SEC 9 That excessive bail ought not to be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted

SEC 10 That general warrants, whereby an officer or messenger may be commanded to search suspected places without evidence of a fact committed, or to seize any person or persons not named or whose offence is not particularly described and supported by evidence, are grievous and oppressive, and ought not to be granted

SEC 11 That no person shall be deprived of his property without due process of law, and in controversies respecting property, and in suits between man and man, trial by jury is preferable to any other and ought to be held sacred, but the General Assembly may limit the number of jurors for civil cases in circuit and corporation courts to not less than five in cases now cognizable by justices of the peace, or to not less than seven in cases not so cognizable

SEC 12 That the freedom of the press is one of the great bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic governments, and any citizen may freely speak, write and publish his sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of that right

SEC 13 That a well regulated milita, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural and safe defence of a free state, that standing armies, in time of peace, should be avoided as dangerous to liberty, and that in all cases the military should be under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power

SEC 14 That the people have a right to uniform government, and, therefore, that no government separate from, or independent of, the government of Virginia, ought to be erected or established within the limits therof

SEC 15 That no free government, or the blessing of liberty, can be preserved to any people, but by a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality and virtue, and by frequent recurrence to fundamental principles

SEC 16 That religion, or the duty which we owe to our Creator, and the manner of discharging it, can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence, and, therefore, all men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience, and that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance, love and charity towards each other

SEC 17 The rights enumerated in this Bill of Rights shall not be construed to limit other rights of the people not therein expressed.



ARTICLE II

ELECTIVE FRANCHISE AND QUALIFICATIONS FOR OFFICE

SEC 18 Every male citizen of the United States, twenty one years of age, who has been a resident of the State two years, of the county, city, or town one year, and of the precinct in which he offers to vote, thirty days, next preceding the election in which he offers to vote, has been registered, and has paid his state poll taxes, as hereinafter required, shall be entitled to vote for members of the General Assembly and all officers elective by the people; but removal from one precinct to another, in the same county, city or town shall not deprive any person of his right to vote in the precinct from which he has moved, until the expiration of thirty days after such removal.

SEC. 19. There shall be general registrations in the counties, cities and towns of the State during the years nineteen hundred and two and nineteen hundred and three at such times and in such manner as may be prescribed by an ordinance of this Convention. At such registrations every male citizen of the United States having the qualifications of age and residence required in section Eighteen shall be entitled to register, if he be:

First. A person who, prior to the adoption of this Constitution, served in time of war in the army or navy of the United States, of the Confederate States, or of any state of the United States or of the Confederate States; or,

Second. A son of any such person; or,

Third. A person, who owns property, upon which, for the year next preceding that in which he offers to register, state taxes aggregating at least one dollar have been paid; or,

Fourth. A person able to read any section of this Constitution submitted to him by the officers of registration and to give a reasonable explanation of the same; or, if unable to read such section, able to understand and give a reasonable explanation thereof when read to him by the officers.

A roll containing the names of all persons thus registered, sworn to and certified by the officers of registration, shall be filed, for record and preservation, in the clerk's office of the circuit court of the county, or the clerk's office of the corporation court of the city, as the case may be. Persons thus enrolled shall not be required to register again, unless they shall have ceased to be residents of the State, or become disqualified by section Twenty-three. Any person denied registration under this section shall have the right of appeal to the circuit court of his county, or the corporation court of his city, or to the judge thereof in vacation.

SEC. 20. After the first day of January, nineteen hundred and four, every male citizen of the United States, having the qualifications of age and residence required in section Eighteen, shall be entitled to register, provided:

First. That he has personally paid to the proper officer all state poll taxes assessed or assessable against him, under this or the former Constitution, for the three years next preceding that in which he offers to register; or, if he come of age at such time that no poll tax shall have been assessable against him for the year preceding the year in which he offers to register, has paid one dollar and fifty cents, in satisfaction of the first year's poll tax assessable against him; and,

Second. That, unless physically unable, he make application to register in his own handwriting, without aid, suggestion, or memorandum, in the presence of the registration officers, stating therein his name, age, date and place of birth, residence and occupation at the time and for the two years next preceding, and whether he has previously voted, and, if so, the state, county, and precinct in which he voted last; and,

Third. That he answer on oath any and all questions affecting his qualifications as an elector, submitted to him by the officers of registration, which questions, and his answers thereto, shall be reduced to writing, certified by the said officers, and preserved as a part of their official records.

SEC. 21. Any person registered under either of the last two sections, shall have the right to vote for members of the General Assembly and all officers elective by the people, subject to the following conditions:

That he, unless exempted by section Twenty-two, shall, as a prerequisite to the right to vote after the first day of January, nineteen hundred and four, personally pay, at least six months prior to the election, all state poll taxes assessed or assessable against him, under this Constitution, during the three years next preceding that in which he offers to vote; provided that, if he register after the first day of January, nineteen hundred and four, he shall, unless physically unable, prepare and deposit his ballot without aid, on such printed form as the law may prescribe; but any voter registered prior to that date may be aided in the preparation of his ballot by such officer of election as he himself may designate.

SEC. 22. No person who, during the late war between the States, served in the army or navy of the United States, or the Confederate States, or any state of the United States, or of the Confederate States, shall at any time be required to pay a poll tax as a prerequisite to the right to register or vote. The collection of the state poll tax assessed against any one shall not be enforced by legal process until the same has become three years past due.

SEC. 23. The following persons shall be excluded from registering and voting: Idiots, insane persons, and paupers; persons who, prior to the adoption of this Constitution, were disqualified from voting, by conviction of crime, either within or without this State, and whose disabilities shall not have been removed; persons convicted after the adoption of this Constitution, either within or without this State, of treason, or of any felony, bribery, petit larceny, obtaining money or property under false pretences, embezzlement, forgery, or perjury; persons who, while citizens of this State, after the adoption of this Constitution, have fought a duel with a deadly weapon, or sent or accepted a challenge to fight such duel, either within or without this State, or knowingly conveyed a challenge, or aided or assisted in any way in the fighting of such duel.

SEC. 24. No officer, soldier, seaman, or marine of the United States army or navy shall be deemed to have gained a residence as to the right of suffrage, in the State, or in any county, city or town thereof, by reason of being stationed therein; nor shall an inmate of any charitable institution or a student in any institution of learning, be regarded as having either gained or lost a residence, as to the right of suffrage, by reason of his location or sojourn in such institution.

SEC. 25. The General Assembly shall provide for the annual registration of voters under section Twenty, for an appeal by any person denied registration, for the correction of illegal or fraudulent registration, thereunder, and also for the proper transfer of all voters registered under this Constitution.

SEC. 26. Any person who, in respect to age or residence, would be qualified to vote at the next election, shall be admitted to registration, notwithstanding that at the time thereof he is not so qualified, and shall be entitled to vote at said election if then qualified under the provisions of this Constitution.

SEC. 27. All elections by the people shall be by ballot; all elections by any representative body shall be viva voce, and the vote recorded in the journal thereof.

The ballot-box shall be kept in public view during all elections, and shall not be opened, nor the ballots canvassed or counted, in secret.

So far as consistent with the provisions of this Constitution, the absolute secrecy of the ballot shall be maintained.

SEC. 28. The General Assembly shall provide for ballots without any distinguishing mark or symbol, for use in all state, county, city, and other elections by the people, and the form thereof shall be the same in all places where any such election is held. All ballots shall contain the names of the candidates, and of the offices to be filled, in, clear print and in due and orderly succession; but any voter may erase any name and insert another.

SEC. 29. No voter, during the time of holding any election at which he is entitled to vote, shall be compelled to perform military service, except in time of war or public danger; to attend any court as suitor, juror, or witness; and no voter shall be subject to arrest under any civil process during his attendance at election or in going to or returning therefrom.

SEC. 30. The General Assembly may prescribe a property qualification not exceeding two hundred and fifty dollars for voters in any county or subdivision thereof, or city or town, as a prerequisite for voting in any election for officers, other than the members of the General Assembly, to be wholly elected by the voters of such county or subdivision thereof, or city, or town; such action, if taken, to be had upon the initiative of a representative in the General Assembly of the county, city, or town affected: provided, that the General Assembly in its discretion may make such exemptions from the operation of said property qualification as shall not be in conflict with the Constitution of the United States.

SEC. 31. There shall be in each county and city an electoral board, composed of three members, appointed by the circuit court of the county-court—the corporation court of the city, or the judge of the court in vacation. Of those first appointed, one shall be appointed for a term of one year, one for a term of two years, and one for a term of three years; and thereafter their successors shall be appointed for the full term of three years. Any vacancy occurring in any board shall be filled by the same authority for the unexpired term.

Each electoral board shall appoint the judges, clerks, and registrars of election for its county or city; and, in appointing judges of election, representation as far as possible shall be given to each of the two political parties which, at the general election next preceding their appointment, cast the highest and next highest number of votes. No person, nor the deputy of any person, holding any office or post of profit or emolument, under the United States Government, or who is in the employment of such government, or holding any elective office of profit or trust in the State, or in any county, city, or town thereof, shall be appointed a member of the electoral board, or registrar, or judge of election.

SEC. 32. Every person qualified to vote shall be eligible to any office of the State or of any county, city, town, or other subdivision of the State, wherein he resides, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, and except that this provision as to residence shall not apply to any office elective by the people where the law provides otherwise. Men and women eighteen years of age shall be eligible to the office of notary public, and qualified to execute the bonds required of them in that capacity.

SEC. 33. The terms of all officers elected under this Constitution shall begin on the first day of February next succeeding their election, unless otherwise provided in this Constitution. All officers, elected or appointed, shall continue to discharge the duties of their offices after their terms of service have expired until their successors have qualified.

SEC. 34. Members of the General Assembly and all officers, executive and judicial, elected or appointed after this Constitution goes into effect, shall, before they enter on the performance of their public duties, severally take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation:

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the State of Virginia ordained by the Convention which assembled in the city of Richmond on the twelfth day of June, nineteen hundred and one, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent on me as, according to the best of my ability; so help me God."

SEC. 35. No person shall vote at any legalized primary election for the nomination of any candidate for office unless he is at the time registered and qualified to vote at the next succeeding election.

SEC. 36. The General Assembly shall enact such laws as are necessary and proper for the purpose of securing the regularity and purity of general, local and primary elections, and preventing and punishing any corrupt practices in connection therewith; and shall have power, in addition to other penalties and punishments now or hereafter prescribed by law for such offences, to provide that persons convicted of them shall thereafter be disqualified from voting or holding office.

SEC. 37. The General Assembly may provide for the use, throughout the State or in any one or more counties, cities, or towns in any election, of machines for receiving, recording, and counting the votes cast thereat: provided, that the secrecy of the voting be not thereby impaired.

SEC. 38. After the first day of January, nineteen hundred and four, the treasurer of each county and city shall, at least five months before each regular election, file with the clerk of the circuit court of his county, or of the corporation court of his city, a list of all persons in his county or city, who have paid not later than six months prior to such election, the state poll taxes required by this Constitution during the three years next preceding that in which such election is held; which list shall be arranged alphabetically, by magisterial districts or wards, shall state the white and colored persons separately, and shall be verified by the oath of the treasurer. The clerk, within ten days from the receipt of the list, shall make and certify a sufficient number of copies thereof, and shall deliver one copy for each voting place in his county or city, to the sheriff of the county or sergeant of the city, whose duty it shall be to post one copy, without delay, at each of the voting places, and, within ten days from the receipt thereof, to make return on oath to the clerk, as to the places where and dates at which said copies were respectively posted; which return the clerk shall record in a book kept in his office for the purpose; and he shall keep in his office for public inspection, for at least sixty days after receiving the list, not less than ten certified copies thereof, and also cause the list to be published in such other manner as may be prescribed by law; the original list returned by the treasurer shall be filed and preserved by the clerk among the public records of his office for at least five years after receiving the same. Within thirty days after the list has been so posted, any person who shall have paid his capitation tax, but whose name is omitted from the certified list, may, after five days' written notice to the treasurer, apply to the circuit court of his county, or corporation court of his city, or to the judge thereof in vacation, to have the same corrected and his name entered thereon, which application the court or judge shall promptly hear and decide.

The clerk shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, with the poll- books, at a reasonable time before every election, to one of the judges of election of each precinct of his county or city, a like certified copy of the list, which shall be conclusive evidence of the facts therein stated for the purpose of voting. The clerk shall also,—within sixty days after the filing of the list by the treasurer, forward a certified copy thereof, with such corrections as may have been made by order of the court or judge, to the Auditor of Public Accounts, who shall charge the amount of the poll taxes stated therein to such treasurer unless previously accounted for.

Further evidence of the prepayment of the capitation taxes required by this Constitution, as a prerequisite to the right to register and vote, may be prescribed by law.



ARTICLE III.

DIVISION OF POWERS.

SEC. 39. Except as hereinafter provided, the legislative, executive, and judiciary departments shall be separate and distinct, so that neither exercise the powers properly belonging to either of the others, nor any person exercise the power of more than one of them at the same time.



ARTICLE IV.

LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT.

SEC. 40. The legislative power of the State shall be vested in a General Assembly, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Delegates.

SEC. 41. The Senate shall consist of not more than forty and not less than thirty-three members, who shall be elected quadrennially by the voters of the several senatorial districts, on the Tuesday succeeding the first Monday in November.

SEC. 42. The House of Delegates shall consist of not more than one hundred and not less than ninety members, who shall be elected biennially by the voters of the several house districts, on the Tuesday succeeding the first Monday in November.

SEC. 43. The apportionment of the State into senatorial and house districts, made by the acts of the General Assembly, approved April the second, nineteen hundred and two, is hereby adopted; but a re-apportionment may be made in the year nineteen hundred and six, and shall be made in the year nineteen hundred and twelve, and every tenth year thereafter.

SEC. 44. Any person may be elected senator who, at the time of election, is actually a resident of the senatorial district and qualified to vote for members of the General Assembly; and any person may be elected a member of the House of Delegates who, at the time of election, is actually a resident of the house district and qualified to vote for members of the General Assembly. But no person holding a salaried office under the state government, and no judge of any court, attorney for the Commonwealth, sheriff, sergeant, treasurer, assessor of taxes, commissioner of the revenue, collector of taxes, or clerk of any court, shall be a member of either house of the General Assembly during his continuance in office, and the election of any such person to either house of the General Assembly, and his qualification as a member thereof, shall vacate any such office held by him; and no person holding any office or post of profit or emolument under the United States Government or who is in the employment of such government, shall be eligible to either house. The removal of a senator or delegate from the district for which he is elected, shall vacate his office.

SEC. 45. The members of the General Assembly shall receive for their services a salary to be fixed by law and paid from the public treasury; but no act increasing such salary shall take effect until after the end of the term for which the members voting thereon were elected; and no member during the term for which he shall have been elected, shall be appointed or elected to any civil office of profit in the State except offices filled by election by the people.

SEC. 46. The General Assembly shall meet once in two years on the second Wednesday in January next succeeding the election of the members of the House of Delegates and not oftener unless convened in the manner prescribed by this Constitution. No session of the General Assembly, after the first under this Constitution, shall continue longer than sixty days; but with the concurrence of three-fifths of the members elected to each house, the session may be extended for a period not exceeding thirty days. Except for the first session held under this Constitution, members shall be allowed a salary for not exceeding sixty days at any regular session, and for not exceeding thirty days at any extra session. Neither house shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn to another place nor for more than three days. A majority of the members elected to each house shall constitute a quorum to do business, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and shall have power to compel the attendance of members in such manner and under such penalty as each house may prescribe.

SEC. 47. The House of Delegates shall choose its own speaker; and, in the absence of the Lieutenant-Governor, or when he shall exercise the office of Governor, the Senate shall choose from their own body a president pro tempore. Each house shall select its officers, settle its rules of procedure, and direct writs of election for supplying vacancies which may occur during the session of the General Assembly; but, if vacancies occur during the recess, such writs may be issued by the Governor, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. Each house shall judge of the election, qualification, and returns of its members; may punish them for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member.

SEC. 48. Members of the General Assembly shall, in all cases, except treason, felony, or breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during the sessions of their respective houses; and for any speech or debate in either house shall not be questioned in any other place. They shall not be subject to arrest, under any civil process, during the sessions of the General Assembly, or the fifteen days next before the beginning or after the ending of any session.

SEC. 49. Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, which shall be published from time to time, and the yeas and nays of the members of either house on any question shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present, be entered on the journal.

SEC. 50. No law shall be enacted except by bill. A bill may originate in either house, to be approved or rejected by the other, or may be amended by either, with the concurrence of the other.

No bill shall become a law unless, prior to its passage, it has been,

(a) Referred to a committee of each house, considered by such committee in session, and reported;

(b) Printed by the house, in which it originated, prior to its passage therein;

(c) Read at length on three different calendar days in each house; and unless,

(d) A yea and nay vote has been taken in each house upon its final passage, the names of the members voting for and against entered on the journal, and a majority of those voting, which shall include at least two-fifths of the members elected to each house, recorded in the affirmative.

And only in the manner required in subdivision (d) of this section shall an amendment to a bill by one house be concurred in by the other, or a conference report be adopted by either house, or either house discharge a committee from the consideration of a bill and consider the same as if reported; provided that the printing and reading, or either, required in subdivisions (b) and (c) of this section, may be dispensed with in a bill to codify the laws of the State, and in any case of emergency by a vote of four- fifths of the members voting in each house taken by the yeas and nays, the names of the members voting for and against, entered on the journal; and provided further, that no bill which creates, or establishes a new office, or which creates, continues, or revives a debt or charge, or makes, continues or revives any appropriation of public or trust money, or property, or releases, discharges or commutes any claim or demand of the State, or which imposes, continues or revives a tax, shall be passed except by the affirmative vote of a majority of all the members elected to each house, the vote to be by the yeas and nays, and the names of the members voting for and against, entered on the journal. Every law imposing, continuing or reviving a tax shall specifically state such tax and no law shall be construed as so stating such tax, which requires a reference to any other law or any other tax. The presiding officer of each house shall, in the presence of the house over which he presides, sign every bill that has been passed by both houses and duly enrolled. Immediately before this is done, all other business being suspended, the title of the bill shall be publicly read. The fact of signing shall be entered on the journal.

SEC. 51. There shall be a joint committee of the General Assembly, consisting of seven members appointed by the House of Delegates, and five members appointed by the Senate, which shall be a standing committee on special, private, and local legislation. Before reference to a committee, as provided by section Fifty, any special, private, or local bill introduced in either house shall be referred to and considered by such joint committee and returned to the house in which it originated with a statement in writing whether the object of the bill can be accomplished under general law or by court proceeding; whereupon, the bill, with the accompanying statement, shall take the course provided by section Fifty. The joint committee may be discharged from the consideration of a bill by the house in which it originated in the manner provided in section Fifty for the discharge of other committees.

SEC. 52. No law shall embrace more than one object, which shall be expressed in its title; nor shall any law be revived or amended with reference to its title, but the act revived or the section amended shall be re-enacted and published at length.

SEC. 53. No law, except a general appropriation law, shall take effect until at least ninety days after the adjournment of the session of the General Assembly at which it is enacted, unless in case of an emergency (which emergency shall be expressed in the body of the bill), the General Assembly shall otherwise direct by a vote of four-fifths of the members voting in each house, such vote to be taken by the yeas and nays, and the names of the members voting for and against entered on the journal.

SEC. 54. The Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, Attorney-General, judges, members of the State Corporation Commission, and executive officers at the seat of government, and all officers appointed by the Governor or elected by the General Assembly, offending against the State by malfeasance in office, corruption, neglect of duty, or other high crime or misdemeanor, may be impeached by the House of Delegates, and prosecuted before the Senate which shall have the sole power to try impeachment. When sitting for that purpose, the senators shall be on oath or affirmation, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators present. Judgment in case of impeachment shall not extend further than removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the State; but the person convicted shall nevertheless be subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to law. The Senate may sit during the recess of the General Assembly for the trial of impeachments.

SEC. 55. The General Assembly shall by law apportion the State into districts, corresponding with the number of representatives to which it may be entitled in the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States; which districts shall be composed of contiguous and compact territory containing, as nearly as practicable, an equal number of inhabitants.

SEC. 56. The manner of conducting and making returns of elections, of determining contested elections, and of filling vacancies in office, in cases not specially provided for by this Constitution, shall be prescribed by law, and the General Assembly may declare the cases in which any office shall be deemed vacant where no provision is made for that purpose in this Constitution.

SEC. 57. The General Assembly shall have power, by a two-thirds vote, to remove disabilities incurred under section Twenty-three, of Article Two, of this Constitution, with reference to duelling.

SEC. 58. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended unless when in cases of invasion or rebellion, the public safety may require. The General Assembly shall not pass any bill of attainder, or any ex post facto law, or any law impairing the obligation of contracts, or any law abridging the freedom of speech or of the press. It shall not enact any law whereby private property shall be taken or damaged for public uses, without just compensation. No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities. And the General Assembly shall not prescribe any religious test whatever, or confer any peculiar privileges or advantages on any sect or denomination, or pass any law requiring or authorizing any religious society, or the people of any district within this State, to levy on themselves or others any tax for the erection or repair of any house of public worship, or for the support of any church or ministry; but it shall be left free to every person to select his religious instructor, and to make for his support such private contract as he shall please.

SEC. 59. The General Assembly shall not grant a charter of incorporation to any church or religious denomination, but may secure the title to church property to an extent to be limited by law.

SEC. 60. No lottery shall hereafter be authorized by law; and the buying, selling, or transferring of tickets or chances in any lottery shall be prohibited.

SEC. 61. No new county shall be formed with an area of less than six hundred square miles; nor shall the county or counties from which it is formed be reduced below that area; nor shall any county be reduced in population below eight thousand. But any county, the length of which is three times its mean breadth, or which exceeds fifty miles in length, may be divided at the discretion of the General Assembly.

SEC. 62. The General Assembly shall have full power to enact local option or dispensary laws, or any other laws controlling, regulating, or prohibiting the manufacture or sale of intoxicating liquors.

SEC. 63. The General Assembly shall confer on the courts power to grant divorces, change the names of persons, and direct the sale of estates belonging to infants and other persons under legal disabilities, and shall not, by special legislation, grant relief in these or other cases of which the courts or other tribunals may have jurisdiction. The General Assembly may regulate the exercise by courts of the right to punish for contempt. The General Assembly shall not enact any local, special, or private law in the following cases:—

1. For the punishment of crime.

2. Providing a change of venue in civil or criminal cases.

3. Regulating the practice in, or the jurisdiction of, or changing the rules of evidence in any judicial proceedings or inquiry before, the courts or other tribunals, or providing or changing the methods of collecting debts or enforcing judgments, or prescribing the effect of judicial sales of real estate.

4. Changing or locating county seats.

5. For the assessment and collection of taxes, except as to animals which the General Assembly may deem dangerous to the farming interests.

6. Extending the time for the assessment or collection of taxes.

7. Exempting property from taxation.

8. Remitting, releasing, postponing, or diminishing any obligation or liability of any person, corporation, or association, to the State or to any political subdivision thereof.

9. Refunding money lawfully paid into the treasury of the State or the treasury of any political subdivision thereof.

10. Granting from the treasury of the State, or granting or authorizing to be granted from the treasury of any political subdivision thereof, any extra compensation to any public officer, servant, agent, or contractor.

11. For conducting elections or designating the places of voting.

12. Regulating labor, trade, mining or manufacturing, or the rate of interest on money.

13. Granting any pension or pensions.

14. Creating, increasing, or decreasing, or authorizing to be created, increased, or decreased, the salaries, fees, percentages, or allowances of public officers during the term for which they are elected or appointed.

15. Declaring streams navigable, or authorizing the construction of booms or dams therein, or the removal of obstructions therefrom.

16. Affecting or regulating fencing or the boundaries of land, or the running at large of stock.

17. Creating private corporations, or amending, renewing or extending the charters thereof.

18. Granting to any private corporation, association, or individual any special or exclusive right, privilege or immunity.

19. Naming or changing the name of any private corporation or association.

20. Remitting the forfeiture of the charter of any private corporation except upon the condition that such corporation shall thereafter hold its charter subject to the provisions of this Constitution and the laws passed in pursuance thereof.

SEC. 64. In all the cases enumerated in the last section, and in every other case which, in its judgment, may be provided for by general laws, the General Assembly shall enact general laws. Any general law shall be subject to amendment or repeal, but the amendment or partial repeal thereof shall not operate directly or indirectly to enact, and shall not have the effect of the enactment of a special, private, or local law.

No general or special law shall surrender or suspend the right and power of the State, or any political subdivision thereof, to tax corporations or corporate property, except as authorized by Article Thirteen. No private corporation, association, or individual shall be specially exempted from the operation of any general law, nor shall its operation be suspended for the benefit of any private corporation, association, or individual.

SEC. 65, The General Assembly may by general laws, confer upon the boards of supervisors of counties, and the councils of cities and towns, such powers of local and special legislation, as it may from time to time deem expedient, not inconsistent with the limitations contained in this Constitution.

SEC. 66. The Clerk of the House of Delegates shall be Keeper of the Rolls of the State but shall receive no compensation from the State for his services as such.

The General Assembly by general law shall prescribe the number of employees of the Senate and House of Delegates, including the clerks thereof, and fix their compensation at a per diem for the time actually employed in the discharge of their duties.

SEC. 67. The General Assembly shall not make any appropriation of public funds, of personal property, or of any real estate, to any church, or sectarian society, association, or institution of any kind whatever, which is entirely or partly, directly or indirectly, controlled by any church or sectarian society; nor shall the General Assembly make any like appropriation to any charitable institution, which is not owned or controlled by the State; except that it may, in its discretion, make appropriations to non-sectarian institutions for the reform of youthful criminals; but nothing herein contained shall prohibit the General Assembly from authorizing counties, cities, or towns to make such appropriations to any charitable institution or association.

SEC. 68. The General Assembly shall, at each regular session, appoint a standing committee, consisting of two members of the Senate and three members of the House of Delegates, which shall be known as the Auditing Committee. Such committee shall annually, or oftener in its discretion, examine the books and accounts of the First Auditor, the State Treasurer, the Secretary of the Commonwealth, and other executive officers at the seat of government whose duties pertain to auditing or accounting for the state revenue, report the result of its investigations to the Governor, and cause the same to be published in two newspapers of general circulation in the State. The Governor shall, at the beginning of each session, submit said reports to the General Assembly for appropriate action. The committee may sit during the recess of the General Assembly, receive such compensation as may be prescribed by law, and employ one or more accountants to assist in its investigations.



ARTICLE V.

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.

SEC. 69. The chief executive power of the State shall be vested in a Governor. He shall hold office for a term of four years, to commence on the first day of February next succeeding his election, and be ineligible to the same office for the term next succeeding that for which he was elected, and to any other office during his term of service.

SEC. 70. The Governor shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the time and place of choosing members of the General Assembly. Returns of the election shall be transmitted, under seal, by the proper officers, to the Secretary of the Commonwealth, who shall deliver them to the Speaker of the House of Delegates on the first day of the next session of the General Assembly. The Speaker of the House of Delegates shall, within one week thereafter, in the presence of a majority of the Senate and of the House of Delegates, open the returns, and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the highest number of votes shall be declared elected; but if two or more shall have the highest and an equal number of votes, one of them shall lie chosen Governor by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly. Contested elections for Governor shall be decided by a like vote, and the mode of proceeding in such cases shall be prescribed by law.

SEC. 71. No person except a citizen of the United States shall be eligible to the office of Governor; and if such person be of foreign birth, he must have been a citizen of the United States for ten years next preceding his election; nor shall any person be eligible to that office unless he shall have attained the age of thirty years, and have been a resident of the State for five years next preceding his election.

SEC. 72. The Governor shall reside at the seat of government; shall receive five thousand dollars for each year of his service, and while in office shall receive no other emolument from this or any other government.

SEC. 73. The Governor shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed; communicate to the General Assembly, at every session, the condition of the State; recommend to its consideration such measures as he may deem expedient, and convene the General Assembly on application of two-thirds of the members of both houses thereof, or when, in his opinion, the interest of the State may require. He shall be commander-in-chief of the land and naval forces of the State; have power to embody the militia to repel invasion, suppress insurrection and enforce the execution of the laws; conduct, either in person or in such manner as shall be prescribed by law, all intercourse with other and foreign states; and, during the recess of the General Assembly, shall have power to suspend from office for misbehavior, incapacity, neglect of official duty, or acts performed without due authority of law, all executive officers at the seat of government except the Lieutenant-Governor; but, in any case in which this power is so exercised, the Governor shall report to the General Assembly, at the beginning of the next session thereof, the fact of such suspension and the cause therefor, whereupon the General Assembly shall determine whether such officer shall be restored or finally removed; and the Governor shall have power, during the recess of the General Assembly, to appoint, pro tempore, successors to all officers so suspended, and to fill, pro tempore, vacancies in all offices of the State for the filling of which the Constitution and laws make no other provision; but his appointments to such vacancies shall be by commissions to expire at the end of thirty days after the commencement of the next session of the General Assembly. He shall have power to remit fines and penalties in such cases, and under such rules and regulations, as may be prescribed by law, and except when the prosecution has been carried on by the House of Delegates, to grant reprieves and pardons after conviction; to remove political disabilities consequent upon conviction for offences committed prior or subsequent to the adoption of this Constitution, and to commute capital punishment; but he shall communicate to the General Assembly, at each session, particulars of every case of fine or penalty remitted, of reprieve or pardon granted, and of punishment commuted, with his reasons for remitting, granting, or commuting the same.

SEC. 74. The Governor may require information in writing, under oath, from the officers of the executive department and superintendents of state institutions upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices and institutions; and he may inspect at any time their official books, accounts and vouchers, and ascertain the condition of the public funds in their charge, and in that connection may employ accountants. He may require the opinion in writing of the Attorney-General upon any question of law affecting the official duties of the Governor.

SEC. 75. Commissions and grants shall run in the name of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and be attested by the Governor, with the seal of the Commonwealth annexed.

SEC. 76. Every bill which shall have passed the Senate and House of Delegates, shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the Governor. If he approve, he shall sign it; but, if not, he may return it with his objections to the house in which it originated, which shall enter the objections at large on its journal and proceed to reconsider the same. If, after such consideration, two- thirds of the members present, which two-thirds shall include a majority of the members elected to that house, shall agree to pass the bill it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of all the members present, which two- thirds shall include a majority of the members elected to that house, it shall become a law, notwithstanding the objections. The Governor shall have the power to veto any particular item or items of an appropriation bill, but the veto shall not affect the item or items to which he does not object. The item or items objected to shall not take effect except in the manner heretofore provided in this section as to bills returned to the General Assembly without his approval. If he approve the general purpose of any bill, but disapprove any part or parts thereof, he may return it, with recommendations for its amendment, to the house in which it originated, whereupon the same proceedings shall be had in both houses upon the bill and his recommendations in relation to its amendment, as is above provided in relation to a bill which he shall have returned without his approval, and with his objections thereto: provided, that if after such reconsideration, both houses, by a vote of a majority of the members present in each, shall agree to amend the bill in accordance with his recommendations in relation thereto, or either house by such vote shall fail or refuse to so amend it, then, and in either case the bill shall be again sent to him, and he may act upon it as if it were then before him for the first time. But in all the cases above set forth the votes of both houses shall be determined by ayes and noes, and the names of the members voting for and against the bill, or item or items of an appropriation bill, shall be entered on the journal of each house. If any bill shall not be returned by the Governor within five days (Sunday 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 General Assembly shall, by final adjournment, prevent such return; in which case it shall be a law if approved by the Governor in the manner and to the extent above provided, within ten days after such adjournment, but not otherwise.

SEC. 77. A Lieutenant-Governor shall be elected at the same time and for the same term as the Governor, and his qualifications and the manner and ascertainment of his election, in all respects, shall be the same.

SEC. 78. In case of the removal of the Governor from office, or of his death, failure to qualify, resignation, removal from State, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of the office, the said office, with its compensation, shall devolve upon the Lieutenant-Governor; and the General Assembly shall provide by law for the discharge of the executive functions in other necessary cases.

SEC. 79. The Lieutenant-Governor shall be president of the Senate, but shall have no vote except in case of an equal division; and while acting as such, shall receive a compensation equal to that allowed to the Speaker of the House of Delegates.

SEC. 80. A Secretary of the Commonwealth shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time and for the same term as the Governor; and the fact of his election shall be ascertained as in the case of the Governor. He shall keep a daily record of the official acts of the Governor, which shall be signed by the Governor and attested by the Secretary, and, when required, he shall lay the same, and any papers, minutes and vouchers pertaining to his office, before either house of the General Assembly. He shall discharge such other duties as may be prescribed By law. All fees received by the Secretary of the Commonwealth shall be paid into the treasury monthly.

SEC. 81. A State Treasurer shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time and for the same term as the Governor; and the fact of his election shall be ascertained in the same manner. His powers and duties shall be prescribed by law.

SEC. 82. An Auditor of Public Accounts shall be elected by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly for the term of four years. His powers and duties shall be prescribed by law.

SEC. 83. The salary of each officer of the Executive Department, except in those cases where the salary is determined by this Constitution, shall be fixed by law; and the salary of no such officer shall be increased or diminished during the term for which he shall have been elected or appointed.

SEC. 84. The General Assembly shall provide by law for the establishment and maintenance of an efficient system of checks and balances between the officers at the seat of government entrusted with the collection, receipt, custody, or disbursement of the revenues of the State.

SEC. 85. All State officers, and their deputies, assistants or employees, charged with the collection, custody, handling or disbursement of public funds, shall be required to give bond for the faithful performance of such duties; the amount of such bond in each case, and the manner in which security shall be furnished, to be specified and regulated by law.

SEC. 86. The General Assembly shall have power to establish and maintain a Bureau of Labor and Statistics, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law.



ARTICLE VI.

JUDICIARY DEPARTMENT.

SEC. 87. The Judiciary Department shall consist of a Supreme Court of Appeals, circuit courts, city courts, and such other courts as are hereinafter authorized. The jurisdiction of these tribunals and the judges thereof, except so far as conferred by this Constitution, shall be regulated by law.

SEC. 88. The Supreme Court of Appeals shall consist of five judges, any three of whom may hold a court. It shall have original jurisdiction in cases of habeas corpus, mandamus, and prohibition; but in all other cases, in which it shall have jurisdiction, it shall have appellate jurisdiction only.

Subject to such reasonable rules, as may be prescribed by law, as to the course of appeal, the limitation as to time, the security required, if any, the granting or refusing of appeals, and the procedure therein, it shall, by virtue of this Constitution, have appellate jurisdiction in all cases involving the constitutionality of a law as being repugnant to the Constitution of this State or of the United States, or involving the life or liberty of any person; and it shall also have appellate jurisdiction in such other cases, within the limits hereinafter denned, as may be prescribed by law; but no appeal shall be allowed to the Commonwealth in any case involving the life or liberty of a person, except that an appeal by the Commonwealth may be allowed by law in any case involving the violation of a law relating to the state revenue. No bond shall be required of any accused person as a condition of appeal, but a supersedeas bond may be required where the only punishment imposed in the court below is a fine.

The court shall not have jurisdiction in civil cases where the matter in controversy, exclusive of costs and of interest accrued since the judgment in the court below, is less in value or amount than three hundred dollars, except in controversies concerning the title to, or boundaries of land, the condemnation of property, the probate of a will, the appointment or qualification of a personal representative, guardian, committee, or curator, or concerning a mill, roadway, ferry, or landing, or the right of the State, county, or municipal corporation, to levy tolls or taxes, or involving the construction of any statute, ordinance or county proceeding imposing taxes; and, except in cases of habeas corpus, mandamus, and prohibition, the constitutionality of a law, or some other matter not merely pecuniary. After the year nineteen hundred and ten the General Assembly may change the jurisdiction of the court in matters merely pecuniary. The assent of at least three of the judges shall be required for the court to determine that any law is, or is not, repugnant to the Constitution of this State or of the United States; and if, in a case involving the constitutionality of any such law, not more than two of the judges sitting agree in opinion on the constitutional question involved, and the case cannot be determined, without passing on such question, no decision shall be rendered therein, but the case shall be reheard by a full court; and in no case where the jurisdiction of the court depends solely upon the fact that the constitutionality of a law is involved, shall the court decide the ease upon its merits, unless the contention of the appellant upon the constitutional question be sustained. Whenever the requisite majority of the judges sitting are unable to agree upon a decision, the case shall be reheard by a full bench, and any vacancy caused by any one or more of the judges being unable, unwilling, or disqualified to sit, shall be temporarily filled in a manner to be prescribed by law.

SEC. 89. The General Assembly may, from time to time, provide for a Special Court of Appeals to try any cases on the docket of the Supreme Court of Appeals in respect to which a majority of the judges are so situated as to make it improper for them to sit; and also to try any cases on said docket which cannot be disposed of with convenient dispatch. The said special court shall be composed of not less than three nor more than five of the judges of the circuit courts and city courts of record in cities of the first class, or of the judges of either of said courts, or of any of the judges of said courts together with one or more of the judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals.

SEC. 90. When a judgment or decree is reversed or affirmed by the Supreme Court of Appeals the reasons therefor shall be stated in writing and preserved with the record of the case.

SEC. 91. The judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals shall be chosen by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly. They shall, when chosen, have held a judicial station in the United States, or shall have practiced law in this or some other state for five years. At the first election under this Constitution, the General Assembly shall elect the judges for terms of four, six, eight, ten, and twelve years respectively; and thereafter they shall be elected for terms of twelve years.

SEC. 92. The officers of the Supreme Court of Appeals shall be appointed by the court or by the judges in vacation. Their duties, compensation, and tenure of office shall be prescribed by law.

SEC. 93. The Supreme Court of Appeals shall hold its sessions at two or more places in the State, to be fixed by law.

SEC. 94. The State shall be divided into twenty-four judicial circuits, as follows:

The counties of Norfolk, Princess Anne, and the city of Portsmouth, shall constitute the first circuit.

The counties of Nansemond, Southampton, Isle of Wight, and the city of Norfolk, shall constitute the second circuit.

The counties of Prince George, Surry, Sussex, Greenesville, and Brunswick, shall constitute the third circuit.

The counties of Chesterfield, Powhatan, Dinwiddie, Nottoway, and Amelia, and the city of Petersburg, shall constitute the fourth circuit.

The counties of Prince Edward, Cumberland, Buckingham, Appomattox, and Charlotte, shall constitute the fifth circuit.

The counties of Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Halifax, Campbell, and the city of Lynchburg, shall constitute the sixth circuit.

The counties of Pittsylvania, Franklin, Henry, and Patrick, and the city of Danville, shall constitute the seventh circuit.

The counties of Amherst, Nelson, Albemarle, Fluvanna, and Coochland, shall constitute the eighth circuit.

The counties of Rappahannock, Culpeper, Madison, Greene, Orange, and Louisa, shall constitute the ninth circuit.

The county of Henrico and the city of Richmond, shall constitute the tenth circuit.

The counties of Accomac, Northampton, Elizabeth City, and the city of Newport News, shall constitute the eleventh circuit.

The counties of Richmond, Northumberland, Westmoreland, Lancaster, and Essex, shall constitute the twelfth circuit.

The counties of Gloucester, Mathews, King and Queen, King William, and Middlesex, shall constitute the thirteenth circuit.

The counties of New Kent, Charles City, York, Warwick, James City, and the city of Williamsburg, shall constitute the fourteenth circuit.

The counties of King George, Stafford, Spotsylvania, Caroline, and Hanover, shall constitute the fifteenth circuit.

The counties of Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William, Fairfax, and Alexandria, and the city of Alexandria, shall constitute the sixteenth circuit.

The counties of Frederick, Clarke, Warren, Shenandoah, and Page, shall constitute the seventeenth circuit.

The counties of Rockingham, Augusta, and Rockbridge, shall constitute the eighteenth circuit.

The counties of Highland, Bath, Alleghany, Craig, and Botecourt, shall constitute the nineteenth circuit.

The counties of Bedford, Roanoke, Montgomery, and Floyd, and the city of Roanoke, shall constitute the twentieth circuit.

The counties of Pulaski, Carroll, Wythe, and Grayson, shall constitute the twenty-first circuit.

The counties of Bland, Tazewell, Giles, and Buchanan, shall constitute the twenty-second circuit.

The counties of Washington, Russell, and Smyth, shall constitute the twenty-third circuit.

The counties of Scott, Lee, Wise, and Dickenson, shall constitute the twenty-fourth circuit.

SEC. 95. After the first day of January, nineteen hundred and six, as the public interest requires, the General Assembly may rearrange the said circuits and increase or diminish the number thereof. But no new circuit shall be created containing, by the last United States census or other census provided by law, less than forty thousand inhabitants, nor when the effect of creating it will be to reduce the number of inhabitants in any existing circuit below forty thousand according to such census.

SEC. 96. For each circuit a judge shall be chosen by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly. He shall when chosen, possess the same qualifications as judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals, and during his continuance in office shall reside in the circuit of which he is judge. At the first election under this Constitution, the General Assembly shall elect, as nearly as practicable, one fourth of the entire number of judges for terms of two years, one fourth for four years, one fourth for six years, and the remaining fourth for eight years, respectively, and thereafter they shall be elected for terms of eight years.

SEC 97 The number of terms of the circuit courts to be held for each county and city, shall be prescribed by law. But no separate circuit court shall be held for any city of the second class, until the city shall abolish its existing city court. The judge of one circuit may be required or authorized to hold court in any other circuit or city.

SEC 98 For the purposes of a judicial system, the cities of the State shall be divided into two classes. All cities shall belong to the first class which contain, as shown by the last United States census or other census provided by law, ten thousand inhabitants or more, and all cities shall belong to the second class which contain, as thus shown, less than ten thousand inhabitants. In each city of the first class, there shall be, in addition to the circuit court, a corporation court. In any city containing thirty thousand inhabitants or more, the General Assembly may provide for such additional courts as the public interest may require, and in every such city the city courts, as they now exist, shall continue until otherwise provided by law. In every city of the second class, the corporation or hustings court existing, at the time this Constitution goes into effect, shall continue hereafter under the name of the corporation court of such city, but it may be abolished by a vote of a majority of the qualified electors of such city, at an election held for the purpose, and whenever the office of judge of a corporation or hustings court of a city of the second class, whose salary is less than eight hundred dollars, shall become and remain vacant for ninety days consecutively, such court shall thereby cease to exist. In case of the abolition of the corporation or hustings court of any city of the second class, such city shall thereupon come in every respect within the jurisdiction of the circuit court of the county wherein it is situated, until otherwise provided by law, and the records of such corporation or hustings court shall thereupon become a part of the records of such circuit court, and be transferred thereto, and remain therein until otherwise provided by law, and during the existence of the corporation or hustings court, the circuit court of the county in which such city is situated, shall have concurrent jurisdiction with said corporation or hustings court in all actions at law and suits in equity.

SEC 99 For each city court of record a judge shall be chosen by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly. He shall, when chosen, possess the same qualifications as judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals, and during his continuance in office shall reside within the jurisdiction of the court over which he presides, but the judge of the corporation court of any corporation having a city charter, and less than five thousand inhabitants, may reside outside its corporate limits; and the same person may be judge of such corporation court and judge of the corporation court of some other city having less than ten thousand inhabitants. At the first election of said judges under this Constitution, the General Assembly shall elect, as nearly as practicable, one-fourth of the entire number for terms of two years, one-fourth for four years, one-fourth for six years, and the remaining fourth for eight years; and thereafter they shall be elected for terms of eight years. The judges of city courts in cities of the first class may be required or authorized to hold the circuit courts of any county and the circuit courts of any city.

SEC. 100. The General Assembly shall have power to establish such court or courts of land registration as it may deem proper for the administration of any law it may adopt for the purpose of the settlement, registration, transfer, or assurance of titles to land in the State, or any part thereof.

SEC. 101. The General Assembly shall have power to confer upon the clerks of the several circuit courts jurisdiction, to be exercised in the manner and under the regulations to be prescribed by law, in the matter of the admission of wills to probate, and of the appointment and qualification of guardians, personal representatives, curators, appraisers, and committees of the estates of persons who have been adjudged insane or convicted of felony, and in the matter of the substitution of trustees.

SEC. 102. All the judges shall be commissioned by the Governor. They shall receive such salaries and allowances as may be determined by law within the limitations fixed by this Constitution, the amount of which shall not be increased or diminished during their terms of office. Their terms of office shall commence on the first day of February next following their election, and whenever a vacancy occurs in the office of judge, his successor shall be elected for the unexpired term.

SEC. 103. The salaries of the judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals shall be not less than four thousand dollars per annum, and shall be paid by the State.

The salary of the judge of each circuit court shall be not less than two thousand dollars per annum, one-half of which shall be paid by the State, the other half by the counties and cities composing the circuit, according to their respective population; except that of the salary of the judge of the circuit court of the city of Richmond, the State shall pay the proportion which would otherwise fall to the city of Richmond. The salary of a judge of a city court in a city of the first class shall be not less than two thousand dollars per annum, one-half of which shall be paid by the State, the other half by the city. The whole of the aforesaid salaries of said judges shall be paid out of the state treasury, the State to be reimbursed by the respective counties and cities. Any city may, by an ordinance, increase the salaries of its city or circuit judges, or any one or more of them as it may deem proper, and the increase shall be paid wholly by the city, but shall not be enlarged or diminished during the term of office of the judge. Each city containing less than ten thousand inhabitants shall pay the salary of the judge of its corporation or hustings court.

SEC. 104. Judges may be removed from office for cause, by a concurrent vote of both houses of the General Assembly; but a majority of all the members elected to each house must concur in such vote, and the cause of removal shall be entered on the journal of each house. The judge against whom the General Assembly may be about to proceed shall have notice thereof, accompanied by a copy of the causes alleged for his removal, at least twenty days before the day on which either house of the General Assembly shall act thereon.

SEC. 105. No judge of the Supreme Court of Appeals, of the circuit court, or of any city court of record shall practice law, within or without this State, nor shall he hold any other office of public-trust during his continuance in office; except that the judge of a corporation or hustings court in a city of the second class, may hold the office of commissioner in chancery of the circuit court for the county in which the city is located.

SEC. 106. Writs shall run in the name of the "Commonwealth of Virginia," and be attested by the clerks of the several courts. Indictments shall conclude "against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth."

SEC. 107. An Attorney-General shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time and for the same term as the Governor; and the fact of his election shall be ascertained in the same manner. He shall be commissioned by the Governor, perform such duties and receive such compensation as may be prescribed by law, and shall be removable in the manner prescribed for the removal of judges.

SEC 108. The General Assembly shall provide for the appointment or election and for the jurisdiction of such justices of the peace as the public interest may require.

SEC. 109. The General Assembly shall provide by whom, and in what manner, applications for bail shall be heard and determined.



ARTICLE VII.

ORGANIZATION AND GOVERNMENT OF COUNTIES.

SEC. 110. There shall be elected by the qualified voters of each county, one county treasurer,—who shall not be elected or serve for more than two consecutive terms, nor act as deputy of his immediate successor; one sheriff, one attorney for the Commonwealth, and one county clerk, who shall be the clerk of the circuit court. There shall be elected or appointed, for four years, as the General Assembly may provide commissioners of the revenue, for each county, the number, duties and compensation of whom shall be prescribed by law; but should such commissioners of the revenue be chosen by election by the people then they shall be ineligibile for re-election to the office for the next succeeding term.

There shall be appointed for each county, in such manner as may be provided by law, one superintendent of the poor, and one county surveyor.

SEC. 111. The magisterial districts shall, until changed by law, remain as now constituted: provided, that hereafter no additional districts shall be made containing less than thirty square miles. In each district there shall be elected by the qualified voters thereof, one supervisor. The supervisors of the districts shall constitute the board of supervisors of the county, which shall meet at stated periods and at other times as often as may be necessary, lay the county and district levies, pass upon all claims against the county, subject to such appeal as may be provided by law, and perform such duties as may be required by law.

SEC. 112. All regular elections for county and district officers shall be held on Tuesday after the first Monday in November, and all of said officers shall enter upon the duties of their offices on the first day of January next succeeding their election, and shall hold their respective offices for the term of four years, except that the county clerk shall hold office for eight years; provided that the term of the clerks first elected under this Constitution shall begin on the first of February, nineteen hundred and four, and end on the first of January, nineteen hundred and twelve.

SEC. 113. No person shall at the same time hold more than one of the offices mentioned in this article. Any officer required by law to give bond may be required to give additional security thereon, or to execute a new bond, and in default of so doing his office shall be declared vacant.

SEC. 114, Counties shall not be made responsible for the acts of the sheriffs.

SEC. 115. The General Assembly shall provide for the examination of the books, accounts and settlements of county and city officers who are charged with the collection and disbursement of public funds.



ARTICLE VIII.

ORGANIZATION AND GOVERNMENT OF CITIES AND TOWNS.

SEC. 116. As used in this article the words "incorporated communities" shall be construed to relate only to cities and towns. All incorporated communities, having within defined boundaries a population of five thousand or more, shall be known as cities; and all incorporated communities having within defined boundaries a population of less than five thousand, shall be known as towns. In determining the population of such cities and towns the General Assembly shall be governed by the last United States census, or such other enumeration as may be made by authority of the General Assembly; but nothing in this section shall be construed to repeal the charter of any incorporated community of less than five thousand inhabitants having a city charter at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, or to prevent the abolition by such incorporated communities of the corporation or hustings court thereof.

SEC. 117. General laws for the organization and government of cities and towns shall be enacted by the General Assembly, and no special act shall be passed in relation thereto, except in the manner provided in Article Four of this Constitution, and then only by a recorded vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house. But each of the cities and towns of the State having at the time of the adoption of this Constitution a municipal charter may retain the same, except so far as it shall be repealed or amended by the General Assembly: provided, that every such charter is hereby amended so as to conform to all the provisions, restrictions, limitations and powers set forth in this article, or otherwise provided in this Constitution.

SEC. 118. In each city which has a court in whose office deeds are admitted to record, there shall be elected for a term of eight years by the qualified voters of such city a clerk of said court, who shall perform such other duties as may be required by law.

There shall be elected in like manner and for a like term all such additional clerks of courts for cities as the General Assembly may prescribe, or as are now authorized by law, so long as such courts shall continue in existence. But in no city of less than thirty thousand inhabitants shall there be more than one clerk of the court, who shall be clerk of all the courts of record in such city.

SEC. 119. In every city, so long as it has a corporation court, or a separate circuit court, there shall be elected for a term of four years by the qualified voters of such city, one attorney for the Commonwealth, who shall also, in those cities having a separate circuit court, be the attorney for the Commonwealth, for such circuit court.

In every city there shall be elected, or appointed, for a term of four years, in a manner to be provided by law, one commissioner of revenue, whose duties and compensation shall be prescribed by law; but should he be elected by the people, he shall be ineligible for reelection to the office for the next succeeding term.

SEC. 120. In every city there shall be elected by the qualified voters thereof one city treasurer, for a term of four years, but he shall not be eligible for more than two consecutive terms, nor act as deputy for his immediate successor; one city sergeant, for a term of four years, whose duties shall be prescribed by law; and, a mayor, for a term of four years, who shall be the chief executive officer of such city. All city and town officers, whose election or appointment is not provided for by this Constitution, shall be elected by the electors of such cities and towns, or of some division thereof, or appointed by such authorities thereof as the General Assembly shall designate.

The mayor shall see that the duties of the various city officers, members of the police and fire departments, whether elected or appointed, in and for such city, are faithfully performed. He shall have power to investigate their acts, have access to all books and documents in their offices, and may examine them and their subordinates on oath. The evidence given by persons so examined shall not be used against them in any criminal proceedings. He shall also have power to suspend such officers and the members of the police and fire departments, and to remove such officers, and also such members of said departments when authorized by the General Assembly, for misconduct in office or neglect of duty, to be specified in the order of suspension or removal; but no such removal shall be made without reasonable notice to the officer complained of, and an opportunity afforded him to be heard in person, or by counsel, and to present testimony in his defense. From such order of suspension or removal, the city officer so suspended or removed shall have an appeal of right to the corporation court, or, if there be no such court, to the circuit court of such city, in which court the case shall be heard de novo by the judge thereof, whose decision shall be final. He shall have all other powers and duties which may be conferred and imposed upon him by general laws.

SEC. 121. There shall be in every city a council, composed of two branches having a different number of members, whose powers and terms of office shall be prescribed by law, and whose members shall be elected by the qualified voters of such city, in the manner prescribed by law, but so as to give as far as practicable, to each ward of such city, equal representation in each branch of said council in proportion to the population of such ward; but in cities of under ten thousand population the General Assembly may permit the council to consist of one branch. No member of the council shall be eligible during his tenure of office as such member, or for one year thereafter, to any office to be filled by the council by election or appointment. The council of every city may, in a manner prescribed by law, increase or diminish the number, and change the boundaries, of the wards thereof, and shall, in the year nineteen hundred and three, and in every tenth year thereafter, and also whenever the boundaries of such wards are changed, re-apportion the representation in the council among the wards in a manner prescribed by law; and whenever the council of any such city shall fail to perform the duty so prescribed, a mandamus shall lie on behalf of any citizen thereof to compel its performance.

SEC. 122. The mayors and councils of cities shall be elected on the second Tuesday in June, and their terms of office shall begin on the first day of September succeeding. All other elective officers, provided for by this article, or hereafter authorized by law, shall be elected on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November, and their terms of office shall begin on the first day of January succeeding, except that the terms of office of clerks of the city courts shall begin coincidently with that of the judges of said courts: provided, that the General Assembly may change the time of election of all or any of the said officers, except that the election and the beginning of the terms of mayors and councils of cities shall not be made by the General Assembly to occur at the same time with the election and beginning of the terms of office of the other elective officers provided for by this Constitution.

SEC. 123. Every ordinance, or resolution having the effect of an ordinance, shall, before it becomes operative, be presented to the mayor. If he approve he shall sign it, but if not, if the council consist of two branches, he may return it, with his objections in writing, to the clerk, or other recording officer, of that branch in which it originated; which branch shall enter the objections at length on its journal and proceed to reconsider it. If after such consideration two thirds of all the members elected thereto shall agree to pass the ordinance or resolution it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other branch, by which it shall likewise be considered, and if approved by two thirds of all the members elected thereto, it shall become operative notwithstanding the objections of the mayor. But in all such cases the votes of both branches of the council shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the members voting for and against the ordinance or resolution shall be entered on the journal of each branch. If the council consist of a single branch, the mayor's objections in wilting to any ordinance, or resolution having the effect of an ordinance, shall be returned to the clerk, or other recording officer of the council, and be entered at length on its journal, whereupon the council shall proceed to reconsider the same. Upon such consideration the vote shall be taken in the same manner as where the council consists of two branches, and if the ordinance or resolution be approved by two thirds of all the members elected to the council, it shall become operative notwithstanding the objections of the mayor. If any ordnance or resolution shall not be returned by the major within five days (Sunday excepted), after it shall have been presented to him, it shall become operative in like manner as if he had signed it, unless his term of office, or that of the council, shall expire within said five days.

The mayor shall have the power to veto any particular item or items of an appropriation, ordnance or resolution, but the veto shall not affect any item or items to which he does not object. The item or items objected to shall not take effect except in the manner provided in this section as to ordnances or resolutions not approved by the mayor. No ordinance or resolution appropriating money exceeding the sum of one hundred dollars, imposing taxes, or authorizing the borrowing of money, shall be passed, except by a recorded affirmative vote of a majority of all the members elected to the council or to each branch thereof where there are two, and in case of the veto by the mayor of such ordnance or resolution, it shall require a recorded affirmative vote of two thirds of all the members elected to the council, or to each branch thereof where there are two, to pass the same over such veto in the manner provided in this section. Nothing contained in this section shall operate to repeal or amend any provision in any existing city charter requiring a two thirds vote for the passage of any ordinance as to the appropriation of money, imposing taxes or authorizing the borrowing of money.

SEC. 124. No street, railway, gas, water, steam, or electric heating, electric light or power, cold storage, compressed air, viaduct, conduct telephone, or bridge, company, nor any corporation, association, person or partnership, engaged in these or like enterprises, shall be permitted to use the streets, alleys, or public grounds of a city or town without the previous consent of the corporate authorities of such city or town.

SEC. 125. The rights of no city or town in and to its water front, wharf property, public landings, wharves, docks, streets, avenues, parks, budges, and other public places, and its gas, water, and electric works shall be sold except by an ordinance or resolution passed by a recorded affirmative vote of three fourths of all the members elected to the council, or to each branch thereof where there are two, and under such other restrictions as may be imposed by law, and in case of the veto by the mayor of such an ordinance or resolution, it shall require a recorded affirmative vote of three fourths of all the members elected to the council, or to each branch thereof—where there are two, had in the manner heretofore provided for in this article, to pass the same over the veto. So franchise, lease or light of any kind to use any such public property or any other public property or easement of any description, in a manner not permitted to the general public, shall be granted for a longer period than thirty years. Before planting any such franchise or privilege for a term of years, except for a trunk railway, the municipality shall first, after due advertisement, reserve bids therefor publicly, in such manner as may be provided by law, and shall then act as may be required by law. Such grant, and any contract in pursuance thereof, may provide that upon the termination of the grant the plant as well as the property, if any, of the grantee in the streets, avenues, and other public places shall thereupon, without compensation to the grantee, or upon the payment of a fair valuation therefor, be and become the property of the said city or town, but the grantee shall be entitled to no payment by reason of the value of the franchise, and any such plant or property acquired by a city or town may be sold or leased, or, if authorized by law, maintained, controlled and operated, by such city or town. Every such grant shall specify the mode of determining any valuation therein provided for, and shall make adequate provision by way of forfeiture of the grant, or otherwise, to secure efficiency of public service at reasonable rates, and the maintenance of the property in good order throughout the term of the grant. Nothing herein contained shall be construed as preventing the General Assembly from prescribing additional restrictions on the powers of cities and towns in granting franchises or in selling or leasing any of their property, or as repealing any additional restriction now required in relation thereto in any existing municipal charter.

SEC. 126. The General Assembly shall provide by general laws for the extension and the contraction, from time to time, of the corporate limits of cities and towns, and no special act for such purpose shall be valid.

SEC. 127. No city or town shall issue any bonds or other interest bearing obligations for any purpose, or in any manner, to an amount which, including existing indebtedness, shall, at any time, exceed eighteen per centum of the assessed valuation of the real estate in the city or town subject to taxation, as shown by the last preceding assessment for taxes provided, however that nothing above contained in this section shall apply to those cities and towns whose charters existing at the adoption of this Constitution authorize a larger percentage of indebtedness than is authorized by this section and provided further, that in determining the limitation of the power of a city or town to incur indebtedness there shall not be included the following classes of indebtedness

(a.) Certificates of indebtedness, revenue bonds or other obligations issued in anticipation of the collection of the revenue of such city or town for the then current year; provided that such certificates, bonds or other obligations mature within one year from the date of their issue, and be not past due, and do not exceed the revenue for such year;

(b.) Bonds authorized by an ordinance enacted in accordance with section One Hundred and Twenty-three, and approved by the affirmative vote of the majority of the qualified voters of the city or town voting upon the question of their issuance, at the general election next succeeding the enactment of the ordinance, or at a special election held for that purpose, for a supply of water or other specific undertaking from which the city or town may derive a revenue; but from and after a period to be determined by the council, not exceeding five years from the date of such election, whenever and for so long as such undertaking fails to produce sufficient revenue to pay for cost of operation and administration (including interest on bonds issued therefor, and the cost of insurance against loss by injury to persons or property), and an annual amount to be covered into a sinking fund sufficient to pay, at or before maturity, all bonds issued on account of said undertaking, all such bonds outstanding shall be included in determining the limitation of the power to incur indebtedness, unless the principal and interest thereof be made payable exclusively from the receipts of the undertaking.

SEC. 128. In cities and towns the assessment of real estate and personal property for the purpose of muicipal taxation, shall be the same as the assessment thereof for the purpose of state taxation, whenever there shall be a state assessment of such property.



ARTICLE IX.

EDUCATION AND PUBLIC INSTRUCTION.

SEC. 129. The General Assembly shall establish and maintain an efficient system of public free schools throughout the State.

SEC. 130. The general supervision of the school system shall be vested in a State Board of Education, composed of the Governor, Attorney-General, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and three experienced educators to be elected quadrennially by the Senate, from a list of eligibles, consisting of one from each of the faculties, and nominated by the respective boards of visitors or trustees, of the University of Virginia, the Virginia Military Institute, the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, the State Female Normal School at Farmville, the School for the Deaf and Blind, and also of the College of William and Mary, so long as the State continue its annual appropriation to the last named institution.

The board thus constituted shall select and associate with itself two division superintendents of schools, one from a county and the other from a city, who shall hold office for two years, and whose powers and duties shall be identical with those of other members, except that they shall not participate in the appointment of any public school official.

Any vacancy occurring during the term of any member of the board shall be filled for the unexpired term by said board.

SEC. 131. The Superintendent of Public Instruction, who shall be an experienced educator, shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time and for the same term as the Governor. Any vacancy in said office shall be filled for the unexpired term by the said board.

His duties shall be prescribed by the State Board of Education, of which he shall be ex-officio president; and his compensation shall be fixed by law.

SEC. 132. The duties and powers of the State Board of Education shall be as follows:

First. It may, in its discretion, divide the State into appropriate school divisions, comprising not less than one county or city each, but no county or city shall be divided in the formation of such divisions. It shall, subject to the confirmation of the Senate, appoint, for each of such divisions, one superintendent of schools, who shall hold office for four years, and shall prescribe his duties, and may remove him for cause and upon notice.

Second. It shall have, regulated by law, the management and investment of the school fund.

Third. It shall have authority to make all needful rules and regulations for the management and conduct of the schools, which, when published and distributed, shall have the force and effect of law, subject to the authority of the General Assembly to revise, amend, or repeal the same.

Fourth. It shall select text books and educational appliances for vise in the schools of the State, exercising such discretion as it may see fit in the selection of books suitable for the schools in the cities and counties respectively.