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TO BE VOTED UPON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1874.

THE

CONSTITUTION OF MICHIGAN

A S

PROPOSED FOR AMENDMENT,

AND

SUBMITTED TO THE PEOPLE IN THE FORM OF A JOINT RESOLUTION,

WITH

NOTATIONS OF PROPOSED CHANGES.

THE JOINT RESOLUTION PROPOSING THE EXTENSION OF THE ELECTIVE FRANCHISE TO
WOMEN, 18 APPENDED AS A SEPARATE PROPOSITION, AND DOES NOT DEPEND

IN ANY MANNER UPON THE OTHER PROPOSED AMENDMENTS.

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W. S. GEORGE & CO., STATE PRINTERS AND BINDERS.

1874.

COMPILER'S PREFACE.

For reasons which are stated in the review which follows, the Legislature of Michigan, at its session of 1873, passed the joint resolution providing "That the Governor be and he is hereby authorized and empowered to nominate and appoint eighteen able and discreet citizens, who shall be authorized to examine into and report to the next session, either special or general, of the Legislature of this State, such amendments and revision of the constitution as in their judgment may be necessary for the best interests of the State and the people."

The Commission met at the capitol on the 27th day of August, 1873, and completed its labors on the 16th day of October, and reported its action to the Governor, as required by the joint resolution. The Legislature having been convened in extra session on the third day of March, 1874, the work of the Commission was laid before that body by the Governor in a special message, in which he says: "It seems to be the import of the resolution that the report of the Commission be submitted to the present Legislature; and there are many good reasons why this should be done, which have influenced me in calling you together in special session."

The work of the Commission, after careful review and amendment by the Legislature, was passed in the form of a joint resolution by both houses on the 21st of March, and is submitted to the people for their adoption or rejection at the general election to be held in November next.

By a concurrent resolution of the two houses, the proposed amended constitution was ordered to be printed in pamphlet form, and the undersigned was appointed to "compile a brief statement of the principal changes proposed, such statement, before being printed, to be submitted to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House, and approved by them." This pamphlet is therefore published by virtue of the action herewith recited.

The resolution authorizing the publication of the proposed amended constitution, with the statement of changes, in the newspapers of the State, and other reasons, have governed the form and method of the work. The analysis which I prepared of the changes as proposed by the Constitutional Commission, was with more especial reference to their critical examination by the Legislature. For this purpose, the use of italics to designate new matter, the foot notes referring to specific provisions, and the marginal references, were

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valuable, if not indispensable aids. For newspaper publication this plan would be impracticable, for the reason that the amount of italic would greatly exceed the proportion of italic types in newspaper offices, while the notes and references that are practicable in the pamphlet page would be unadapted to newspaper columns.

As a compliance with the terms of the resolution by which I was appointed to do the work, I have appended to each article a note stating briefly the changes proposed by such article. This will come within the resolution authorizing the publication by newspapers. For the pamphlet edition, however, I have prepared a brief review of the more important changes, in some cases showing wherein the instrument as submitted by the Legislature differs from the recommendations of the Constitutional Commission. In this, I have sought to represent not my own views exclusively, so much as the sentiment in the Legislature which led to the adoption of the proposed amendments by a non-partisan vote, and by a vote in each house considerably larger than the requisite constitutional majority. The joint resolution providing for the submission of the question of extending the elective franchise to women is appended.

By a subsequent resolution, I was instructed "to add a complete index of the constitution" to the pamphlet edition. This will be found following the constitution and notes.

Lansing, April 28, 1874.

S. B. MCCRACKEN.

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