CHAP. XXVII.] JUDGES CASHIERED. 125 



conventions every twenty-five or thirty years, might 

 seem to European politicians to imply a wish to per 

 petuate an experimental state of things ; but where 

 the population had quadrupled since the last con 

 vention, where thousands of *ite^nigrants had poured 

 in from various States, the majority of them speaking 

 a new language, and introducing a new code of laws, 

 into the Second Municipality, where circumstances 

 connected with their social, religious, political, and 

 financial affairs had so altered, in a word, where 

 they were unavoidably in a transition state, the best 

 way of guarding against revolutionary movements 

 was to settle on some fixed periods for revising the 

 constitution, and inquiring whether any organic 

 changes were indispensable. 



Among other violent proceedings, I found that 

 the late convention had cashiered all the judges of 

 the Supreme Court, although they had been ap 

 pointed for life, or &quot; quamdiu se bene gesserint,&quot; and 

 with very high salaries. They were to have no re 

 tiring pensions, and this I remarked was an iniquity, 

 as some of them had doubtless given up a lucrative 

 practice on the faith of enjoying a seat on the bench 

 for life. Some lawyers agreed that the measure was 

 indefensible, and said they presumed that, in the end, 

 the democratic party would elect all the judges 

 annually, by universal suffrage. I met, however, 

 with optimists who were ready to defend every act 

 of the convention. Several of the judges, they said, 

 were superannuated, and it would have been invi 

 dious to single them out, and force them to resign. 

 It was better to dismiss the whole. &quot; As for re- 



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