102 



CIVIL HISTORY OF VERMOxNT. 



Part II. 



ELECTION SKKMONS. 



SKVERE COLD. 



AMENDED CONSTITUTION. 



of the public lands, for the purposes of 

 education and internal improvement, com- 

 ports alike with sound policy and the 

 principles of justice ; — And that the Ex- 

 ecutive of the United States, in his late 

 removal of the public moneys from the 

 pliice of custody established by law, exer- 

 cised a power not given him by the con- 

 stitution or laws, but in derogation of 

 both." And a resolution was passed, in- 

 structing the senators and requesting the 

 representatives in Congress from this state 

 to sustain the principles and policy of the 

 report. At this session an act was passed 

 incorporating Norwich University ; and 

 with this year terminated the practice of 

 having what was called an election scr- 

 ?non, which had been observed from the 

 first organization of the government.* 



The continuance of three political par- 

 ties again in 183.') prevented the election 

 of a governor by the people, but the anti- 

 masonic candidates for lieutenant govern- 

 or and treasurer were chosen by large 

 majorities. After trying, at short inter- 

 vals, for more tlian three weeks, without 

 success, to elect a governor in joint com- 

 mittee of the two houses, the committee 

 dissolved, and the duties of governor de- 

 volved upon Silas H. Jenison, who had 

 been elected to the office of lieutenant 

 governor. At the session of the legisla- 

 ture this year, a law was passed requiring 

 vessels, navigating lake Champlain in 

 the night time, to carry lights ; and an- 

 other to encourage the growing of silk in 

 this state, by offering a premium for the 

 same. 



The 16th, 17th and 16th days of De- 

 cember in this year-are memorable on ac- 

 count of the cold. The IGth was the most 

 severe through the day, and has, proba- 

 bly, had few equals since the country was 

 settled. Tlie thermometer was about 20':' 

 below zero during the day, in the north- 

 ern part of the state, with a very strong 



* The author has talcpn eome pains to ascertain 

 who have heeii the preachers before the General As- 

 eeinbly of tliis state, and the following, though in- 

 complete, is the result of liis inquiries : 



1778 Peter Powers, C 

 1778 E<len Burroughs, C 

 }~t'5 Lyman Potter, C 

 17S9 Jlr. Foster 

 1790 Job Swift, C 



1794 Sani'l Williams, C 



1795 Asa Burton, C 

 ]79U Dan Kent, C 

 1799 William Forsyth 

 180t Nath'l Lambert, C 



1804 Sylvester Sage, C 



1805 John Fitch, C 



1808 Tilton Eastman, C 



1809 Svlvanus Haynes, B 

 1811 Thomas Skecl 

 1612 Isaac Beal, B 

 18i4 Elijah layman, C 

 1815 Henry Davis, C 



ISIG Samuel Austin, C 

 J817 Phineas Peck 

 1818 Clark Kendrick, B^ 



1820 George Leonaril,£ 



1821 Joshua Bates, C 



1822 John Lindsey 

 183.3 Jo. W. Sawyer, B 



1824 A. Chandler, C 



1825 Robert Bartlett, U 

 ie2d William Fiske, M 



1827 Thos.Go<idwillie,P 



1828 Jonathan Woodman 



1829 Chns. Walker C 



1830 G. G. Jngersoll Ut 



1831 Loland Howard B 



1832 Wm. S. Perkins, K 



1833 Tobias Spiier, M 



1834 Warren Skinner, U 



piercing wind from the west. On the 

 morning of the 18th the thermometer was 

 from '.M)~' to 4U"i below zero, in different 

 parts of the state, and, in some places, the 

 quick-silver actually congealed, but be- 

 fore noon, the cold very much moderated. 



The year 1836 opens a new era in the 

 history of legislation in Vermont. Up to 

 this time the whole legislative power was 

 vested in a house of representatives. 

 The governor and council could propose 

 amendments to bills, and in extreme cases 

 suspend their passage till the next session 

 of the general assembly, but by no means 

 possessed the powers of a co-ordinate 

 branch of the legislature. In the early 

 part of this year, the constitution of the 

 state was so amended as to create a senate 

 in place of the council, with powers simi- 

 lar to those exercised by the senate of the 

 United States, and of most of the individ- 

 ual states. Tlie legislature came togeth- 

 er in the fall of this year for the first time 

 under the amended constitution. Silas 

 H. Jenison, who had discharged the du- 

 ties of that office the preceding year, was 

 found to be elected governor by the peo- 

 ple by a handsome majority. At this ses- 

 sion an act was passed providing for the 

 receipt of the public money of the United 

 States, which should be deposited in this 

 state, and for its distribtition among the 

 towns in proportion to their population ; 

 and directing that the interest of the same 

 should be applied for the support of com- 

 mon schools. Resolutions were also pass- 

 ed, declaring " that neither Congress nor 

 the state governments have any consti- 

 tutional right to abridge the free expres- 

 sion of opinions, or the transmission of 

 them through the ])ublic mail ; — and that 

 Congress do possess the power to abolish 

 slavery and the slave trade in the District 

 of Columbia." 



By the concurrence of sundry causes, 

 among which were the vast importations 

 of foreign goods, the increase of trade 

 upon borrowed capital, the unparalleled 

 speculations in the public lands, the fail- 

 ure of the wheat crop, which rendered 

 the importation of bread stuffs necessary, 

 the removal of tlie deposites of public 

 money from the United States Bank, and 

 the efforts of that bank to close its con- 

 cerns, produced, in 1837, one of the most 

 disastrous panics, which the country had 

 experienced for a long period. The cur- 

 rencv was deranged, confidence destroy- 

 ed, business paralyzed, and the banks 

 obliged to suspend specie payments from 

 one end of the Union to the other. Dis- 

 tress and ruin prevailed throughout the 

 length and breadth of the land. 



At the meeting of the legislature in 



