commander-in-chief of all the military force of the state. Sec. 7. The Lieutenant Governor shall possess the same qualifications of eligibility for office as the Governor. He shall be President of the Senate, but shall only have a casting vote therein. If, during a vacancy of the office of Governor, the Lieutenant Governor shall be impeached, displaced, resign, die, or become incapable of performing the duties of his office, or be absent from the state, the President of the Senate shall act as Governor, until the vacancy be filled, or the disability shall cease. Sec. 8. The Lieutenant Governor shall, while acting as such, receive a compensation, to be fixed by law, and which shall not be increased or diminished, during his continuance in office. Sec. 9. Every bill which shall have passed the Senate and Assembly, shall, before it becomes 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, upon their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of the members present shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be re-considered; and if approved by two-thirds of all the members present, it shall become a law, notwithstanding the objections of the Governor. But in all such cases, the votes of both houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the members, voting for and against the bill, shall be entered on the journal of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the Governor, within ten 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 shall, by their adjournment, prevent its return; in which case it shall not be a law. ARTICLE V. Sec. 1. The Secretary of State, Comptroller, Treasurer, and Attorney General, shall be chosen at a general election, and shall hold their offices for two years. Each of the officers in this Article named, (except the Speaker of the Assembly,) shall, at stated times, during his continuance in office, receive for his services, a |