I Mention This As It Bears With Some Strength On
The Question Of The Right Of Secession, And Indicates The
Jealousy
of the individual States with reference to the Federal government.
The Governor can convene extra sessions of one House
Or of both.
He makes a message to the legislature when it meets - a sort of
Queen's speech; and he receives for his services a compensation to
be established by law. In New York this amounts to 800l. a year.
In some States this is as low as 200l. and 300l. In Virginia it is
1000l. In California, 1200l.
The Governor can pardon, except in cases of treason. He has also a
veto upon all bills sent up by the legislature. If he exercise
this veto he returns the bill to the legislature with his reasons
for so doing. If the bill on reconsideration by the Houses be
again passed by a majority of two-thirds in each house, it becomes
law in spite of the Governor's veto. The veto of the President at
Washington is of the same nature. Such are the powers of the
Governor. But though they are very full, the Governor of each
State does not practically exercise any great political power, nor
is he, even politically, a great man. You might live in a State
during the whole term of his government and hardly hear of him.
There is vested in him by the language of the constitution a much
wider power than that intrusted to the governor of our colonies.
But in our colonies everybody talks, and thinks, and knows about
the governor. As far as the limits of the colony the governor is a
great man. But this is not the case with reference to the
governors in the different States.
The next article provides that the Governor's ministers, viz, the
Secretary of State, the Controller, Treasurer, and Attorney-
General, shall be chosen every two years at a general election. In
this respect the State constitution differs from that of the
national constitution. The President at Washington names his own
ministers - subject to the approbation of the Senate. He makes many
other appointments with the same limitation, and the Senate, I
believe, is not slow to interfere; but with reference to the
ministers it is understood that the names sent in by the President
shall stand. Of the Secretary of State, Controller, etc.,
belonging to the different States, and who are elected by the
people, in a general way, one never hears. No doubt they attend
their offices and take their pay, but they are not political
personages.
The next article, No. VI., refers to the judiciary, and is very
complicated. As I cannot understand it, I will not attempt to
explain it. Moreover, it is not within the scope of my ambition to
convey here all the details of the State constitution. In Sec. 20
of this article it is provided that no judicial officer, except
justices of the peace, shall receive to his own use any fees or
perquisites of office." How pleasantly this enactment must sound
in the ears of the justices of the peace!
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