ILLINOIS .
CONSTITUTION I87O.
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KFI1601 1870.A43
Constitution of the state of
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J
CONSTITUTION
State of Illinois,
AS ADOPTED IN
CONVENTION,
May 13th, 1870,
Ratified by the People of the State,
July 2d, A. D. 1870.
CHICAGO:
THE WESTERN NEWS COMPANY,
121 and 123 State Street.
1870.
james & butler,
Book and Job Printers,
book binders,
AND
BLANK BOOK MANUFACTURERS,
114 & 116 Wabash Ave., Chicago, III.
THE CONSTITUTION.
'PREAMBLE.
We, the people of the State of Illinois — grateful to Almighty God
for the civil, political and religious liberty which He hath so long permit-
ted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing upon our endeavors to
secure and transmit the same unimpaired to succeeding generations — in
order to form a more perfect government, establish justice, insure do-
mestic tranquillity, provide for the common defence, promote the general
welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity,
do ordain and establish this Constitution for the State of Illinois.
ARTICLE I.
BOUNDARIES.
The boundaries and jurisdiction of the State shall be as follows, to
wit : Beginning at the mouth of the Wabash river, thence up the same,
and with the line of Indiana, to the northwest corner of said State, thence
east with the line of the same State, to the middle of Lake Michigan ;
thence north along the middle of said lake, to north latitude forty-two
degrees and thirty minutes ; thence west to the middle of the Mississippi
river, and thfence down along the middle of that river to its confluence
with the Ohio river, and thence up the latter river, along its northwestern
shore to the place of beginning : Provided, that this State shall exercise
such jurisdiction upon the Ohio river, as she is now entitled to, or such
as may hereafter be agreed upon by this State and the State of Kentucky.
ARTICLE II.
BILL OF RIGHTS.
Section i . All men are by nature free and independent, and have
certain inherent and inalienable rights — among these are life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness. To secure these rights and the protection of
property, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed.
§ 2. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property, with-
out due process of law.
§ 3. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and
worship, without discrimination, shall forever be guaranteed ; and no per-
son shall be denied any civil or political right, privilege or capacity, on
account of his religious opinions; but the liberty of conscience hereby
secured shall not be construed to dispense with oaths or affirmations,
excuse acts of licentiousness, or justify practices inconsistent with the
peace or safety of the State. No person shall be required to attend or
support any ministry or place of worship against his consent, nor shall
any preference be given by law to any religious denomination or mode of
worship.
§ 4. Every person may freely speak, write and publish, on all sub-
jects, being responsible for the abuse of that liberty; and in all trials for
libel, both civil and criminal, the truth, when published with good
motives and for justifiable ends, shall be a sufficient defence.
§ 5. The right of trial by jury as heretofore enjoyed, shall remain
inviolate ; but the trial of civil cases before Justices of the Peace by a jury
of less than twelve men, may be authorized by law.
§ 6. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be
violated ; and no warrant shall issue without probable cause, supported by
affidavit, particularly describing the place to be searched; and the persons
or things to be seized.
§ 7. All persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, except for
capital offences, where the proof is evident or the presumption great ; and
the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless
when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.
Si 8. No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offence, unless
on indictment of a grand jury, except in cases in which the punishment is
by fine, or, imprisonment otherwise than in the penitentiary, in cases of
impeachment, and in cases arising in the army and navy, or in the militia
when in actual service in time of war or public danger; Provided, that
the Grand Jury may be abolished by law in all cases.
§ 9- In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall have the right
to appear and defend in person and by counsel ; to demand the nature
and cause of the accusation, and to have a copy thereof; to meet the
witnesses face to face, and to have process to compel the attendance of
witnesses in his behalf, and a speedy public trial by an impartial jury of
the county or district in which the offence is alleged to have been com-
mitted.
§ lo. No person shall be compelled in any criminal case to give
evidence against himself, or be twice put in jeopardy for the same offence.
§ II. All penalties shall be proportioned to the nature of the
offence, and no conviction shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture
of estate ; nor shall any person be transported out of the State for any
offence committed within the same.
§ 12. No person shall be imprisoned for debt, unless upon refusal
to deliver up his estate for the benefit of his creditors, in such manner as
shall be prescribed by law, or in cases where there is strong presumption
of fraud.
§ 13. Private property shall not be taken or damaged for public use
without just compensation. Such compensation, when not made by the
State, shall be ascertained by a jury, as shall be prescribed by law. The
fee of land taken for railroad tracks, without consent of the owners
thereof, shall remain in such owners, subject to the use for which it is
taken.
§ 14. No ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of con-
tracts, or making any irrevocable grant of special privileges or immuni-
ties, shall be passed.
§ 15. The military shall be in strict subordination to the civil
power.
§ 16. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house
without the consent of the owner; nor in time of war except in the man-
ner prescribed by law.
§ 1 7. The people have the right to assemble in a peaceable manner
to consult for the common good, to make known their opinions to their
Representatives, and to apply for redress of grievances.
§ 18. All elections shall be free and equal.
§ 19. Every person ought to find a certain remedy in the laws for
all injuries and wrongs which he may receive in his person, property or
reputation ; he ought to obtain, by law, right and justice freely and with-
out being obliged to purchase it, completely and without denial, promptly
and without delay.
§ 20. A frequent recurrence to the fundamental principles of civil
government is absolutely necessary to preserve the blessings of liberty.
ARTICLE III.
DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS.
The powers of the Government of this State are divided into three
distinct departments — the Legislative, Executive and Judicial; and no
person, or collection of persons, being one of these departments, shall
exercise any power properly belonging to either of the others, except as
hereinafter expressly directed or permitted.
ARTICLE IV.
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT.
Section i. The legislative power shall be vested in a General As-
sembly, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives,
both to be elected by the people.
ELECTION.
§ 2. An election for members of the General Assembly shall be
held on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November, in the year
of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy, and every two
years thereafter, in each county, at such places therein as may be provided
by law. When vacancies occur in either House, the Governor, or person
exercising the powers of Governor, shall issue writs of election to fill
such vacancies.
ELIGIBILITY AND OATH.
§ 3. No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained the
age of twenty-five years, or a Representative who shall not have attained
the age of twenty-one years. No person shall be a Senator or a Repre-
sentative who shall not be a citizen of the United States, and who shall
not have been for five years a resident of this State, and for two years
next preceding his election a resident within the territory forming the dis-
trict from which he is elected. No Judge or Clerk of any Court, Secre-
tary of State, Attorney General, State's Attorney, Recorder, Sheriff, or
Collector of Public Revenue, member of either House of Congress, or
person holding any lucrative office under the United States or this State,
or any foreign government, shall have a seat in the General Assembly :
Provided, That appointments in the militia and the offices of Notary
Public and Justice of the Peace shall not be considered lucrative. Nor
shall any person holding any office of honor or profit under any foreign
government, or under the government of the United States (except Post-
masters whose annual compensation does not exceed the sum of three
hundred dollars), hold any office of honor or profit under the authority
of this State.
§ 4. No person who has been, or hereafter shall be, convicted of
bribery, perjury, or other infamous crime, nor any person who has been
or may be a collector or holder of public moneys, who shall not have
accounted for and paid over, according to law, all such moneys due from
him, shall be eligible to the General Assembly, or to any office of profit
or trust in this State.
§^ 5. Members of the General Assembly, before they enter upon
their official duties, shall take and subscribe the following oath or affirma-
tion: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitu-
tion of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Illinois,
and will faithfully discharge the duties of Senator (or Representative)
according to the best of my ability; and that I have not, knowingly or
intentionally, paid or contributed anything, or made any promise in the
nature of a bribe, to directly or indirectly influence any vote at the elec-
tion at which I was chosen to fill the said office, and have not accepted,
nor will I accept or receive, directly or indirectly, any money or other
valuable thing, from any corporation, company or person, for any vote or
influence I may give or withhold on any bill, resolution or appropriation,
or for any other official act." This oath shall be administered by a Judge
of the Supreme or Circuit Court in the Hall of the House to which the
member is elected, and the Secretary of State shall record and file the oath
subscribed by each member. Any member who shall refuse to take the
oath herein prescribed shall forfeit his office, and every member who
shall be convicted of having sworn falsely to, or of violating his said
oath, shall forfeit his office and be disqualified thereafter from holding
any office of profit or trust in this State.
APPORTIONMENT.
SENATORIAL.
§ 6. The General Assembly shall apportion the State every ten
years, beginning with the year one thousand eight hundred and seventy-
one, by dividing the population of the State, as ascertained by the federal
census, by the number fifty-one, and the quotient shall be the ratio of
representation in the Senate. The State shall be divided into fifty-one
Senatorial Districts, each of which shall elect one Senator, whose term of
office shall be four years. The Senators elected in the year of our Lord
one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two in districts bearing odd
numbers, shall vacate their offices at the end of two years, and those
elected in districts bearing even numbers at the end of four years; and
vacancies occurring by the expiration of term shall be filled by the
election of Senators for the full term. Senatorial Districts shall be
formed of contiguous and conipact territory, bounded by county lines,
and contain as nearly as practicable an equal number of inhabitants; but
no district shall contain less than four-fifths of the Senatorial ratio. Coun-
ties containing not less than the ratio and three-fourths, may be divided
into separate districts, and shall be entitled to two Senators, and to one
additional Senator for each number of inhabitants equal to the ratio con-
tained by such counties in excess of twice the number of said ratio.
REPRESENTATIVE.
§ 7. The population of the State, as ascertained by the federal cen-
sus, shall be divided by the number one hundred and fifty-three, and the
quotient shall be the ratio of representation in the House of Representa-
tives. Every county or district shall be entitled to one representative,
when its population is three-fifths of the ratio ; if any county has less than
three-fifths of the ratio it shall be attached to the adjoining county having
the least population, to which no other county has for the same reason
been attached, and the two shall constitute a separate district. Every
county or district having a population not less than the ratio and three-
fifths shall be entitled to two Representatives, and for each additional
number of inhabitants equal to the ratio, one Representative. Counties
having over two hundred thousand inhabitants may be divided into
districts, each entitled to not less than three nor more than five Repre-
sentatives. After the year one thousand eight hundred and eighty, the
whole population shall be divided by the number one hundred and fifty-
nine, and the quotient shall be the ratio of representation in the House of
Representatives for the ensuing ten years, and six additional Representa-
tives shall be added for every five hundred thousand increase of population
at each decennial census thereafter, and be apportioned in the same
manner as above provided.
§ 8. When a county or_ district shall have a fraction of population
above what shall entitle it to one Representative, or more, according to
the provisions of the foregoing section, amounting to one-iifth of the
ratio, it shall be entitled to one additional Representative in the fifth
term of each decennial period; when such fraction is two-fifths of the
ratio, it shall be entitled to an additional Representative in the fourth and
fifth terms of said periods ; when the fraction is three-fifths of the ratio, it
shall be entitled to an additional Representative in the first, second and
third terms, respectively; when the fraction is four-fifths of the ratio, it
shall be entitled to an additional Representative in the first, second, third
and fourth terms, respectively.
TIME OF MEETING AND GENERAL RULES.
§ 9. The sessions of the General Assembly shall commence at twelve
o'clock noon, on the Wednesday next after the first Monday in January,
in the year next ensuing the election of members thereof, and at no other
time, unless as provided by this Constitution. A majority of the members
elected to each House shall constitute a quorum. Each House shall
determine the rules of its proceedings, and be the judge of the election,
returns and qualifications of its members; shall choose its own ofiicers;
and the Senate shall choose a temporary President to preside when the
Lieutenant Governor shall not attend as President or shall act as Governor.
The Secretary of State shall call the House of Representatives to order at
the opening of each new Assembly, and preside over it until a temporary
presiding officer thereof shall have been chosen and shall have taken his
seat. No member shall be expelled by either House, except by a vote of
two-thirds of all the members elected to that House, and no member shall
be twice expelled for the same offence. Each House may punish by im-
prisonment any person, not a member, who shall be guilty of disrespect
to the House by disorderly or contemptuous behavior in its presence.
But no such imprisonment shall extend beyond twenty-four hours, at one
time, unless the person shall persist in such disorderly or contemptuous
behavior.
§ 10. The doors of each House and of Committees of the Whole
shall be kept open, except in such cases as, in the opinion of the House,
8
require secrecy. Neither House shall, without the consent of the other,
adjourn for more than two days, or to any other place than that in which
the two Houses shall be sitting. Each House shall keep a journal of its
proceedings, which shall be published. In the Senate at the request of
two members, and in the House at the request of five members, the yeas
and nays shall be taken on any question, and entered upon the journal.
Any two members of either House shall have liberty to dissent from, and
protest, in respectful language, against any act or resolution which they
think injurious to the public or to any individual, and have the reasons of
their dissent entered upon the journals.
STYLE OF LAWS, AND PASSAGE OF BILLS.
§ II. The style of the laws of this State shall be : "Be it enacted by
the People of the State of Illinois represented in the General Assembly ^
§ 12. Bills may originate in either House, but may be altered,
amended or rejected by the other; and on the final passage of all bills,
the vote shall be by yeas and nays, upon each bill separately, and shall be
entered upon the journal ; and no bill shall become a law without the
concurrence of a majority of the members elected to each House.
§ 13. Every bill shall be read at large on three different days, in
each House; and the bill and all amendments thereto shall be printed
before the vote is taken on its final passage ; and every bill, having passed
both Houses, shall be signed by the Speakers thereof No act hereafter
passed shall embrace more than one subject, and that shall be expressed
in the title. But if any subject shall be embraced in an act which shall
not be expressed in the title, such act shall be void only as to so much
thereof as shall not be so expressed; and no law shall be revived or
amended by reference to its title only, but the law revived or the section
amended shall be inserted at length in the new act. And no act of the
General Assembly shall take effect until the first day of July next after its
passage, unless in case of emergency (which emergency shall be expressed
in the preamble or body of the act), the General Assembly shall, by a
vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each House, otherwise
direct.
PRIVILEGES AND DISABILITIES.
§ 14. Senators and Representatives shall, in all cases, except treason,
felony or breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during the session
of the General Assembly, and in going to and returning from the same;
and for any speech or debate in either House, they shall not be questioned
in any other place.
§ 15. No person elected to the General Assembly shall receive any
civil appointment within this State from the Governor, the Governor and
Senate, or from the General Assembly, during the term for which he shall
have been elected ; and all such appointments, and all votes given for any
such members for any such office or appointment, shall be void ; nor shall
any member of the General Assembly be interested, either directly or in-
directly, in any contract with the State, or any county thereof, authorized
by any law passed during the term for which he shall have been elected,
or within one year after the expiration thereof
PUBLIC MONEYS AND APPROPRIATIONS.
§ 16. The General Assembly shall make no appropriation of money
out of the Treasury in any private law. Bills making appropriations for
the pay of members and officers of the General Assembly, and for the
salaries of the officers of the Government, shall contain no provision on
any other subject.
§ 17. No money shall be drawn from the Treasury except in pursu-
ance of an appropriation made by law, and on the presentation of a war-
rant issued by the Auditor thereon ; and no money shall be diverted from
any appropriation made for any purpose, or taken from any fund whatever,
either by joint or separate resolution. The Auditor shall, within sixty
days after the adjournment of each session of the General Assembly, pre-
pare and publish a full statement of all money expended at such session,
specifying the amount of each item, and to whom and for what paid.
§ 18. Each General Assembly shall provide for all the appropriations
necessary for the ordinary and contingent expenses of the Government
until the expiration of the first fiscal quarter after the adjournment of the
next regular session, the aggregate amount of which shall not be increased
without a vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house, nor
exceed the amount of revenue authorized by law to be raised in such time ;
and all appropriations, general or special, requiring money to be paid out
of the State treasury, from funds belonging to the State, shall end with
such fiscal quarter: Provided, the State may, to meet casual deficits or
failures in revenues, contract debts, never to exceed in the aggregate two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars; and moneys thus borrowed shall be
applied to the purpose for which they were obtained, or to pay the debt
thus created, and to no other purpose ; and no other debt, except for the
10
purpose of repelling invasion, suppressing insurrection, or defending the
State in war, (for payment of which the faith of the State shall be pledged),
shall be contracted, unless the law authorizing the same shall, at a general
election, have been submitted to the people, and have received a majority
of the votes cast for members of the General Assembly at such election.
The General Assembly shall provide for the publication of said law, for
three months, at least, before the vote of the people shall be taken upon
the same ; and provisions shall be made at the time, for the payment of
the interest annually, as it shall accrue, by a tax levied for the purpose, or
from other sources of revenue ; which law, providing for the payment of
such interest by such tax, shall be irrepealable until such debt be paid :
And Provided, further, that the law levying the tax shall be submitted to
the people with the law authorizing the debt to be contracted.
§ 19. The General Assembly shall never grant or authorize extra
compensation, fee or allowance to any public officer, agent, servant or
contractor, after service has been rendered or a contract made, nor
authorize the payment of any claim, or part thereof, hereafter created
against the State under any agreement or contract made without express
authority of law ; and all such unauthorized agreenients or contracts shall
be null and void : Provided, the General Assembly may make appropria-
tions for expenditures incurred in suppressing insurrection or repelling
invasion.
§ 20. The State shall never pay, assume, or become responsible for
the debts or liabilities of, or in any manner give, loan or extend its credit
to or in aid of any public or other corporation, association or individual.
PAY OF MEMBERS.
§ 21. The members of the General Assembly shall receive for their
services the sum of five dollars per day, during the first session held under
this Constitution, and ten cents for each mile necessarily travelled in
going to and returning from the seat of government, to be computed by
the Auditor of Public Accounts, and thereafter such compensation as
shall be prescribed by law, and no other allowance or emolument, directly
or indirectly, for any purpose whatever, except the sum of fifty dollars
per session to each member, which shall be in full for postage, stationery,
newspapers, and all other incidental expenses and perquisites; but no
change shall be made in the compensation of members of the General
Assembly during the term for which they may have been elected. The pay
and mileage allowed to each member of the General Assembly shall be
11
certified by the Speakers of their respective Houses, and entered on the
journals, and published at the close of each session.
SPECIAL LEGISLATION PROHIBITED.
§ 2 2. The General Assembly shall not pass local or special laws in
any of the following enumerated cases, that is to say : for
Granting Divorces;
Changing the names of persons or places;
Laying out, opening, altering and working roads or highways;
Vacating roads, town plats, streets, alleys, and public grounds;
Locating or changing county seats ;
Regulating county and township affairs;
Regulating the practice in Courts of Justice;
Regulating the jurisdiction and duties of Justices of the Peace, Po-
lice Magistrates and Constables;
Providing for changes of venue in civil and criminal cases ;
Incorporating cities, towns or villages, or changing or amending the
charter of any town, city or village ;
Providing for the election of members of the Board of Supervisors
in townships, incorporated towns or cities;
Summoning and impanelling grand or petit juries;
Providing for the management of common schools ;
Regulating the rate of interest on money;
The opening and conducting of any election, or designating the
place of voting;
The sale or mortgage of real estate belonging to minors or others
under disability;
The protection of game or fish;
Chartering or licensing ferries or toll bridges;
Remitting fines, penalties or forfeitures;
Creating, increasing or decreasing fees, percentage or allowances
of public officers, during the term for which said officers are elected or
appointed ;
Changing the law of descent;
Granting to any corporation, association or individual the right to
lay down railroad tracks, or amending existing charters for such purpose ;
12
Granting to any corporation, association or individual any special or
exclusive privilege, immunity or franchise whatever.
In all other cases where a general law can be made applicable, no
special law shall be enacted.
§ 23. The General Assembly shall have no power to release or ex-
tinguish, in whole or in part, the indebtedness, liability or obligation of
any corporation or individual to this State, or to any municipal corpora-
tion therein. ^
IMPEACHMENT. .
§ 24. The House of Representatives shall have the sole power of
impeachment; but a majority of all the members elected must concur
therein. .All impeachments shall be tried by the Senate; and when sit-
ting for that purpose, the Senators shall be upon oath, or affirmation, to
do justice according to law and evidence. When the Governor of the
State is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside. No person shall be con-
victed without the concurrence of two-thirds of the Senators elected.
But judgment in such cases shall not extend further than removal from
office, and disqualification to hold any office of honor, profit or trust
under the government of this State. The party, whether convicted or
acquitted, shall, nevertheless, be liable to prosecution, trial, judgment and
punishment according to law.
MISCELLANEOUS.
§ 25. The General Assembly shall provide, by law, that the fuel,
stationery, and printing paper furnished for the use of the State, the
copying, printing, binding and distributing the laws and journals, and all
other printing ordered by the General Assembly, shall be let by contract
to the lowest responsible bidder ; but the General Assembly shall fix a
maximum price, and no member thereof or other officer of the State shall
be interested, directly or indirectly, in such contract. But all such con-
tracts shall be subject to the approval of the Governor, and if he disap-
prove the same, there shall be a re-letting of the contract in such manner
as shall be prescribed by law.
§ 26. The State of Illinois shall never be made defendant in any
court of law or equity.
§ 27. The General Assembly shall have no power to authorize lot-
teries or gift, enterprises, for any purpose, and shall pass laws to prohibit
the sale of lottery or gift enterprise tickets in this State.
13
§ 28. No law shall be passed which shall operate to extend the term
of any public officer after his election or appointment.
§ 29. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to pass such
laws as may be necessary for the protection of operative miners, by pro-
viding for ventilation, when the same may be required, and the construc-
tion of escapement-shafts or such other appliances as may secure safety
in all coal mines, and to provide for the enforcement of said laws by such
penalties and punishments as may be deemed proper.
§ 30. The General Assembly may provide for establishing and
opening roads and cartways, connected with a public road, for private
and public use.
§ 31. The General Assembly may pass laws permitting the owners
or occupants of lands to construct drains and ditches, for agricultural and
sanitary purposes, across the lands of others.
§ 32. The General Assembly shall pass liberal homestead and
exemption laws.
§ 33. The General Assembly shall not appropriate out of the State
Treasury, or expend on account of the new Capitol Grounds, and con-
struction, completion, and furnishing of the State House, a sum exceed-
ing, in the aggregate, three and a half millions of dollars, inclusive of
all appropriations heretofore made, without first submitting the proposition
for an additional expenditure to the legal voters of the State, at a general
election, nor unless a majority of all the votes cast at such election shall
be for the proposed additional expenditure.
ARTICLE V.
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
Section i. The Executive Department shall consist of a Governor,
Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor of Public Accounts,
Treasurer, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and Attorney General,
who shall each, with the exception of the Treasurer, hold his office for
the term of four years from the second Monday of January next after his
election, and until his successor is elected and qualified. They shall,
except the Lieutenant Governor, reside at the seat of government during
their term of office, and keep the public records, books and papers there,
and shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by law.
14
§ 2. The Treasurer shall hold his office for the term of two years,
and until his successor is elected and qualified, and shall be ineligible to
said office for two years next after the end of the term for which he was
elected. He may be required by the Governor to give reasonable addi-
tional security, and in default of so doing his oiEce shall be deemed
vacant.
ELECTION.
§ 3. An election for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of
State, Auditor of Public Accounts, and Attorney General, shall be held
on the Tuesday next after the first Monday of November, in the year of
our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, and every four
years thereafter ; for Superintendent of Public Instruction, on the Tuesday
next after the first Monday of November, in the year one thousand eight
hundred and seventy, and every four years thereafter, and for Treasurer
on the day last above mentioned, and every two years thereafter, at such
places and in such manner as may be prescribed by law.
§ 4. The returns of every election for the above named officers shall
be sealed up and transmitted, by the returning officers, to the Secretary
of State, directed to "The Speaker of the House of Representatives,"
who shall, immediately after the organization of the House, and before
proceeding to other business, open and publish the same in the presence
of a majority of each House of the General Assembly, who shall, for that
purpose, assemble in the hall of the House of Representatives. The
person having the highest number of votes for either of said offices shall
be declared duly elected ; but if two or more have an equal, and the
highest number of votes, the General Assembly shall, by joint ballot,
choose one of such persons for said office. Contested elections for all of
said offices shall be determined by both Houses of the General Assembly,
by joint ballot, in such manner as may be prescribed by law.
ELIGIBILITY.
§ 5. No person shall be eligible to the office of Governor or
Lieutenant Governor, who shall not have attained the age of thirty years
and been for five years next preceding his election a citizen of the United
States and of this State. Neither the Governor, Lieutenant Governor,
Auditor of Public Accounts, Secretary of State, Superintendent of Public
Instruction nor Attorney General shall be eligible to any other office
during the period for which he shall have been elected.
15
GOVERNOR.
§ 6. The supreme executive power shall be vested in the Governor,
who shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.
§ 7. The Governor, shall, at the commencement of each session,
and at the close of his term of office, give to the General Assembly
information, by message, of the condition of the State, and shall
recommend such measures as he shall deem expedient. He shall account
to the General Assembly, and accompany his message with a statement
of all moneys received and paid out by him from any funds subject to
his order, with vouchers, and, at the commencement of each regular
session, present estimates of the amount of money required to be raised
by taxation for all purposes.
§ 8. The Governor may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the
General Assembly, by proclamation, stating therein the purpose for which
they are convened ; and the General Assembly shall enter upon no
business except that for which they were called together.
§ 9. In case of a disagreement between the two Houses with
respect to the time of adjournment, the Governor may, on the same
being certified to him by the House first moving the adjournment, adjourn
the General Assembly to such time as he thinks proper, not beyond the
first day of the next regular session.
§ 10. The Governor shall nominate, and, by and with the advice
and consent of the Senate (a majority of all the Senators elected concur-
ring, by yeas and nays), appoint all officers whose offices are established
by this Constitution, or which may be created bylaw, and whose appoint-
ment or election is not otherwise provided for ; and no such officer shall
be appointed or elected by the General Assembly.
§11. In case of a vacancy, during a recess of the Senate, in any
office which is not elective, the Governor shall make a temporary appoint-
ment until the next meeting of the Senate, when he shall nominate some
person to fill such office : and any person so nominated, who is confirmed
by the Senate (a majority of all the Senators elected concurring, by yeas
and nays), shall hold his office during the remainder of the term, and
until his successor shall be appointed and qualified. No person, after
being rejected by the Senate, shall be again nominated for the same office
16
at the same session, unless at the request of the Senate, or be appointed
to the same office during the recess of the General Assembly.
§ 12. The Governor shall have power to remove any officer whom
he may appoint, in case of incompetency, neglect of duty, or
malfeasance in office ; and he may declare his office vacant, and fill the
same as is herein provided in other cases of vacancy.
§ 13. The Governor shall have power to grant reprieves, commu-
tations and pardons, after conviction, for all offences, subject to such
regulations as may be provided by law relative to the manner of applying
therefor.
§ 14. The Governor shall be commander-in-chief of the military
and naval forces of the State (except when they shall be called into, the
service of the United States); and may call out the same to execute the
laws, suppress insurrection, and repel invasion.
§ 15. The Governor and all civil officers of the State shall be liable
to impeachment for any misdemeanor in office.
VETO.
§ 16. Every bill passed by the General Assembly shall, before it
becomes a law, be presented to the Governor. If he approve, he shall
sign it, and thereupon it shall become a law ; but if he do not approve,
he shall return it, with his objections, to the House in which it shall have
originated, which House shall enter the objections at large upon its journal,
and proceed to reconsider the bill. If, then, two-thirds of the members
elected agree to pass the same, 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 the members elected to that House, it shall become a
law, notwithstanding the objections of the Governor. But in all such cases,
the vote of each House shall be determined by yeas and nays, to be entered on
the journal. Any bill which shall not be returned by the Governor within
ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him,
shall become a law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the General
Assembly shall, by their adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it
shall be filed, with his objections, in the office of the Secretary of State,
within ten days after such adjournment, or become a law.
17
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR.
§ 17. In case of the death, conviction on impeachmenii, failure to
qualify, resignation, absence from the State, or other disability of the
Governor, the powers, duties and emoluments of the office for the residue
of the term, or until the disability shall be removed, shall devolve upon
the Lieutenant Governor.
§ 18. The Lieutenant Governor shall be President of the Senate,
and shall vote only when the Senate is equally divided. The Senate shall
choose a President, pro tempore, to preside in case of the absence or
impeachment of the Lieutenant Governor, or when he shall hold the office
of Governor.
§ 19. If there be no Lieutenant Governor, or if the Lieutenant Gov-
ernor shall, for any of the causes specified in section seventeen of this
article, become incapable of performing the duties of the office, the
President of the Senate shall act as Governor until the vacancy is filled
or the disability removed; and if the President of the Senate, for any of
the above named causes, shall become incapable of performing the duties
of Governor, the same shall devolve upon the Speaker of the House of
Representatives.
OTHER STATE OFFICERS.
§ 20. If the office of Auditor of Public Accounts, Treasurer, Sec-
retary of State, Attorney General or Superintendent of Public Instruction
shall bfe vacated by death, resignation or otherwise, it shall be the duty
of the Governor to fill the same by appointment, and the appointee shall
hold his office until his successor shall be elected and qualified in such
manner as may be provided by law. An account shall be kept by the
officers of the Executive Department, and of all the public institutions of
the State, of all moneys received or disbursed by them, severally, from
all sources and for every service performed, and a semi-annual report
thereof be made to the Governor, under oath ; and any officer who makes
a false report shall be guilty of perjury and punished accordingly.
§ 21. The officers of the Executive Department, and of all the
public institutions of the State, shall, at least ten days preceding each
regular session of the General Assembly, severally report to the Governor,
who shall transmit such report to the General Assembly, together with
the reports of the Judges of the Supreme Court of defects in the Consti-
tution and laws ; and the Governor may at any time require information
in writing, under oath, from the officers of the Executive Department
18
and all officers and managers of State institutions, upon any subject relating
to the condition, management and expenses of their respective offices.
THE SEAL OF STATE.
§ 22. There shall be a seal of the State, which shall be called the
"Great Seal of the State of Illinois," which shall be kept by the Secretary
of State, and used by him, officially, as directed by law.
FEES AND SALARIES.
§ 23. The officers named in this article shall receive for their services
a salary, to be established by law, which shall not be increased or dimin-
ished during their official terms, and they shall not, after the expiration
of the terms of those in office at the adoption of this Constitution, receive
to their own use any fees, costs, perquisites of office, or other compen-
sation. And all fees that may hereafter be payable by law for any services
performed by any officer provided for in this article of the Constitution,
shall be paid in advance into the State Treasury.
DEFINITION AND OATH OF OFFICE.
§ 24. An office is a public position, created by the Constitution or
law, continuing during the pleasure of the appointing power, or for a
fixed time, with a successor elected or appointed. An employment is an
agency, for a temporary purpose, which ceases when that purpose is accom-
plished.
§ 25. All civil officers, except members of the General Assembly
and such inferior officers as may be by law exempted, shall, before they
enter on the duties of their respective offices, take and subscribe the fol-
lowing oath or affirmation :
" I do solemnly swear (or affirm, as the case may be) that I will sup-
port the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the
State of Illinois, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the
office of according to the best of my ability."
And no other oath, declaration or test shall be required as a qualifi-
cation.
ARTICLE VI.
JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT.
Section i . The judicial powers, except as in this article is otherwise
provided, shall be vested in one Supreme Court, Circuit Courts, County
Courts, Justices of the Peace, Police Magistrates, and in such courts as
may be created by law in and for cities and incorporated towns.
19
SUPREME COURT.
§ 2. The Supreme Court shall consist of seven judges, and shall
have original jurisdiction in cases relating to the revenue, in mandawus
and habeas corpus, and appellate jurisdiction in all other cases. One of
said judges shall be Chief Justice ; four shall constitute a quorum, and
the concurrence of four shall be necessary to every decision.
§ 3. No person shall be eligible to the office of Judge of the Supreme
Court unless he shall be at least thirty years of age and a citizen of the
United States, nor unless he shall have resided in this State five years
next preceding his election, and be a resident of the district in which he
shall be elected. 1
§ 4. Terms of the Supreme Court shall continue to be held in the
present grand divisions at the several places now provided for holding the
same ; and until otherwise provided by law, one or more terms of said
court shall be held, for the Northern division, in the city of Chicago,
each year, at such times as said court may appoint, whenever said city or
the county of Cook shall provide appropriate rooms therefor, and the use
of a suitable library, without expense to the State. The judicial divisions
may be altered, increased or diminished in number, and the times and
places of holding said court may be changed by law.
§ 5. The present grand divisions shall be preserved and be denomi-
nated Southern, Central and Northern, until otherwise provided by law.
The State shall be divided into seven districts for the election of judges,
and, until otherwise provided by law, they shall be as follows :
First District. — The counties of St. Clair, Clinton, Washington,
Jefferson, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash, White, Hamilton, Franklin, Perry,
Randolph, Monroe, Jackson, Williamson, Saline, Gallatin, Hardin, Pope,
TJ[nion, Johnson, Alexander, Pulaski, and Massac.
Second District. — The counties of Madison, Bond, Marion, Clay,
Richland, Lawrence, Crawford, Jasper, Effingham, Fayette, Montgomery,
Macoupin, Shelby, Cumberland, Clark, Greene, Jersey, Calhoun, and
Christian.
Third District. — The counties of Sangamon, Macon, Logan, De-
Witt, Piatt, Douglas, Champaign, Vermilion, McLean, Livingston, Ford,
Iroquois, Coles, Edgar, Moultrie, and Tazewell.
Fourth District.— TYit counties of Fulton, McDonough, Hancock,
Schuyler, Brown, Adams, Pike, Mason, Menard, Morgan, Cass, and
Scott.
20
Fifth District. — The counties of Knox, Warren, Henderson, Mercer,
Henry, Stark, Peoria, Marshall, Putnam, Bureau, LaSalle, Grundy, and
Woodford.
Sixth District. — The counties of Whiteside, Carroll, Jo Daviess,
Stephenson, Winnebago, Boone, McHenry, Kane, Kendall, De Kalb, Lee,
Ogle, and Rock Island.
Seventh District.— The counties of Lake, Cook, Will, Kankakee,
and Du Page.
The boundaries of the districts may be changed at the session of the
General Assembly next preceding the election for judges therein, and at
no other time ; but whenever such alterations shall be made, the same
shall be upon the rule of equality of population, as nearly as county
boundaries will allow, and the districts shall be composed of contiguous
counties, in as nearly compact form as circumstances will permit.
The alteration of the districts shall not affect the tenure of office of any
judge.
§ 6. At the time of voting on the adoption of this Constitution,
one Judge of the Supreme Court shall be elected by the electors thereof
in each of said districts numbered two, three, six and seven, who shall
hold his office for the term of nine years from the first Monday of June,
in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy. The
term of office of Judges of the Supreme Court, elected after the adoption
of this Constitution, shall be nine years ; and on the first Monday of June
of the year in which the term of any of the judges in office at the adoption
of this Constitution, or of the judges then elected, shall expire, and every
nine years thereafter, there shall be an election for the successor or suc-
cessors of such judges, in the respective districts wherein the term of such
judges shall expire. The Chief Justice shall continue to act as such until
the expiration of the term for which he was elected, after which the
Judges shall choose one of their number Chief Justice.
§ 7. From and after the adoption of this Constitution, the Judges
of the Supreme Court shall each receive a salary of four thousand dollars
per annum, payable quarterly, until otherwise provided by law. And
after said .salaries shall be fixed by law, the salaries of the Judges in office
shall not be increased or diminished during the terms for which said
Judges shall have been elected.
§ 8. Appeals and writs of error may be taken to the Supreme Court,
21
held in the grand division in which the case is decided, or, by consent of
the parties, to any other grand division.
§ 9. The Supreme Court shall appoint one reporter of its decisions,
who shall hold his office for six years, subject to removal by the court.
§ 10. At the time of the election for Representatives in the General
Assembly, happening next preceding the expiration of the terms of office
of the present clerks of said court, one clerk of said court for each division
shall be elected, whose term of office shall be six years from said election,
but who shall not enter upon the duties of his office until the expiration
of the term of his predecessor ; and every six years thereafter one clerk
of said court for each division, shall be elected.
' APPELLATE COURTS.
§ II. After the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and
seventy-four, inferior Appellate Courts, of uniform organization and juris-
diction, may be created in districts formed for that purpose, to which
such appeals and writs of error as the General Assembly may provide may
be prosecuted from Circuit and other courts, and from which appeals and
writs of error shall lie to the Supreme Court, in all criminal cases, and
cases in which a franchise or freehold or the validity of a statute is involved,
and in such other cases as may be provided by law. Such Appellate
Courts shall be held by such number of Judges of the Circuit Courts, and
at such times and places, and in such manner as may be provided bylaw;
but no judge shall sit in review upon cases decided by him ; nor shall said
judges receive any additional compensation for such services.
CIRCUIT COURTS.
§ 12. The Circuit Courts shall have original jurisdiction of all causes
in law and equity, and such appellate jurisdiction as is or may be provided
by law, and shall hold two or more terms each year in every county. The
terms of office of Judges of Circuit Courts shall be six years.
§ 13. The State, exclusive of the county of Cook and other counties
having a population of one hundred thousand, shall be divided into judi-
cial circuits, prior to the expiration of the terms of office of the present
Judges of the Circuit Courts. Such circuits shall be formed of contiguous
counties, in as nearly compact form^ and as nearly equal as circumstances
will permit, having due regard to business, territory and population, and
shall not exceed in number one circuit for every one hundred thousand
22
of population in the State. One judge shall be elected for each of said
circuits by the electors thereof. New circuits may be formed and the
boundaries of circuits changed by the General Assembly at its session
next preceding the election for Circuit Judges, but at no other time :
Provided, that the circuits may be equalized or changed at the first session
of the General Assembly, after the adoption of this Constitution. The
creation, alteration or change of any circuit shall not affect the tenure in
office of any judge. Whenever the business of the Circuit Court of any
one or of two or more contiguous counties, containing a population
exceeding fifty thousand, shall occupy nine months of the year, the Gen-
eral Assembly may make of such county or counties a separate circuit.
Whenever additional circuits are created, the foregoing limitations shall
be observed.
§ 14. The General Assembly shall provide for the times of holding
court in each county, which shall not be changed, except by the General
Assembly next preceding the general election for judges of said courts,
but additional terms may be provided for in any county. The election
for Judges of the Circuit Courts shall be held on the first Monday in
June, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three, and every six years thereafter.
§ 15. The General Assembly may divide the State into judicial
circuits of greater population and territory, in lieu of the circuits provided
for in section thirteen of this article, and provide for the election therein,
severally, by the electors thereof, by general ticket, of not exceeding four
judges, who shall hold the Circuit Courts in the circuit for which they
shall be elected, in such manner as may be provided by law.
§ 16. From and after the adoption of this Constitution, Judges of
the Circuit Courts shall receive a salary of three thousand dollars per
annum, payable quarterly, until otherwise provided by law. And after
their salaries shall be fixed by law, they shall not be increased or diminished
during the terms for which said judges shall be, respectively, elected ; and
from and after the adoption of this Constitution, no judge of the Supreme
or Circuit Court shall receive any other compensation, perquisite or benefit,
in any form whatsoever, nor perform any other than judicial duties to
which may belong any emoluments.
§ 1 7. No person shall be eligible to the office of judge of the
circuit or any inferior court, or to membership in the "Board of County
Commissioners," unless he shall be at least twenty-five years of age, and a
23
citizen of the United States, nor unless he shall have resided in this State
five years next preceding his election, and be a resident of the circuit,
county, city, cities or incorporated town in which he shall be elected.
COUNTY COURTS.
§ 1 8. There shall be elected in and for each county, one county
judge and one clerk of the county court, whose terms of office shall
be four years. But the General Assembly may create districts of two
or more contiguous counties, in each of which shall be elected one judge,
who shall take the place of and exercise the powers and jurisdiction of
county judges in such districts. County courts shall be courts of
record, and shall have original jurisdiction in all matters of probate ;
settlement of estates of deceased persons ; appointment of guardians
and conservators, and settlements of their accounts; in all matters
relating to apprentices ; and in proceedings for the collection of taxes
and assessments, and such other jurisdiction as may be provided for by
general law.
§ 19. Appeals and writs of error shall be allowed from final
determinations of County Courts, as may be provided by law.
PROBATE COURTS.
§ 20. The General Assembly may provide for the establishment of
a Probate Court in each county having a population of over fifty thousand,
and for the election of a judge thereof, whose term of office shall be the
same as that of the county judge, and who shall be elected at the same
time and in the same manner. Said courts when established, shall have
original jurisdiction of all probate matters, the settlement of estates of
deceased persons, the appointment of guardians and conservators and
settlements of their accounts, in all matters relating to apprentices,
and in cases of the sales of real estate of deceased persons for the payment
of debts.
JUSTICES OF THE PEACE AND CONSTABLES.
§ 21. Justices of the Peace, Police Magistrates and Constables shall
be elected in and for such districts as are or may be provided by law, and
the jurisdiction of such Justices of the Peace and Police Magistrates shall
be uniform.
state's ATTORNEYS.
§ 2 2. At the election for members of the General Assembly, in the
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, and every
four years thereafter, there shall be elected a State's Attorney in and for
24
each county, in lieu of the State's Attorneys now provided bylaw, whose
term of office shall be four years.
COURTS OF COOK COUNTY.
§ 23. The county of Cook shall be one judicial circuit. The Cir-
cuit Court of Cook county shall consist of five judges, until their number
shall be increased, as herein provided. The present Judge of the Record-
er's Court of the city of Chicago, and the present Judge of the Circuit
Court of Cook county, shall be two of said judges, and shall remain in
office for the terms for which they were respectively elected, and until
their successors shall be elected and qualified. The Superior Court of
Chicago shall be continued, and called the Superior Court of Cook
County. The General Assembly may increase the number of said judges,
by adding one to either of said courts for every additional fifty thousand
inhabitants in said county, over and above a population of four hundred
thousand. The terms of office of the judges of said courts hereafter
elected shall be six years.
§ 24. The judge having the shortest unexpired term shall be
Chief Justice of the court of which he is a judge. In case there are two or
more whose terms expire at the same time, it may be determined by lot
which shall be chief justice. Any judge of either of said courts shall
have all the powers of a circuit judge, and may hold the court of which
he is a member. Each of them may hold a different branch thereof at
the same time.
§ 25. The Judges of the Superior and Circuit Courts, and the State's
Attorney in said county shall receive the same salaries, payable out of the
State treasury, as is or may be paid from said treasury to the circuit judges
and State's Attorneys of the State, and such further compensation, to be
paid by the county of Cook, as is or may be provided by law ; such
compensation shall not be changed during their continuance in office.
§ 26. TheRecorder'sCourtof theCityof Chicagoshallbecontinued,
and shall be called the " Criminal Court of Cook County." It shall have
the jurisdiction of a Circuit Court, in all cases of criminal and quasi
criminal nature, arising in the county of Cook, or that may be brought
before said court pursuant to law ; and all recognizances and appeals taken
in said county in criminal and quasi criminal cases shall be returnable and
taken to said court. It shall have no jurisdiction in civil cases, except in
those on behalf of the people, and incident to such criminal or quasi
criminal matters, and to dispose of unfinished business. The terms of
25
said Criminal Court of Cook County shall be held by one or more of
the Judges of the Circuit or Superior Court of Cook county, as nearly
as may be in alternation, as may be determined by said Judges or provided
by law. Said Judges shall be, ex-officio. Judges of said court.
§ 27. The present Clerk of the Recorder's Court of the city of
Chicago shall be the Clerk of the Criminal Court of Cook County, during
the term for which he was elected. The present Clerks of the Superior
Court of Chicago, and the present Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook
County shall continue in office during the terms for which they were
respectively elected ; and thereafter there shall be but one Clerk of the
Superior Court, to Jae elected by the qualified electors of said county,
who shall hold his office for the term of four years, and until his successor
is elected and qualified.
§ 28. All Justices of the Peace in the City of Chicago shall be
appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate (but only upon the recommendation of a majority of the Judges of
the Circuit, Superior and County Courts), and for such districts as are now
or shall hereafter be provided by law. They shall hold their offices for
four years, and until their successors have been commissioned and
qualified, but they may be removed by summary proceeding in the Circuit
or Superior Court for extortion or other malfeasance. Existing Justices
of the Peace and Police Magistrates may hold their offices until the ex-
piration of their respective terms.
GENERAL PROVISIONS.
§ 29. All judicial officers shall be commissioned by the Governor.
All laws relating to courts shall be general and of uniform operation ; and
the organization, jurisdiction, powers, proceedings and practice of all
courts, of the same class or grade, so far as regulated by law, and the force
and effect of the process, judgments and decrees of such courts, severally,
shall be uniform.
§ 30. The General Assembly may, for cause entered on the journals,
upon due notice and opportunity of defence, remove from office any
Judge, upon concurrence of three-fourths of all the members elected,
of each House. All other officers in this Article mentioned, shall be
removed from office on prosecution and final conviction for misdemeanor
in office.
§ 31. All judges of courts of record, inferior to the Supreme
Court, shall, on or before the first day of June of each year, report in
2G
writing to the Judges of the Supreme Court, such defects and omissions
in the laws as their experience may suggest ; and the Judges of the
Supreme Court shall, on or before the first day of January of each year,
report in writing to the Governor such defects and omissions in the
Constitution and laws as they may find to exist, together with appropriate
forms of bills to cure such defects and omissions in the laws. And the
Judges of the several Circuit Courts shall report to the next General
Assembly the number of days they have held court in the several counties
composing their respective circuits the preceding two years.
§ 32. All officers provided for in this Article shall hold their offices
until their successors shall be qualified, and they shallj respectively, reside
in the division, circuit, county or district for which they may be elected
or appointed. The terms of office of all such officers, where not other-
wise prescribed in this Article, shall be four years. All officers, where
not otherwise provided for in this Article, shall perform such duties and
receive such compensation as is or may be provided by law. Vacancies
in such elective offices shall be filled by election ; but where the unexpired
term does not exceed one year, the vacancy shall be filled by appoint-
ment, as follows: Of Judges, by the Governor; of clerks of courts, by
the court to which the office appertains, or by the judge or judges thereof;
and of all such other offices, by the board of supervisors or board of county
commissioners, in the county where the vacancy occurs.
§ 33. All process shall run. In the name of the People of the State
of Illinois ; and all prosecutions shall be carried on In the name and by the
authority of the People of the State of Illinois, and conclude. Against the
peace and dignity of the same. "Population," wherever used in this Arti-
cle, shall be determined by the next preceding census of this State or of
the United States.
ARTICLE VII.
SUFFRAGE.
Section i. Every person having resided in this State one year, in
the county ninety days, and in the election district thirty daysnext pre-
ceding any election therein, who was an elector in this State on the first
day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and
forty-eight, or obtained a certificate of naturalization before any Court of
Record in this State prior to the first day of January, in the year of our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy, or who shall be a male
citizen of the United States, above the age of twenty-one years, shall be
entitled to vote at such election.
27
§ 2. All votes shall be by ballot.
§ 3. Electors shall, in all cases except treason, felony or breach of
the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at elections,
and in going to and returning from the same. And no elector shall be
obliged to do military duty on the days of election, except in the time of
war or public danger.
§ 4. No elector shall be deemed to have lost his residence in this
State by reason of his absence on the business of the United States or of
this State, or in the military or naval service of the United States.
§ 5. No soldier, seaman or marine, in the army or navy of the
United States, shall be deemed a resident of this State in consequence of
being stationed therein.
§ 6. No person shall be elected or appointed to any office in this
State, civil or military, who is not a citizen of the United States, and
who shall not have resided in this State one year next preceding the elec-
tion or appointment.
§ 7. The General Assembly shall pass laws excluding from the right
of suffrage persons convicted of infamous crimes.
ARTICLE VIII.
EDUCATION.
Section i. The General Assembly shall provide a thorough and
efficient system of free schools, whereby all the children of this State may
receive a good common school education.
§ 2. All lands, moneys or other property, donated, granted or re-
ceived for school, college, seminary or university purposes, and the pro-
ceeds thereof, shall be faithfully applied to the objects for which such gifts
or grants were made.
§ 3. Neither the General Assembly nor any county, city, town,
township, school district, or other public corporation, shall ever make
any appropriation or pay from any public fund whatever, anything in aid
of any church or sectarian purpose, or to help support or sustain any
school, academy, seminary, college, university or other literary or scien-
tific institution controlled by any church or sectarian denomination what-
ever; nor shall any grant or donation of land, money or other personal
property ever be made by the State or any such public corporation to any
church or for any sectarian purpose.
§ 4. No teacher. State, county, township or district school officer
shall be interested in the sale, proceeds or profits of any book, apparatus
28
or furniture, used or to be used, in any school in this State, with which
such officer or teacher may be connected, under such penalties as may be
provided by the General Assembly.
§ 5. There may be a County Superintendent of Schools in each
county, whose qualifications, powers, duties, compensation, and time and
manner of election, and term of office, shall be prescribed by law.
ARTICLE IX.
REVENUE.
Section 1. The General Assembly shall provide such revenue as
may be needful, by levying a tax, by valuation, so that every person and
corporation shall pay a tax in proportion to the value of his, her or its
property — such value to be ascertained by some person or persons, to be
elected or appointed in such manner as the General Assembly shall direct,
and not otherwise; but the General Assembly shall have power to tax
pedlers, auctioneers, brokers, hawkers, merchants, commission merchants,
showmen, jugglers, inn-keepers, grocery -keepers, liquor dealers, toll
bridges, ferries, insurance, telegraph and express interests or business,
venders of patents, and persons or corporations, owning or using fran-
chises and privileges, in such manner as it shall, from time to time, direct
by general law, uniform as to the class upon which it operates.
§ 2. The specification of the objects and subjects of taxation shall
not deprive the General Assembly of the power to require other subjects
or objects to be taxed, in such manner as may be consistent with the
principles of taxation fixed in this Constitution.
§ 3. The property of the State, counties and other municipal cor-
porations, both real and personal, and such other property as may be used
exclusively for agricultural and horticultural societies, for schools, religious,
cemetery and charitable purposes, may be exempted from taxation ; but
such exemption shall be only by general law. In the assessment of real
estate, incumbered by public easement, any depreciation occasioned by
such easement may be deducted in the valuation of such property.
§ 4. The General Assembly shall provide, in all cases where it may
be necessary to sell real estate for the non-payment of taxes or special
assessments, for State, county, municipal or other purposes, that a return
of such unpaid taxes or assessments shall be made to some general officer
of the county having authority to receive State and county taxes ; and
there shall be no sale of the said property for any of said taxes or assess-
29
ments, but by said officer, upon the order or judgment of some Court of
Record.
§ 5. The right of redemption from all sales of real estate, for the
non-p^ment of taxes or special assessments of any character whatever,
shall exist in favor of owners and persons interested in such real estate,
for a period of not less than two years from such sales thereof And the
General Assembly shall provide, by law, for reasonable notice to be given
to the owners or parties interested, by publication or otherwise, of the
fact of the sale of property for such taxes or assessments, and when the
time of redemption shall expire : Provided, that occupants shall in all
cases be served with personal notice before the time of redemption expires.
§ 6. The General Assembly shall have no power to release or dis-
charge any county, city, township, town or district whatever, or the
inhabitants thereof, or the property therein, from their or its proportionate
share of taxes to be levied for State purposes, nor shall commutation for
such taxes be authorized in any form whatsoever.
§ 7. All taxes levied for State purposes shall be paid into the State
Treasury.
§ 8. County authorities shall never assess taxes, the aggregate of
which shall exceed seventy-five cents per one hundred dollars, valuation,
except for the payment of indebtedness existing at the adoption of this
Constitution, unless authorized by a vote of the people Of the county.
§ g. The General Assembly may vest the corporate authorities of
cities, towns and villages, with power to make local improvement by
special assessment or by special taxation of contiguous property, or other-
wise. For all other corporate purposes all municipal corporations may
be vested with authority to assess and collect taxes ; but such taxes shall
be uniform, in respect to persons and property within the jurisdiction of
the body imposing the same.
§ 10. The General Assembly shall not impose taxes upon municipal
corporations, or the inhabitants or property thereof, for corporate purposes;
but shall require that all the taxable property within the limits of munici-
pal corporations shall be taxed for the payment of debts contracted under
authority of law, such taxes to be uniform in respect to persons and
property within the jurisdiction of the body imposing the same. Private
property shall not be liable to be taken or sold for the payment of the
corporate debts of a municipal corporation.
§ II. No person who is in default as collector or custodian of
money or property belonging to a municipal corporation, shall be eligible
30
to any office in or under such corporation. The fees, salary or com-
pensation of no municipal officer who is elected or appointed for a
definite term of office, shall be increased or diminished during such term.
§ 12. No county, city, township, school district or other mu^iicipal
corporation, shall be allowed to become indebted in any manner or for
any purpose to an amount, including existing indebtedness, in the
aggregate exceeding five per centum on the value of the taxable property
therein, to be ascertained by the last assessment for State and county
taxes, previous to the incurring of such indebtedness. Any county, city,
school district or other municipal corporation, incurring any indebtedness
as aforesaid, shall, before or at the time of doing so, provide for the collection
of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the interest on such debt as it falls
due, and also to pay and discharge the principal thereof within twenty
years from the time of contracting the same.
This section shall not be construed to prevent any county, city,
township, school district or other municipal corporation, from issuing their
bonds in compliance with any vote of the people which may have been
had prior to the adoption of this Constitution in pursuance of any
law providing therefor.
ARTICLE X.
COUNTIES.
Section i. No new county shall be formed or established by the
General Assembly, which will reduce the county or counties, or either
of them, from which it shall be taken, to less contents than four hundred
square miles ; nor shall any county be formed of less contents ; nor shall
any line thereof pass within less than ten miles of any county seat of the
county or counties proposed to be divided.
§ 2. No county shall be divided, or have any part stricken therefrom,
without submitting the question to a vote of the people of the county,
nor unless a majority of all the legal voters of the county voting on the
question, shall vote for the same.
§ 3. There shall be no territory stricken from any county unless a
majority of the voters living in such territory shall petition for such
division ; and no territory shall be added to any county without the
consent of the majority of the voters of the county to which it is
proposed to be added. But the portion so stricken off and added to
another county, or formed in whole or in part into a new county, shall be
holden for, and obliged to pay its proportion of the indebtedness of the
county from which it has been taken.
31
COUNTY SEATS.
§ 4. No county seat shall be removed until the point to which it is
proposed to be removed shall be fixed in pursuance of law, and a
majorit)'- of the voters of the county, to be ascertained in such manner
as shall be provided by general law, shall have voted in favor of its
removal to such point ; and no person shall vote on such question who
has not resided in the county six months, and in the election precinct
ninety days next preceding such election. The question of the removal
of a county seat shall not be oftener submitted than once in ten years, to
a vote of the people.
COUNTY GOVERNMENT.
§ 5. The General Assembly shall provide, by general law, for
township organization, under which any county may organize whenever
a majority of the legal voters of such county, voting at any general
election, shall so determine ; and whenever any county shall adopt town-
ship organization, so much of this Constitution as provides for the
management of the fiscal concerns of the said county by the Board of
County Commissioners may be dispensed with, and the affairs of said
county may be transacted in such manner as the General Assembly may
provide. And in any county that shall have adopted a township
organization, the question of continuing the same may be submitted to a
vote of the electors of such county at a general election, in the manner
that now is or may be provided by law ; and if a majority of all the votes
cast upon that question shall be against township organization, then such
organization shall cease in said county ; and all laws in force in relation
to counties not having township organization, shall immediately take
effect and be in force in such county. No two townships shall have
the same name, and the day of holding the annual township meeting
shall be uniform throughout the State.
§ 6. At the first election of County Judges under this Constitution,
there shall be elected in each of the counties in this State, not under
township organization, three officers, who shall be styled "The Board of
County Commissioners," who shall hold sessions for the transaction of
county business as shall be provided by law. One of said commissioners
shall hold his office for one year, one for two years, and one for three
years, to be determined by lot ; and every year thereafter one such officer
shall be elected in each of said counties for the term of three years.
§ 7. The county affairs of Cook county shall be managed by a Board
of Commissioners of fifteen persons, ten of whom shall be elected from
33
the city of Chicago, and five from towns outside of said city, in such
manner as may be provided by law.
COUNTY OFFICERS AND THEIR COMPENSATION.
§ 8. In each county there shall be elected the following county
officers : County Judge, Sheriff, County Clerk, Clerk of the Circuit Court,
(who rnay be ex-officio Recorder of Deeds, except in counties having sixty
thousand and more inhabitants, in which counties a Recorder of Deeds
shall be elected at the general election in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and seventy-two,) Treasurer, Surveyor and Coro-
ner, each of whom shall enter upon the duties of his office, respectively,
on the first Monday of December after their election ; and they shall hold
their respective offices for the term of four years, except the Treasurer,
Sheriff and Coroner, who shall hold their offices for two years and until
their successors shall be elected and qualified.
§ 9. The clerks of all the courts of record, the Treasurer, Sheriff,
Coroner and Recorder of Deeds of Cook county, shall receive, as their
only compensation for their services, salaries to be fixed by law, which
shall in no case be as much as the lawful compensation of a Judge of the
Circuit Court of said county, and shall be paid, respectively, only out of
the fees of the office actually collected. All fees, perquisites and emolu-
ments (above the amount of said salaries) shall be paid into the county
treasury. The number of the deputies and assistants of such officers shall
be determined by rule of the Circuit Court, to be entered of record, and
their compensation shall be determined by the County Board.
§ 10. The County Board, except as provided in section nine of this
article, shall fix the compensation of all county officers, with the amount
of their necessary clerk hire, stationery, fuel and other expenses, and in
all cases where fees are provided for, said compensation shall be paid only
out of, and shall in no instance exceed the fees actually collected ; they
shall not allow either of them more per annum than fifteen hundred dol-
lars, in counties not exceeding twenty thousand inhabitants ; two thousand
dollars in counties containing twenty thousand and not exceeding thirty
thousand inhabitants ; twenty-five hundred dollars in counties containing
thirty thousand and not exceeding fifty thousand inhabitants ; three
thousand dollars in counties containing fifty thousand and not exceeding
seventy thousand inhabitants ; thirty-five hundred dollars in counties con-
taining seventy thousand and not exceeding one hundred thousand inhab-
itants ; and four thousand dollars in counties containing over one hundred
thousand and not exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants ;
S3
and not more than one thousand dollars additional compensation for each
additional one hundred thousand inhabitants : Froviiieii, that the com-
pensation of no officer shall be increased or diminished during his term
of ofiSce. All fees or allowances by them received, in excess of their
said compensation, shall be paid into the county treasury.
§ II. The fees of township officers, and of each class of county
officers, shall be uniform in the class of counties to which they respectively
belong. The compensation herein provided for shall apply only to offi'jers
hereafter elected, but all fees established by special laws shall cease at the
adoption of this Constitution, and such officers shall receive only such
fees as are provided by general law.
§ 12. All laws fixing the fees of State, county and township officers
shall terminate with the terms, respectively, of those who may be in office
at the meeting of the first General Assembly after the adoption of this
Constitution ; and the General Assembly shall, by general law, uniform
in its operation, provide for and regulate the fees of said officers and their
successors, so as to reduce the same to a reasonable compensation for ser-
vices actually rendered. But the General Assembly may, by general law,
classify the counties by population into not more than three classes, and
regulate the fees according to class.
This article shall not be construed as depriving the Gsneral Assembly
of the power to reduce the fees of existing officers.
§ 13. Every person who is elected or appointed to any office in thi.-.
State, who shall be paid in whole or in part by fees, shall be required by
law to make a semirannual report, under oath, to some officer to be deii^-
nated by law, of all his fees and emoluments.
ARTICLE XI.
CORPORATIONS.
Section i. Na corporation shall be created by special laws, or its
charter extended, changed or amended, except those for charitable, edu-
cational, penal or reformatory purposes, which are to be aid remain under
the patronage and control of the State; but the General Assembly shall
provide, by general laws, for the organization of all corporations hereafter
to be created.
§ 2. All existing charters or grants of special or exclusive privi-
leges, under which organization shall not have taken place, or which sha'.l
not have been in operation within ten days from the time this Constitu-
tion takes effect, shall thereafter have no validity or effjct whatever.
5
34
§ 3- The General Assembly shall provide, by law, that in all elec-
tions for directors or managers of incorporated companies, every stock-
holder shall have the right to vote, in person or by proxy, for the number
of shares of stock owned by him, for as many persons as there are direc-
tors or managers to be elected, or to cumulate said shares, and give one
candidate as many votes as the number of directors, multiplied by the
number of his shares of stock, shall equal, or to distribute them on the
same principle among as many candidates as he shall think fit ; and such
directors or managers shall not be elected in an/ other manner.
§ 4. No law shall be passed by the General Assembly, granting the
right to construct and operate a Street Railroad within any city, town, or
incorporated village, without requiring the consent of the local authori-
ties having the control of the street or highway proposed to be occupied
by such Street Railroad.
BANKS.
§ 5. No State Bank shall hereafter be created, nor shall the State
own or be liable for any stock in any corporation or joint stock company
or association for banking purposes, now created, or to be hereafter
created. No act of the General Assembly authorizing or creating cor-
porations or associations, with banking powers, whether of issue, deposit
or discount, nor amendments thereto, shall go into effect or in any manner
be in force, unless the same shall be submitted to a vote of the people at
the general election next succeeding the passage of the same, and be ap-
proved by a majority of all the votes cast at such election for or against
such law.
§ 6. Every stockholder in a banking corporation or institution
shall be individually responsible and liable to its creditors, over and
above the amount of stock by him or her held, to an amount equal to his
or her respective shares so held, for all its liabilities accruing while he or
she remains such stockholder.
§ 7. The suspension of specie pa.yments by banking institutions,
on their circulation, created by the laws of this State, shall never be per-
mitted or sanctioned. Every banking association, now or which may
hereafter be organized under the laws of this State, shall make and pub-
lish a full and accurate quarterly statement of its affairs, (which shall be
certified to, under oath, by one or more of its officers) as may be pro-
vided by law.
§ 8. If a general banking law shall be enacted, it shall provide for
the registry and countersigning, by an officer of State, of all bills or
35
paper credit, designed to circulate as money, and require security, to the
full amount thereof, to be deposited with the State Treasurer, in United
States or Illinois State Stocks, to be rated at ten per cent, below their
par value ; and in case of the depreciation of said stocks to the amount
of ten per cent, below par, the bank or banks owning said stocks shall be
required to make up said deficiency, by depositing additional stocks.
And said law shall also provide for the recording of the names of all
stockholders in such corporations, the amount of stock held by each, the
time of any transfer thereof, and to whom such transfer is made.
RAILROADS.
§ 9. Every railroad corporation organized or doing business in this
State under the laws or authority thereof, shall have and maintain a
public office or place in this State for the transaction of its business,
where transfers of stock shall be made, and in which shall be kept, for
public inspection, books, in which shall be recorded the amount of capital
stock subscribed, and by whom ; the names of the owners of its stock, and
the amounts owned by them respectively ; the amount of stock paid in
and by whom ; the transfers of said stock ; the amount of its assets and
liabilities, and the names and place of residence of its officers. The direc-
tors of every railroad corporation shall annually make a report, under oath,
to the Auditor of Public Accounts, or some officer to be designated by
law, of all their acts and doings, which report shall include such matters
relating to railroads as may be prescribed by law. And the General
Assembly shall pass laws enforcing, by suitable penalties, the provisions
of this section.
§ 10. The rolling stock, and all other movable property belonging
to any railroad company or corporation in this State, shall be considered
personal property, andvshall be liable to execution and sale in the same
manner as the personal property of individuals, and the General Assembly
shall pass no law exempting any such property from execution and sale.
§ II. No railroad corporation shall consolidate its stock, property
or franchises with any other railroad corporation owning a parallel or
competing line ; and in no case shall any consolidation take place except
upon public notice given, of at least sixty days, to all stockholders, in
such manner as may be provided by law. A majority of the directors of
any railroad corporation now inoorporated or hereafter to be incorporated
by the laws of this State, shall be citizens and residents of this State.
§ 12. Railways heretofore constructed or that may hereafter be
constructed in this State are hereby declared Public Highways, and shall
b:; free to all psrsoni for the transportation of their persons and property
thereon, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. And the
(}3ieral Aiiembly shall, f.-om time to time, pass laws establishing reason-
able maximum rates of charges for the transportation of passengers and
freight on the di.Terent railroads in this State.
§ 13. No railroad corporation shall issue any stock or bonds, except
for money, lalior or property actually received and applied to the pur-
poses for which such corporation was created ; and all stock dividends, and
other! fictitious increase of the capital stock or indebtedness of any such
corporation, shall be void. The capital stock of no railroad corporation
shall be increased for any purpose, except upon giving sixty days' public
notice, in such manner as may be provided by law.
§ 14. The exercise of the power and the right of eminent domain
shall never be so construed or abridged as to prevent the taking, by the
General Assembly, of the property and franchises of incorporated com-
panies already organized, and subjecting them to the public necessity the
same as of individuals. The right of trial by jury shall be held inviolate
in all trials of claims for compensation, when, in the exercise of the said
right of eminent domain, any incorporated company shall be interested
either foi* or against the exercise of said right.
§ I j. The General Assembly shall pass laws to correct abuses and
prevent unjust discrimination and extortion in the rates of freight and
passenger tariffs on the different railroads in this State, and enforce such
laws by adequate penalties to the extent, if necessary for that purpose, o'f
forfeiture of their property and franchises.
ARTICLE XII.
m:l!t:a.
Cection I. The militia of the State of Illinois shall consist of all
able-bodied male persons, resident in the State, between the ages of eigh-
teen and forty-five, except such persons as now are or hereafter may be
exempted by the laws of the United States, or of this State.
§ 2. The General Assembly in providing for the organization, equip-
ment and discipline of the militia, shall conform as nearly as practicable
to the regulations for the government of the armies of the United States.
§ 3. All militia officers shall be commissioned by the Governor, and
may hold their commissions for such time as the General Assembly may
provide.
sr
§ 4. The militia shall, in all cases, except treason, felony or breach
of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at musters
and elections, and in going to and returning from the same.
§ 5. The military records, banners and relics of the State, shall be
preserved as an enduring memorial of the patriotism and valor of Illinois,
and it shall be the duty of the General Assembly to provide by law for
the safe keeping of the same.
§ 6. No person having conscientious scruples against bearing arms,
shall be compelled to do militia duty in time of peace : Provided, such
person shall pay an equivalent for such exemption.
ARTICLE XIII.
WAREHOUSES.
Section i. All elevators or storehouses where grain or other property
is stored for a compensation, whether the property stored be kept separated
or not, are declared to be public warehouses.
§ 2. The owner, lessee or manager of each and every public ware-
house situated in any town or city of not less than one hundred thousand
inhabitants, shall make weekly statements under oath, before some officer
to be designated by law, and keep the same posted in some conspicuous
place in the office of such warehouse, and shall also file a copy for public
examination in such place as shall be designated by law, which statement
shall correctly set forth the amount and grade of each and every kind of
grain in such warehouse, together with such other property ai may be
stored therein, and what warehouse receipts have been issued and are, at
the time of making such sta!tement, outstanding therefor ; and shall, on
the copy posted in the warehouse, note daily such changes as may be made
in the quantity and grade of grain in such warehouse ; and the different ,
grades of grain shipped in separate lots, shall not be mixed with inferior
or superior grades without the consent of the owner or consignee thereof.
§ 3. The owners of property stored in any warehouse, or holder of
a receipt for the same, shall always be at liberty to examine such property
stored, and all the books and records of the warehouse, in regard to such
property.
§ 4. All railroad companies and other common carriers on railroads,
shall weigh or measure grain at points where it is shipped, and receipt for
the full amount, and shall be responsible for the delivery of such amount
to the owner or consignee thereof, at the place of destination.
S8
§ 5. All railroad companies receiving and transporting grain in bulk
or otherwise shall deliver the same to any consignee thereof, or any eleva-
tor or public warehouse to which it may be consigned, provided such con-
signee or the elevator or public warehouse can be reached by any track
owned, leased or used, or .which can be used by such railroad compa-
nies ; and all railroad companies shall permit connections to be made
with their track, so that any such consignee and any public warehouse,
coal bank or coal yard may be reached by the cars on said railroad.
§ 6. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to pass all neces-
sary laws to prevent the issue of false and fraudulent warehouse receipts,
and to give full effect to this Article of the Constitution, which shall be
liberally construed so as to protect producers and shippers. And the enu-
meration of the remedies herein named shall not be construed to deny
to the General Assembly the power to prescribe by law such other and
further remedies as may be found expedient, or to deprive any person of
existing common law remedies.
§ 7. The General Assembly shall pass laws for the inspection of
grain, for the protection of producers, shippers and receivers of grain
and produce.
ARTICLE XIV.
AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION.
Section i. Whenever two-thirds of the members of each House
of the General Assembly shall, by a vote entered upon the journals
thereof, concur that a Convention is necessary to revise, alter or amend
the Constitution, the question shall be submitted to the electors at the
next general election. If a majority voting at the election vote for a
Convention, the General Assembly shall, at the next session, provide for
a Convention, to consist of double the number of members of the Senate,
to be elected in the same manner, at the same places, and in the same
districts. The General Assembly shall, in the act calling the Convention,
designate the day, hour, and place of its meeting, fix the pay of its mem-
bers and officers, and provide for the payment of the same, together with
the expenses necessarily incurred by the Convention in the performance
of its duties. Before proceeding, the members shall take an oath to sup-
port the Constitution of the United States, and of the State of Illinois,
and to faithfully discharge their duties as members of the Convention.
The qualification of members shall be the same as that of members of the
Senate, and vacancies occurring shall be filled in the manner provided for
filling vacancies in the General Assembly. Said Convention shall meet
39
within three months after such election, and prepare such revision, altera-
tion or amendments of the Constitution as shall be deemed necessary,
which shall be submitted to the electors for, their ratification or rejection,
at an election appointed by the Convention for that purpose, not less than
two nor more than six months after the adjournment thereof ; and unless
so submitted and approved by a majority of the electors voting at the
election, no such revision, alterations, or amendments, shall take effect.
§ 2. Amendments to the Constitution may be proposed in either
House of the General Assembly, and if the same shall be voted for, by
two-thirds of all the members elected to each of the two Houses, such
proposed amendments, together with the yeas and nays of each House
thereon, shall be entered in full on their respective journals, and said
amendments shall be submitted to the electors of this State for adoption
or rejection, at the next election of members of the General Assembly,
in such manner as may be prescribed by law. The proposed amendments
shall be published in full at least three months preceding the election,
and if a majority of the electors voting at said election shall vote for the
proposed amendments, they shall become a part of this Constitution.
But the General Assembly shall have no power to propose amendments
to more than one Article of this Constitution at the same session, nor to
the same Article oftener than once in four years.
SECTIONS SEPARATELY SUBMITTED.
ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD.
No contract, obligation or liability whatever, of the Illinois Central
Railroad Company to pay any money into the State Treasury, nor any
lien of the State upon or right to tax property of said Company, in
accordance with the provisions of the charter of said Company, approved
February loth, A. D. 1851, shall ever be released, suspended, modified,
altered, remitted or in any manner diminished or impaired by legislative
or other authority ; and all moneys derived from said Company after the
payment of the State debt, shall be appropriated and set apart for the
payment of the ordinary expenses of the State Government, and for no
other purposes whatever.
MINORITY REPRESENTATION.
The House of Representatives shall consist of three times the num-
ber of the members of the Senate, and the term of office shall be two
years. Three Representatives shall be elected in each Senatorial District
40
at the general election in the year of our Lord 1872, and every twp
years thereafter. In all elections of Representatives aforesaid, each
qualified voter may cast as many votes for one candidate as there are
Representatives to be elected, or may distribute the same, or equal parts
thereof, among the candidates, as he shall see fit, and the candidates
highest in votes shall be declared elected.
MUNICIPAL, SUBSCRIPTIONS TO RAILROAD OR PRIVATE CORPORATIONS.
No county, city, town, township, or other municipality, shall ever
become subscriber to the capital stock of any railroad or private corpora-
tion, or make donation to, or loan its credit in aid of such corporation:
Provided, however, that the adoption of this Article shall not be construed
as affecting the right of any such municipality to make such subscriptions
where the same have been authorised, under existing laws, by a vote of
the people of such municipalities prior to such adoption.
CANAL.
The Illinois and Michigan Canal shall never be sold or leased until
the specific proposition for the sale or lease thereof shall first have been
submitted to a vote of the people of the State, at a general election, and
have been approved by a majority of all the votes polled at such election.
The General Assembly shall never loan the credit of the State, or
make appropriations from the Treasury thereof, in aid of railroads or
canals : Provided, that any surplus earnings of any canal may be appro-
priated for its enlargement or extension.
SCHEDULE.
That no inconvenience may arise from the alterations and amend-
ments made in the Constitution of this State, and to carry the same into
complete effect, it is hereby ordained and declared :
Section i. ^That all laws in force at the adoption of this Constitu-
tion, not inconsistent therewith, and all rights, actions, prosecutions, claims
and contracts of this State, individuals or bodies corporate, shall continue
to be as valid as if this Constitution had not been adopted.
§ 2. That all fines, taxes, penalties and forfeitures, due and owing
to the State of Illinois under the present Constitution and laws, shall inure
to the use of the people of the State of Illinois under this Constitution.
§ 3. Recognizances, bonds, obligations, and all other instruments
entered into or executed before the adoption of this Constitution, to the
41
people of the State of Illinois, to any State or county officer or public
body, shall remain binding and valid, and rights and liabilities upon the
same shall continue ; and all crimes and misdemeanors shall be tried and
punished as though no change had been made in the Constitution of
this State.
§ 4. County Courts, for the transaction of county business in coun-
ties not having adopted township organization, shall continue in exist-
ence, and exercise their present jurisdiction until the board of county
commissioners provided in- this Constitution, is organized in pursuance of
an act of the General Assembly; and the County Courts in all other
counties shall have the same power and jurisdiction they now possess,
until otherwise provided by general law.
§ 5. All existing courts which are not in this Constitution specifi-
cally enumerated, shall continue ih existence and exercise their present
jurisdiction until otherwise provided by law.
§ 6. All persons now filling any ofi[ice or appointment, shall con-
tinue in the exercise of the duties thereof, according to their respective
commissions or appointments, unless by this Constitution it is otherwise
directed.
§ 7. On the day this Constitution is submitted to the people for
ratification, an election shall be held for Judges of the Supreme Court in
the second, third, sixth and seventh judicial election districts designated
in this Constitution, and for the election of three Judges of the Circuit
Court in the county of Cook, as provided for in the Article of this Con-
stitution relating to the Judiciary; at which election, every person enti-
tled to vote according to the terms of this Constitution, shall be allowed
to vote, and the election shall be otherwise conducted, returns made and
certificates issued, in accordance with existing laws, except that no registry
shall be required at said election : Provided, that at said election in the
county of Cook no elector shall vote for more than two candidates for
Circuit Judge. If, upon canvassing the votes for and against the adop-
tion of this Constitution, it shall appear that there has been polled a
greater number of votes against than for it, then no certificates of election
shall be issued for any of said Supreme or Circuit Judges.
§ 8. This Constitution shall be submitted to the people of the State
of Illinois for adoption or rejection, at an election to be held on the first
42
Saturday in July, A. D. 1870, and there shall be separately submitted at
the same time, for adoption or rejection,
Sections 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15, relating to railroads, in the
Article entitled Corporations;
The Article entitled Counties;
The Article entitled Warehouses;
The question of requiring a three-fifths vote to remove a county seat ;
The section relating to the Illinois Central Railroad ;
The section in relation to Minority Representation ;
The section relating to Municipal Subscriptions to Railroads or Pri-
vate Corporations, and
The section relating to the Canal.
Every person entitled to vote under the provisions of this Constitu-
tion, as defined in the Article in relation to "Suffrage," shall be entitled
to vote for the adoption or rejection of this Constitution, and for or
against the articles, sections and questions aforesaid, separately submitted ;
and the said qualified electors shall vote at the usual places of voting,
unless otherwise provided, and the said elections shall be conducted, and
returns thereof made, according to the laws now in force regulating gen-
eral elections, except that no registry shall be required at said election :
Provided, however, that the polls shall be kept open for the reception of
ballots until sunset of said day of election.
§ 9. The Secretary of State shall, at least twenty days before said
election, cause to be delivered to the county clerk of each county,
blank poll-books, tally-lists, and forms of return, and twice the number
of properly prepared printed ballots for the said election that there are
voters in such county, the expense whereof shall be audited and paid as
other public printing ordered by the Secretary of State is, by law, required
to be audited and paid ; and the several county clerks shall, at least five
days before said election, cause to be distributed to the board of election,
in each election district, in their respective counties, said blank poll-books,
tally-lists, forms of return, and tickets.
§ 10. At the said election the ballots shall be in the following form :
New Constitution Ticket.
For all the propositions on this ticket which are not cancelled with
ink or pencil ; and against all which are so cancelled.
For the new Constitution. ^
For the sections relating to Railroads in the Article entitled Corpo-
rations.
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For the Article entitled Counties.
For the Article entitled Warehouses.
For a three-fifths vote to remove County Seats.
For the section relating to the Illinois Central Railroad. ^
For the section relating to Minority Representation.
For the section relating to Municipal Subscriptions to Railroads or
Private Corporations.
For the section relating to the Canal.
Each of said tickets shall be counted as a vote cast for each proposi-
tion thereon not cancelled with ink or pencil and against each proposition
so cancelled, and returns thereof shall be made accordingly by the Judges
of Election.
§ II. The returns of the whole vote cast, and of the votes for the
adoption or rejection of this Constitution, and for or against the Articles
and sections respectively submitted, shall be made by the several county
clerks, as is now provided by law, to the Secretary of State, within twenty
days after the election ; and the returns of the said votes shall, within
five days thereafter, be examined and canvassed by the Auditor, Treasurer
and Secretary of State, or any two of them, in the presence of the Gov-
ernor, and proclamation shall be made by the Governor, forthwith, of the
result of the canvass.
§ 12. If it shall appear that a majority of the votes polled are " for
the new Constitution," then so much of this Constitution as was not
separately submitted to be voted on by Articles and Sections, shall be the
supreme law of the State of Illinois, on and after Monday, the 8th day
of August, A. D. 1870 ; but if it shall appear that a majority of the votes
polled were "against the new Constitution," then so much thereof as
was not separately submitted to be voted on by Articles and Sections shall
be null and void. If it shall appear that a majority of the votes polled
are "for the sections relating to railroads in the Article entitled 'Corpo-
rations,' " sections 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15, relating to railroads in
the said Article, shall be a part of the Constitution of this State ; but if
a majority of said votes are against such sections, they shall be null and
void. If a majority of the votes polled are "for the Article entitled
'Counties,' " such Article shall be a part of the Constitution of this State,
and shall be substituted for Article VII, in the present Constitution,
entitled "Counties;" but if a majority of said votes are against such
Article, the same shall be null and void. If a majority of the votes polled
are for the Article entitled " Warehouses," such Article shall be a part of
44
the Constitution of this State ; but if a majority of the votes are against
said Article, the same shall be null and void. If a majority of the votes
polled are for either of the sections separately submitted, relating respect-
ively to the "Illinois Central Railroad," "Minority Representation,"
"Municipal Subscriptions to Railroads or, Private Corporations," and
the "Canal," then such of said sections as shall receive such majority,
shall be a part of the Constitution of this State ; but each of said sections
so separately submitted, against which, respectively, there shall be a
majority of the votes polled, shall be null and void : Provided, that the
section relating to "Minority Representation," shall not be declared
adopted unless the portion of the Constitution not separately submitted
to be voted on by articles and sections, shall be adopted ; and in case
said section relating to "Minority Representation," shall become a por-
tion of the Constitution, it shall be substituted for sections 7 and 8 of
the Legislative Article. If a majority of the votes cast at such election
shall be for a three-fifths vote to remove a county seat, then the words "a
majority " shall be stricken out of section four of the Article on counties,
and the words " three-iifths " shall be inserted in lieu thereof; and the fol-
lowing words shall be added to said section, to wit: "But when an
attempt is made to remove a county seat to a point nearer to the centre
of a county, then a majority vote only shall be necessary." If the fore-
going proposition shall not receive a majority of the votes, as aforesaid,
then the same shall have no effect whatever.
§ 13. Immediately after the adoption of this Constitution the Gov-
ernor and Secretary of State shall proceed to ascertain and fix the appor-
tionment of the State for members of the first House of Representatives
under this Constitution. The apportionment shall be based upon the
Federal census of the year of our Lord 1870, of the State of Illinois, and
shall be made strictly in accordance with the rules and principles announced
in the article on the Legislative Department of this Constitution : Provided,
that in case the Federal census aforesaid can not be ascertained prior to
Friday, the 23d day of September, A. D. 1870, then the said apportion-
ment shall be based on the State census of the year of our Lord 1865, in
accordance with the rules and principles aforesaid. The Governor shall,
on or before Wednesday, the 28th day of September, A. D. 1870, make
official announcement of the said apportionment, under the great seal of
the State ; and 100 copies thereof, duly certified, shall be forthwith trans-
mitted by the Secretary of State to each county clerk for distribution.
§ 14. The districts shall be regularly numbered, by the Secretary of
45
State, commencing with Alexander county as No. i, and proceeding thence
northwardly throiigh the State, and terminating with the county of Cook ;
but no county shall be numbered as more than one district, except the
county of Cook, which shall constitute three districts, each embracing
the territory contained in th« now existing Representative Districts of said
county. And on the Tuesday after the grst Monday in November, A. D.
1870, the members of the first House of Representatives under this Con-
stitution shall be elected according to the apportionment fixed and an-
nounced as aforesaid, and shall hold their offices for two years, and until
their successors shall be elected and qualified.
§ 15. The Senate, at its first session under this Constitution, shall
consist of fifty members, to be chosen as follows : At the general election
held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November, A. D. 1870,
two Senators shall be elected in districts where the term of Senators ex-
pire on the first Monday of January, A. D. 1871, or where there shall be
a vacancy, and in the remaining districts one Senator shall be elected.
Senators so elected shall hold their office two years.
§ 16. The General Assembly, at its first session held after the adop-
tion of this Constitution, shall proceed to apportion the State for members
of the Senate and House of Representatives, in accordance with the pro-
visions of the Article on the Legislative Department.
§ 17. When this Constitution shall be ratified by the people, the
Governor shall forthwith, after having ascertained the fact, issue writs of
election to the sheriffs of the several counties of this State, or in case of
vacancies, to the coroners, for the election of all the officers, the time of
whose election is fixed by this Constitution or schedule, and it shall be
the duty of said sheriffs or coroners to give such notice of the time
and place of said election as is now prescribed by law.
§ 18. All laws of the State of Illinois, and all official writings, and
the Executive, Legislative and Judicial proceedings, shall be conducted,
preserved and published in no other than the English language.
§ 19. The General Assembly shall pass all laws necessary to carry
into effect the provisions of this Constitution.
§ 20. The Circuit Clerks of the different counties having -a popula-
tion over sixty thousand, shall continue to be Recorders {eic officio) for
their respective counties, under this Constitution, until the expiration of
their respective terms.
7
46
§ 21. The Judges of all Courts of Record in Cook county shall, in
lieu of any salary provided for in this Constitution, receive the compen-
sation now provided by law until the adjournment of the first session of
the General Assembly, after the adoption of this Constitution.
§ 22. The present Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook county shall
continue to hold the Circuit Court of Lake county until otherwise pro-
vided by law.
§ 23. When this Constitution shall be adopted, and take effect as
the supreme law of the State of Illinois, the two-mill tax provided to be
annually assessed and collected upon each dollar's worth of taxable prop-
erty, in addition to all other taxes, as set forth in Article 15 of the now
existing Constitution, shall cease to be assessed after the year of our
Lord 1870.
§ 24. Nothing contained in this Constitution shall be so construed
as to deprive the General Assembly of power to authorize the city of
Quincy to create any indebtedness for railroad or municipal purposes for
which the people of said city shall have voted, and to which they shall
have given, by such vote, their assent prior to the 13th day of December,
A. D. 1869 : Provided, that no such indebtedness, so created, shall in any
part thereof be paid by the State, or from any State revenue, tax or fund,
but the same shall be paid, if at all, by the said city of Quincy alone, and
by taxes to be levied upon the taxable property thereof: And frovided,
further, that the General Assembly shall have no power in the premises
that it could not exercise under the present Constitution of this State.
§ 25. In case this Constitution and the Articles and Sections sepa-
rately submitted, be adopted, the existing Constitution shall cease in all
its provisions; and in case this Constitution be adopted, and any one or
more of the articles or sections submitted separately, be defeated, the pro-
visions of the existing Constitution, if any, on the same subject, shall re-
main in force.
§ 26. The provisions of this Constitution required to be executed
prior to the adoption or rejection thereof, shall take effect and be in force
immediately.
Done in Convention, at the Capitol, in the city of Springfield, on
the 13th day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred
and seventy, and of the Independence of the United States of America
the ninety-fourth.
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