Rensselaer Gazette, Volume 3, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 September 1859 — Violation of the constitution. [ARTICLE]

Violation of the constitution.

Daniel McClure, the former Secrety of State; it will be remembered, was re-elec-ted in 1858, but resigned before his first term had expired, in order to accept an office in the United States army, and Cyrus L. Dunham was appointed to fill the vacancy. Under that appointment Mr. Dunham is still Secretary of State, and apparently will be till the end of the term. We have entitled this a strange case, and it certainly is. Mr. Dunham, under an appointment which only covered about a month of McClure's unexpired first term, is filling the whole of McClure’s second term. In other words, a va*oam\y which tht* Const ii tit ion t*X|Hvssiy re- j quiresi t be filled by an election, is filled by i the Governor's appoin' merit. No election is ordered 'or Secretary oi State this lull, j anti mine will be, and Mr. Dunham, by some mvst rioiis jugglery, will be allowed u serve n "whole term and part ot another as Secret- . t.irv of State, without ever being elected, or even thought of for the office. We may well as if this is not a strange case! The trick by which this queer result is obtained, and by which Gov. Willard has taken the power that the Constitution expressly re serves to-the people, that of filling this office t|>r a tnll term, we will try and explain. Mr. Dunham was appointed a ew ■day* bf or,- the exp ration o Mr. McClure’s •first term. Of c urse his appointment expired with th-* end of the term. Hut McClure did n >t accept his second election at all, never qualified in der it, • r t' < k : ny notice ot it. There was consequent iy no. successor, an i M'. Dtjolnim necessarily held .m tiil a successor could he qu I’fied. An I he as still holding, or there has been no eler- ; turn, aml as we have already s.iid, there will j lie none ordered by the G vernor and thus j Mr. D li'ntu will never *i IVi i SI -■■•(•■a ir till j "his terui is ut». This is one • t the ch-rae-teristic ftrii ks o' liis • x-eih in \ Jnur ! Ttifft is a grow ing eeloig. hav ever, all j over the State, to elect a BSr7-r-“..ry o: State this ta'il, whether, .the G ,vernor orders an election or not. It is an outrage, that, under a inert pro tem. appointment, a man should attempt n l only to fill out a vacancy, but tin entire term in the bargain: and that too with the Constitution only allowing such appoint to last “till a successor shall have been elected and qualified,” and Sec. 14, Art. 2, of the same instrument providing for General Elections, not biennially, but “on the second Tuesday of October” wit hout any biennial restriction. James M. Hill, Esq., a prominent and able lawyer of Jennings county, lias been announced as a candidate. j South Bepd Register.

OCrTlie Madison (IMA Press, of the Ist inst., learns that upward of one hundred cat--tle have died in the vicinity of the Stallings’ ,neighborhood, on Long Lake, from the effects of poison supposed to have been administered by some fiend in human shape, who having been charged by his neighbors with steajing cattle, has taken this method to avenge himself. An examination of the stomachs of a portion of the dead cattle; revealed the fact that arsenic had been administered to them. The Cholera Coming —The appearance of the Asiatic cholera is announced by the London Medical Times. It comes by its usual route from Hamburg. Two cases have -proved fatal—both being importations in the Hil mburg steamers. In the latter place, during the week ending July 31st, there were tour hundred and twenty-four cases, of which three hundred and thirty two proved fatal. The. proportions of deaths is very large, being tbur-fi tits of the whole number attacked. ' Selling Negroes in Illinois. —On the 27th ult., a piece of animated property, called Gejorge Bowlin, was put up on the block at Carrollton. county. Illinois, and sold to the highest bidder. His offence <wa« a violation of the law which pr •liihits •the imigration of negroes into the Stat-*. Having been tried and found guilty, he was fined s63j and not being able to pay the money, lie was sold to Mr. Fel'X Morton in sixteen months. New Albany Ledger says that seven thousand persons can be provided with comfortable accomodations, in New Albany, during the approaching State Fair. Lirge numbers can be accomodated at the t*t.. Charles Hotel, in Portland. Numbers of steamboats will be in the vicinity to accomodate visitors if necess ry, and Louisville is only tour miles distant. It will thus be seen that there will he ro lack of accomjmodations 'or as many thousand as may wish to attend the Fair. On the night of the 27th ult... a building adjoining the Steuben county Poor H .use, in New York, occupied by the deranged and raviitg members of that. Institution, was destroyed by fire and six ot its occupants were rObst* d alive. | r —— . 04CThe ChicSgo Press and Tribune says that the Republican party if Illinois is a : unit, and that its triumph in 1860, by an 1 overw lelming majority, is just as certain as l thut year will come nroutid. [ 047"Forney Boys the reason Bennett and Buchanan remain such good friends, is be- •• cause they have never looked each other square in the face. As each have a squint, the reason is plausible.