NORTH CAROLINA. 



553 



vision is made for the management and main- 

 tenance of the State University. It is pro- 

 vided that the public schools shall be open, free 

 of charge, to all children of the State between 

 the age of six and twenty-one, and the Gen- 

 eral Assembly is empowered to enact that 

 " every child of sufficient mental and physical 

 ability shall attend the Public Schools during 

 the period between the ages of six and 

 eighteen years, for a term of not less than six- 

 teen months, unless educated by other means." 

 The advantages of the University are extended, 

 "as far as practicable, to the youth of the 

 State free of expense for tuition." 



A homestead and dwelling not exceeding 

 one thousand dollars in value, and personal 

 property to the amount of five hundred dol- 

 lars, are exempted from sale under execution 

 or other legal process for the collection of 

 any debt. The separate property of women, 

 acquired before or after marriage, is secured to 

 them free from liability on account of the debts 

 of their husbands. 



All able-bodied male persons between the 

 ages of twenty-one and forty years, who are 

 citizens of the United States, are made liable to 

 duty in the militia, unless averse to bearing 

 arms from religious scruples ; and it is made 

 the duty of the Legislature to provide for the 

 efficient employment of this force, to execute 

 the law, suppress riots or insurrection, and to 

 repel invasion. 



The following section renders the amend- 

 ment of the constitution quite difficult : 



SECTION 2. No part of the constitution of this State 

 shall be altered, unless a bill to alter the same shall 

 have been read three times in each House of the 

 General Assembly, and agreed to by three-fifths of 

 the whole number of members of each House, respec- 

 tively ; nor shall any alteration take place, until the 

 bill so agreed to shall have been published six months 

 previous to a new election of members of the Gen- 

 eral Assembly. If, after such publication, the altera- 

 tion proposed by the preceding General Assembly 

 shall oe agreed to, in the first session thereafter, by 

 two-thirds of the whole representation in each House 

 of the General Assembly, after the same shall have 

 been read three times on three several days in each 

 House, then the said General Assembly shall pre- 

 scribe a mode by which the amendment or amend- 

 ments may be submitted to the qualified voters of 

 the House of Representatives throughout the State ; 

 and if, upon comparing the votes given in the whole 

 State, it shall appear that a majority of the voters 

 voting thereon have approved thereof, then, and 

 not otherwise, the same shall become a part of the 

 constitution. 



The principal objections made to the work 

 of the convention, either by its own members 

 or in the public prints, were based on its free- 

 dom from any provisions making distinctions 

 among citizens on account of race, color, or 

 previous condition. The convention concluded 

 its labors with an ordinance providing for the 

 first election, at which the vote was to be 

 taken on its ratification, and adjourned on the 

 17th of March. 



The ordinance of the convention, providing 

 for the holding of the election at which the 



vote of the people was to be taken on the 

 ratification of the constitution, appointed the 

 21st, 22d and 23d of April for that purpose, 

 and farther provided that at the same election 

 Senators and Representatives to the General 

 Assembly, and all the State and county offi- 

 cers, as well as Representatives to the Con- 

 gress of the United States, should be chosen. 

 A certified copy of this ordinance was for- 

 warded to General Canby, commander of the 

 military district, and on the 23d of March he 

 issued an order for holding the election, con- 

 taining complete instructions for revising the 

 registration of qualified voters, and for receiv- 

 ing and returning the votes. Among the in- 

 structions contained in his order, were the 

 following : 



9th. The sheriff and other peace-officers of each 

 county are required to be present during the whole 

 time that the polls are kept open, and until the elec- 

 tion is completed ; and will be made responsible 

 that there shall be no interference with judges of 

 election, or other interruption of good order. If 

 there should be more than one polling place in any 

 county, the sheriff of the county is empowered and 

 directed to make such assignments of his deputies, 

 and other peace-officers, to the other polling-places, 

 as may in his judgment best subserve the purposes 

 of quiet and order ; and he is further required to re- 

 port these arrangements in advance to the commander 

 of the military post hi which his county is situated. 



10th. Violence, or threats of violence, or of dis- 

 charge from employment, or other oppressive means 

 to prevent any jperspn from registering or exercising 

 his right of voting, is positively prohibited ; and any 

 such attempts will be reported by the registrars, or 

 judges of elections, to the post commander, and will 

 cause the arrest and trial of the offenders by military 

 authority. The exhibition or carrying of deadly 

 weapons in violation of General Orders No. 10. of 

 1867, at or in the vicinity of any polling-places dur- 

 ing the election herein ordered, will be regarded and 

 treated as an additional offence. 



llth. All bar-rooms, salpons ; and other places for 

 the sale of liquors by retail, will be closed from six 

 o'clock of the evening of the 20th of April, until six 

 o'clock of the morning of the 24th of April, 1868, 

 and during this time the sale of all intoxicating 

 liquors at or near any polling-place is prohibited. 

 The police officers of cities and towns, and the sher- 

 iffs and other peace-officers of counties, will be held 

 responsible for the strict enforcement of this prohibi- 

 tion, and will promptly arrest and hold for trial all 

 persons who may^ transgress it. 



12th. Military interference with elections, "unless 

 it shall be necessary to repel the armed enemies of 



" 



the United States, or to keep the peace at the polls," 

 is prohibited by the Act of Congress approved Feb- 

 ruary 25, 1865, and no soldiers will be allowed to ap- 



the 



ear at any polling-place, unless as citizens of 

 State they are qualified and are registered as voters, 

 and then only for the purpose of voting ; but the 

 commanders of posts will keep their troops well in 

 hand on the days of election, and will be prepared 

 to act promptly if the civil authorities are unable to 

 preserve the peace. 



The State-officers to be chosen were a gov- 

 ernor, lieutenant-governor, auditor, treasurer, 

 superintendent of public works, superintend- 

 ent of public instruction, attorney-general, 

 five justices of the Supreme Court, and one 

 judge of the Superior Court, in each of twelve 

 judicial districts. 



A disposition was shown, on the part of all 



