scribe qualifications for the practice of law, (3) raised the residence suffrage qualifications from 6 months to one year, (4) provided for the election of State and county officers for terms of four years, (5) removed all limitation on legislative sessions, (6) and provided for an increase in the membership of the Supreme Court. Twelve amendments were proposed at the 57th session, including those pending from the previous session. None of the pending amendments was adopted. Four amendments were adopted which provided for: (1) the taxation of the net or gross earnings of corporations, (2) the election of State and county officers for terms of four years, and (3) extended the length of regular sessions to 100 days.

415. Legality of Pending Amendments (January 19, 1891).

At the beginning of the 57th session serious doubts existed as to whether the pending amendments had been legally adopted. Accordingly, on January 19, on motion of Mr. Jefferson H. Claypool, the following resolution of inquiry was adopted by the House, and the Speaker appointed Messrs. William S. Oppenheim, James E. McCullough and Jefferson H. Claypool as members of the committee.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 201.]

House resolution No. 44.

WHEREAS, At the fifty-sixth session of the General Assembly of the State of Indiana, certain amendments of the Constitution of the State of Indiana were proposed and adopted by the Senate and House; therefore,

Be it Resolved, That the Speaker of this House appoint a committee of three to inquire into and see that said amendments are properly presented to this House at an early day for consideration.

416. Report of Committee on Constitutional Amendments (March 4, 1891).

The special committee made a divided report on March 4. The majority report was signed by Messrs. John T. Beasley and Oppenheim. It expressed the conviction that eight of the pending amendments were properly pending, including: (1) the election of county officers for terms of four years (Resolution No. 14); (2) the election of a clerk of the Supreme Court for a term of four years (Resolution No. 15); (3) the election of State officers for terms of four years (Resolution No. 16); (4) the election of a State superintendent of public instruction for a term of four years (Resolution No. 17); (5) fixing the membership of the Supreme Court (Resolution No. 23); (6) admitting negroes to the State militia (Resolution No. 9); (7) unlimited sessions of the General Assembly (Resolution No. 21); (8) authorizing the General Assembly to prescribe the qualifications for the practice of law (Resolution No. 11). They found that the remaining amendment, relative to the residential qualifications for suffrage, was not properly pending.

4. Beasley was not named as a member of the original committee, but was evidently named later.

MAJORITY REPORT OF PENDING AMENDMENTS

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1255.]

Your special committee of three, to whom was referred the matter of investigation of the status of certain proposed amendments to the Constitution, having had said matter under investigation, a majority of your committee beg leave to submit the following report:

We are of the opinion that the said proposed amendments, numbered 14, 15, 16, 17, 23, 9, 21, 11, respectively, are duly pending before this General Assembly, to be adopted or otherwise disposed of as this body may determine.

As to the other proposed amendments, we find that they are not duly pending for the reason that they were not properly entered on the Journals of the House and Senate with the ayes and noes therein at the last session of the General Assembly.

JOHN T. BEASLEY,
W. S. OPPENHEIM.

MINORITY REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON PENDING AMENDMENTS.

The minority report was signed by Mr. Jefferson H. Claypool. He thought there was grave doubt whether the amendments had been legally adopted and he recommended that if they were deemed worthy of adoption they be introduced de novo.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1256.]

The undersigned, a member of your special committee, appointed in pursuance to a resolution introduced by Mr. Claypool, to investigate and report to the House as to the present legal status of the proposed constitutional amendments, begs leave herewith to present the following minority report:

It appears upon investigation that neither the proposed amendments to the Constitution, nor the resolutions embodying the same, were signed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate, that said amendments were not properly enrolled or properly filed with the Secretary of State, that said amendments were not properly referred to the present General Assembly, and that in the opinion of the undersigned the same are not legally pending before this body.

At least there is very grave doubt that if said proposed amendments were passed by this General Assembly and submitted to a vote of the people, that they would ever be effective for the rea

sons above specified. The expense of an election under the present law is very great, and it seems to me that it would be very unwise to incur such expense when there is good reason to believe that such expense might be wholly useless. Again, if said proposed amendments were passed and decided unconstitutional, much time would be lost.

For these reasons I would recommend that said proposed amendments, if deemed worthy of adoption, be introduced de novo in the present General Assembly. CLAYPOOL.

417. Rejection of Pending Amendments (March 9, 1891).

The committee reports were made the special order for the following day, but there is no record that the matter was taken up until March 9, when the committee presented a unanimous report expressing doubt as to whether the amendments were properly pending and recommending that they be voted down and that four other proposed amendments, agreed to by the committee, be adopted. The report of the committee was concurred in and House Joint Resolutions Nos. 9, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21 and 23, embodying the amendments proposed by the 56th General Assembly were taken up . seriatum and voted down.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1461.]

Your special committee, to whom was referred the subject of the pending proposed amendments to the Constitution, havehad the same under consideration, and they report that there is doubt as to whether said proposed amendments are properly pending before this General Assembly, and recommend that the same be voted down, and four other proposed amendments, prepared by the committee, be agreed to, and referred to the General Assembly to be chosen at the next election.

J. E. MCCULLOUGH,

Chairman.

ADMITTING NEGROES TO STATE MILITIA.

House joint resolution No. 9, designated as Amendment No. 7, was taken up for consideration and rejected by a vote of 1-74.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1461.]

House joint resolution No. 9, proposing an amendment to the Constitution, which was adopted by both branches of the General Assembly of 1889, was called up.

House joint resolution No. 9 proposing an amendment to Section 1 of Article 12 of the Constitution:

Resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring,

That the following amendment to the Constitution of the State of Indiana be and the same is hereby proposed, to-wit: Amend Section 1 of Article 12 to read as follows:

Section 1. The militia shall consist of all able-bodied male persons, between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years, except such as may be exempted by the laws of the United States, or of this State, and shall be organized, officered, armed, equipped and trained, in such a manner as may be provided by law.

Resolved, That in submitting this amendment to the electors to be voted upon, it shall be designated as Amendment No. 7.

LAWYERS AMENDMENT.

House joint resolution No. 11, designated as Amendment No. 9, was rejected by a vote of 1-74.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1463.]

House joint resolution No. 11, proposing an amendment to the Constitution, which was adopted by both branches of the Fifty-sixth General Assembly was called up.

House joint resolution No. 11 proposing amendment to Section 21 of Article 7 of the Constitution.

Resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring, That the following amendment to the Constitution of the State of Indiana be and the same is hereby proposed, to-wit: Amend Section 21 of Article 7 to read as follows:

Sec. 21. Every person of good moral character, being a voter, shall be entitled to admission to practice law in all courts of justice upon such conditions and terms as may be prescribed by law.

Resolved, That in submitting this amendment to the electors to be voted upon it shall be designated as Amendment No. 9.

REGISTRATION AND RESIDENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS OF ELECTORS. House joint resolution No. 13, designated as Amendment No. 2 was rejected by a vote of 1-74.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1464.]

House joint resolution No. 13, proposing an amendment to the constitution, which passed both branches of the Fifty-sixth General Assembly, was called up.

House joint resolution No. 13 proposing an amendment to Section 2 Article 2, of the Constitution:

Resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring: That the following Amendment to the Constitution of the State

of Indiana be, and the same is hereby proposed and agreed to, to-wit: Amend Section 2 of Article 2, the same being Section 84 of the Revised Statutes of 1881, to read:

In all elections, not otherwise provided for in this Constitution, every male citizen of the United States, of the age of twenty-one years and upwards, who shall have resided in the State during one year, and in the township sixty days, and in the ward, or precinct, thirty days immediately preceding such election, and every male of foreign birth of the age of twenty-one years and upward, who shall have resided in the United States one year, and shall have resided in the State during one year, and in the township sixty days, and in the ward, or precinct, thirty days immediately preceding such election, and shall have declared his intention to become a citizen of the United States, conformably to the laws of the United States, on the subject of naturalization, shall be entitled to vote in the township, or precinct, where he may reside, if he shall have been duly registered according to law.

Resolved, That in submitting this amendment to the electors of the State to be voted on, it shall be designated as Amendment No. 2.

UNIFORM FOUR-YEAR TERMS FOR COUNTY OFFICERS.

House joint resolution No. 14, designated as Amendment No. 1, was rejected by a vote of 1-74.

[House Journal, Fifty-seventh Session, 1465.]

House joint resolution No. 14, proposing an amendment to the Constitution, which was adopted by both branches of the 56th General Assembly was called up.

House joint resolution No. 14: A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 2 of Article 6 of the Constitution of the State of Indiana.

Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana, That the following amendment to the Constituton of the State of Indiana be and the same is hereby proposed and agreed to, towit:

Sec. 2. There shall be elected in each county, by the voters thereof, at the general election to be held in the year eighteen hundred and ninety-four, and every four years thereafter, a clerk of the circuit court, auditor, recorder, treasurer, sheriff, coroner and surveyor, who shall severally hold their offices for four years, commencing on the first Monday in January after their election, and no person shall be eligible to hold any of said offices, except that of surveyor, more than four years, or one term, in any period of eight