This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1914 Excerpt: ... to win the first great victory for constitutional reform in North Carolina. A bill was introduced to submit to the people at a general election, the question of calling a convention to amend the Constitution by changing the basis of representation, by abolishing the right of certain towns to send members to the ...
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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1914 Excerpt: ... to win the first great victory for constitutional reform in North Carolina. A bill was introduced to submit to the people at a general election, the question of calling a convention to amend the Constitution by changing the basis of representation, by abolishing the right of certain towns to send members to the General Assembly, by taking away from the Legislature the election of the governor and giving it to the people, by taking the right of voting away from free negroes, and by striking out the sectarian test for office-holding. In the House of Commons 13 eastern men joined with the West and passed the bill by a vote of 66 to 62. In the Senate the contest was even closer, the advocates of the Convention winning by a vote of 31 to 30. Every senator west of Raleigh, except one, voted for the Convention, and they were joined by four eastern senators whose courage in opposing the interest of their section enabled the West to achieve its great victory. No greater triumph for democracy was ever won in North Carolina. For the first time in their history the people of the State were to be consulted on a great problem of government; for the first time the decision of a great political issue was referred directly to the people. This first referendum, resulted in a victory for democracy. Some curiously interesting results appear in the election returns. For instance there were 30 eastern counties in each of which less than 100 votes were cast for the Convention. The total vote of those thirty eastern counties was 1004 for the Convention, 15,335 against it. On the other hand, there were eighteen western counties in each of which less than 100 votes were cast against the Convention. The total vote for the Convention in these western counties was 16,916, the total vo...
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