USA > Indiana > A history of Indiana from its exploration to 1850 > Part 38
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There appears to have been very little demand for a new convention for a long time after 1816. As one of the op- ponents of calling a convention said in 1847, "The people of Indiana are attached to their constitution. It is the work of their forefathers. Under it for thirty years they have enjoyed a degree of prosperity unsurpassed by any State in the Union."2
The cause for calling a constitutional convention among
1 Prof. C. B. Coleman in Indiana Magazine of History, VII, 41; Jacob Piatt Dunn, Ibid., VII, 100.
2 George W. Julian, in Indiana House of Representatives, Tri-weekly State Journal, Jan. 15, 1847.
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English speaking people is always found to be insistent and acting through considerable periods of time. The American people generally have not lightly called into activity such revolutionary bodies. There has always been some deep- seated dissatisfaction. There were several minor defects in the working of the State and local governments under the first constitution, but the chief ground of complaint was the working of the General Assembly. The State had been led by this body into a gigantic system of internal im- provements in which it had lost more than twelve million dollars. It became deeply involved in debt. Its bonds were hawked about the eastern markets as low as seventeen cents on the dollar. A gang of hungry office-holders had been and still were robbing it; and the General Assembly seemed unable or unwilling to shake them off. The annual meetings of the Assembly seemed to be an unnecessary ex- pense and the annual elections kept the people in a political turmoil. Moreover, the General Assembly was neglecting the affairs of the State and giving its time and attention to hundreds of petty private affairs. A reading of the titles of the special laws of any session will give one an idea of the petty jobbery that was carried on by means of special laws.
With all this dissatisfaction the demand for a conven- tion, if we are to take the votes on the subject as evidence, was not strong. There is scarcely any mention of the vote on the subject up till 1846. A referendum had, however, been taken in 1823, only seven years after the constitution went into effect.3 The vote was decisive against calling a convention. In 1828, four years later, the regular twelve year referendum was taken with a similar result.4 During the following twelve years there was little agitation on the subject. The General Assembly of 1845, however, took up the subject. There was a spirited demand by a few ener- getic members for a convention. They succeeded in pass-
3 Laws of Indiana, 1822, 121. Each voter was directed by this law to indicate on the bottom of his ballot before he handed it in. whether or not he favored calling a constitutional convention.
4 Laws of Indiana, 1827, 22.
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ing a law authorizing a referendum on the subject at the ensuing August election.5 This was six years earlier than the constitution demanded a referendum, but the friends of the movement urged with force that the people had an undeniable and inalienable right to call a constitutional convention whenever they pleased.
The result of this referendum vote was that out of a total of 126,133 votes cast at the State election there were 33,173 for a convention, and 28,843 opposed. A majority of all the voters had not expressed themselves on the subject.6
When the vote was reported to the General Assembly, it provoked a serious debate.7 It was generally agreed that the vote was not decisive; that it did not warrant the Gen- eral Assembly in calling the proposed convention, but many members favored submitting the question again to a popu- lar vote at the next August election. Other members op- posed all agitation on the subject as calculated to bring po- litical disquiet and unrest. The times, it was pointed out, were especially dangerous. The State was almost bankrupt, taxes were high, and times were hard. Of all times the present, it was urged, would be the worst to agitate a change in the fundamental law.8
5 Laws of Indiana, 1845, 97. This convention should have power to "alter, revise, or amend the constitution."
6 Tri-weekly State Journal, Jan. 15, 1847.
7 Tri-weekly State Journal, Jan. 13, and Jan. 15, 1847. The debate is given almost in full. Henry Secrest of Putnam county, John Yaryan, Cyrus L. Dunham of Washington and George W. Julian of Wayne, were the principal speakers.
8 The committee to which it was referred in the House favored a convention. The debates are given in the State Journal, Jan. 13, 1847. The minority, all Whigs, made an unfavorable report. This was written by John Dowling, a Whig editor of Terre Haute. The following edi- torial of the Indiana State Journal, Jan. 5, 1847, sums up the opposition or Whig argument: "A change in the fundamental law should not be made for trivial causes. It ought to be made only to abrogate some great wrong resulting from its provisions. Frequent changes impair the respect in which a constitution, to be valuable, ought to be held by the people. We hold that when a mode of changing the constitution is provided by the constitution itself that any other mode is wrong. It must be done by that mode. Any other course is revolution itself. Our constitution has such a provision. The present assembly nor the past has any right to call a convention or submit the question to a vote. The
CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1850 453
In spite of the efforts of a determined group of mem- bers, the question was not favored by the Assembly. It is noticeable that what might be called the professional politicians avoided taking sides in this discussion. The ref- erendum in 1846 was not mentioned in the leading papers, and evidently was not discussed on the stump. The gov- ernor in reporting the result of the vote in his annual mes- sage made no recommendation that might be construed into a position.
The demand for a convention, however, did not cease. The Democratic Party, in general, favored the proposition. The court practice, they said, was especially costly. Pro- bate courts and associate judges were popularly regarded as worse than useless-they were meddlesome. The jus- tices had once been the chief officers of the county, but since a board of commissioners had taken their duties, they had become petty politicians, valuable only to those who wished to bribe a court or corrupt a jury.
Many good citizens, regardless of party, also looked upon the appointing power of the governor as a source of much evil. They thought that such officers as the auditor, treasurer, and other State officers should be elected by the people rather than by the General Assembly. The recent attempt by the governor to barter nominations to the su- preme court for a seat in the United States Senate had given a concrete point to the general demand to limit the appointing power of the governors. By 1849 Governor Whitcomb, sure of his promotion to the United States Sen- ate, came out openly for a convention in his annual mes- sage. He no doubt put his finger on the weakest point in the government under the old constitution when he em- phasized the evil of private and local legislation. In the annual volumes of laws for the previous four or five ses- sions the local laws had outnumbered the general five or
vote at last August was not a warrant for a convention. It was less than half that polled for governor. This legislature clearly has no right to make provision for calling a convention. There is no demand. No part of it is oppressive. It is better than can be made now." Then comes the prosperity plea. It is a fine statement of the conservative argument against change.
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six to one. In the volume of 1849 there are 343 acts published as "Local Laws" and 273 as "General Laws," of the latter over 200 being strictly "local." The time of the whole session was consumed in political jockeying and log rolling.9 The annual volume of laws noted above contains 616 laws and thirty-seven joint resolutions.10
§ 89 ORGANIZING THE CONVENTION
THE General Assembly of 1848 took up the convention question and passed an act submitting the question of call- ing a constitutional convention to the voters.11 A large ma- jority of the votes cast at the ensuing August election were in favor of calling a convention.12 The following General Assembly by act approved January 18, 1850, ordered an election of delegates. The election was held at the same time and in all essential parts was the same as an election
9 Prof. James A. Woodburn in Indiana Magazine of History, X, 238. 10 One of these laws changed the name of Belsora Barsheba Ingle- wright to Belsora Barsheba Thompson. Another permitted Charity Ann Wise to sue for divorce in Marion county, instead of in her home coun- ty. The following editorial stated the Whig position: "The General Assembly will have to prepare for the Constitutional Convention. We hope an early day for an election of delegates and the meeting may be fixed. These members ought to be elected at the April election and meet in June. Let the result be voted on in October. No party consid- eration ought to hold in selecting delegates. If the election is held in August it will be partisan. We voted for a Constitutional Convention because we wanted the following changes: Biennial sessions; election of judges and all other offices; a general banking law; a homestead exemption law, fines to go to the school funds of the township. Most important of all, elections by the legislature are corrupt. The course of Governor Whitcomb ought to settle such elections forever."
11 Laws of Indiana, 1848, 36. The first bill introduced in the House and the fourth in the Senate were the convention bills. The records bear no evidence of the discussion, if any, that was had. The votes usually stood about 60 to 40 in the House. The only parts of the act that seem to have been debated related to the number and selection of the dele- gates. One facetious representative, in answer to the evident tenor of this discussion, moved that the House appoint each member a delegate. They finally did the nearest possible thing to this by making each As- sembly district a delegate district.
12 The vote stood 81,500 for and 57,418 against. The total vote cast for the candidates for governor were 147,232 (no report from Fayette). The affirmative majority for the convention was thus about 8,000.
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of members of the General Assembly. There were 150 del- egates chosen from the same districts as the members of the House and Senate, except in two unimportant dis- tricts.13
There was little interest in the campaign as far as elect- ing delegates was concerned. It was hoped by many to make the elections non-partisan, but such was not the case as a rule. It seems true, however, that the Whigs, being in a minority, took considerably less political interest in the election than the Democrats.
A caucus of the Whig members of the General Assembly declared in favor of a constitutional convention and espe- cially urged that the following changes be made in the con- stitution. All officers should be elected by popular vote; the General Assembly should be prohibited from borrow- ing money except for urgent necessities; the county sem- inary funds should be transferred to the fund for common schools ; the General Assembly should meet biennially; lo- cal legislation should be prohibited; the number of offices should be reduced and the establishment of new ones for- bidden; a homestead exemption should be provided; and more encouragement should be given to agriculture, min- ing, and manufacturing.14
In the county of Marion the Whigs offered to divide the ticket equally and make no contest, but the Democrats re- fused.15 In Jefferson county the Whigs compromised on a ticket of two Whigs and one Democrat. There were many other instances in which fusion tickets were elected with- out contest, but fusion was not general. Of the 50 dele- gates from senatorial districts 33 were Democrats and 17 were Whigs; of the 100 delegates from representative dis- tricts 64 were Democrats and 36 Whigs. Of the 50 State senators elected at the time 33 were Democrats and 17 Whigs; of the representatives 62 were Democrats and 38 Whigs. It will thus be seen that the political affiliations of
13 Laws of Indiana, 1849, 29.
14 Indiana Tri-weekly Journal, May 1, 1850.
15 Indiana State Journal, May 1, 1850.
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the members of the General Assembly and the constitu- tional convention were the same.
The delegates, 150 in number, assembled in the capitol building, October 7, 1850, and were organized by the sec- retary of State, Charles H. Test.16 They were a repre- sentative body of citizens. The best known men of the State at the time, however, were not present. From our distance, one would say that Robert Dale Owen, Alvin P. Hovey, Thomas A. Hendricks, W. S. Holman, Schuyler Col- fax and Horace P. Biddle were among its most distinguished members, but they were young and mostly without wide reputation at the time. The really noted men of the con- vention as they gathered together for the first time, were Thomas D. Walpole, Abel Pepper, Daniel Kelso, James G. Reed, David Kilgore, Ross Smiley, Michael G. Bright, Wil- liam M. Dunn, George W. Carr, David Wallace, Jacob Page Chapman, James Rariden and John I. Morrison. Seventy- five of the members had served in the General Assembly, thirteen of whom had sat in the last session. Twenty-five more made this the stepping stone to later legislative serv- ice. Fourteen saw service in the United States Congress ; two later became governors, while one was an ex-governor. There were seven well-known editors, three of whom came from Indianapolis. The great Whig lawyers of the State were noticeably absent. A widespread prejudice against educated men existed at the time. There were three grad- uates of the State University and perhaps as many more were graduates of other colleges.
§ 90 POLITICS OF THE CONVENTION
THE spirit of Jackson controlled the convention. Daniel Reed, a delegate of Monroe and a professor in the State Uni- versity, referred to Jackson as "a man of as remarkable sagacity as ever lived."17 As a consequence of this Jack- sonian influence it was attempted to strengthen democracy
16 Indiana Tri-weekly Journal, Jan. 3, 1850. A list of the delegates with their districts and party affiliations is given in the State Journal Jan. 4, 1851.
17 Debates and Proceedings of the Convention, 221.
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among the people by bringing the government nearer the voter. The secretary, treasurer, and auditor of State, for- merly appointed by the General Assembly, were made elective. To these were added the new office of superin- tendent of public instruction to be filled by popular elec- tion. Besides the above, the judges of the supreme and cir- cuit courts were made elective by the people for six-year terms.18 The prosecuting attorneys and the local jus- tices, all formerly appointed, were made elective, the former by the voters in the judicial circuits and the latter by the voters of the townships. In the county the voters were made the electors of a clerk of the circuit court, an auditor, recorder, treasurer, sheriff, coroner, and surveyor for each county. The General Assembly was given permission to establish other elective officers, a power which it has used quite liberally, if not frequently abused. Some of the offi- cers so elected were eligible only for one term, but the ma- jority were permitted to hold for two consecutive terms. In dealing with the suffrage elections and office-holding, the general principles of Jacksonian Democracy then prevalent were applied. In general the convention made the most liberal application of the principles of manhood suffrage and popular elections. It was accused in many places of playing politics by allowing unnaturalized citi- zens to vote after one year's residence.
In dealing with the negroes, both free and slave, the convention illustrated the confused political notions of the times. It reenacted the provisions of the Ordinance of 1787 with a bruskness that indicated an absolute majority of Abolitionists, yet the provisions refusing negroes the right to vote or even to settle in the State are, in spirit, directly contradictory to the above enactment. Not only these provisions, but the speeches of the members on the question of slavery, show the utmost diversity of opinion.
18 A significant provision in this connection was the section provid- ing that the State publish the decisions of the supreme court. Formerly these had been published privately by Judge Blackford. The charge was made that he neglected his official duties in preparing the opinions for the press and that he made too much money off the volumes.
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Not less than forty set speeches on slavery, few of them dealing with any question before the convention, were made by the members.19
In the article on the legislative department two impor- tant changes were made, both dictated by the overwhelming proof of experience. One change was the substitution of biennial for annual sessions of the General Assmbly. The other forbade the General Assembly making special or local laws.
In this field the granting of divorces by the General Assembly had occasioned most hostile criticism. For two years the churches had opposed this exercise of power by a legislative body. A former General Assembly had in- vested the State courts with power to try divorce bills, but the Assembly could not by its own act divest itself of the power and the abuse continued.
So far, heavy-footed experience guided the convention with a certain step. But when the subjects of education, benevolent institutions, corporations, and personal rights were reached, the members found trouble in coming to an agreement. In the field of education there was an effort made to give the convention a vision of its duty, but with- out success. The Constitution of 1816 is far more favor- able toward education than is that of 1850. The seminaries were destroyed and there was a strong sentiment favoring abolishing the State University, giving all funds to the public schools.
Likewise the new constitution shows little influence of the awakening of the people to their duty to the unfortunate members of society. The newly established schools for deaf and dumb, blind, and insane are specifically provided for; but the wide application of benevolence made by the State at present finds no warrant in fundamental law.
In the field of corporations, compromise was effected
19 During the session James Rariden introduced a resolution endors- ing the Compromise of 1850. This was done to break the alliance be- tween the Abolitionists and the Democrats in Indiana. It was a purely selfish political move and failed. It was condemned most severely by the State Journal, Feb. 22, 1851.
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between those on the one hand who favored a general law for all corporations and those who wished to reestablish a State bank, and those who opposed all corporate bodies. The article on "corporations" is a poor apology for the weary days of speechmaking on the kindred subjects of "debt," "banks," and "corporation control."
In the field of natural rights the fight was on the home- stead exemption and on woman's rights. No better evi- dence of the bigotry and the ignorance of the times exists than the attacks of the self-styled churchmen on Robert Dale Owen, who led the fight for women's rights. His vic- tory is a tribute, however, to the open-mindedness and na- tive honesty of the members.
Taken as a whole, it is not a great constitution. It suf- fers in comparison with the one it displaced. Its departures from that instrument in most cases are of very doubtful value. Its justification rests on the substitution of bi- ennial for annual Assemblies and abolishment of private and local legislation. On the other hand its critics rightly insist that the judiciary was weakened and a vast field opened for sinister partisan politics.
§ 91 THE NEW CONSTITUTION
THE convention adjourned Monday morning, February 10, 1851. It had been in session eighteen weeks. No event in the State's history had received as much attention and publicity. The daily papers, and many of the larger week- lies, published the proceedings entire from day to day or from week to week. Innumerable articles by citizens in praise or condemnation of the work appeared in the papers. Answers by the members in their own defense were equally plentiful. Editorials explained the work of the convention day by day and gave the editor's opinion of its value. It was an eighteen weeks' course in political science for the citizens of the State.
The completed constitution was read at the last session of the convention on the morning of February 10. It ap- peared at once on the front pages of the newspapers, many
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of which repeated its publication in the three or four suc- ceeding issues.20 The convention ordered 55,000 copies of the constitution, 50,000 in English and 5,000 in German, printed for distribution. These appeared early in March.21
The convention had suggested that the new constitu- tion be submitted to the people for ratification or rejection at the approaching August election. The General Assem- bly affirmed this suggestion February 14, 1851, and the governor's proclamation followed immediately, directing the election officers to carry the order into effect.22
There was no organized opposition to the ratification. Both parties favored the new constitution. At the ensuing election every county gave an affirmative majority but Ohio. Starke county cast a unanimous vote for the consti- tution. The total vote was 113,230 for, and 27,638 against ratification, a majority of 85,592 out of a total vote of 140,868. The vote for the exclusion of colored persons was substantially the same, being an affirmative vote of 113,828 out of a total vote of 135,701.23 Three counties, Lagrange, Randolph and Steuben, voted against negro exclusion. The total vote on the constitution was little short of that cast for congressmen. The total vote in the ten congressional districts was 148,529. That there was no partisan opposi- tion to the constitution is shown by this vote. The Demo- crats carried the State by a majority of only 9,469.24
The new constitution went into operation November 1, 1851. The General Assembly elected in August, 1851, met as directed by the old constitution. The first general elec- tion under the new constitution was held in October, 1852, the old officers holding until the newly elected ones were qualified and took their positions according to law. There was no jar in the operations of the State government dur- ing the change.
20 Indiana State Journal, Feb. 15, 1851.
21 Indiana State Journal, March 15, 1851. They were printed for the New Albany Ledger at the Cincinnati Gazette office.
22 State Journal, Feb. 22, 1851.
23 State Journal, Sept. 20, 1851.
24 State Journal, Aug. 30, 1851.
CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1850 461
One of the objections urged at first against a consti- tutional convention was that it would cost an enormous sum of money at a time when the State was almost bankrupt, and could ill afford to spend any money except for the most urgent need. The total expense for the eighteen weeks' session as shown by the State treasurer's report was $85,043.82.25
25 Documentary Journal, 1851, 8; 1852, 7.
CHAPTER XXI
POLITICS FROM 1840 TO 1852
§ 92 A BANKRUPT STATE
As soon as the political frenzy of 1840 had spent itself, the citizens of Indiana began to give their serious attention to the condition of their State government. One ugly fact stared them squarely in the face. That fact was that the State system of internal improvements was a failure. Long successions of mudholes marked the places where the people had expected to see hurrying boats bearing the produce of prosperous farmers to expectant buyers. For ten years the people had worked patiently, buoyed up by promises of ig- norant and dishonest politicians in the hope of seeing their State provided with an adequate transportation system.
The financial condition of the State was alarming. The auditor reported that the total assessment valuation of the State had dropped from over $107,000,000 to $91,000,000. The income of the State from taxation had likewise dropped $170,901, leaving a net income for 1840 of only $192,786 from this source.1 The current expenses for the year were $136,749. There would thus be left a sum of $34,152 to meet the interest at six per cent on upwards of $12,000,000 bonded debt.2
The outlook was gloomy enough. Turning away from the whole subject of internal improvement, the General Assembly gave its attention to governmental reorganiza- tion. The ways and means committee, to whom was re- ferred the auditor's annual statement for 1840, reported
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