each district, and the number of Councillors and Senators to be chofen therein; provided that the number of fuch diftricts fhall be never less than thirteen, and that no district be fo large as to entitle the fame to chufe more than fix Senators.

And the feveral counties in this Commonwealth fhall, until the General Court fhall determine it neceffary to alter the said districts, be diftricts for choice of Councillors and Senators (except that the counties of Dukes-county and Nantucket fhall form one district for that purpose), and shall elect the following number for Councillors and Senators, viz.

II. The Senate fhall be the first branch of the legislature; and the Senators fhall be chofen in the following manner, viz. There shall be a meeting on the first Monday in April annually,

forever,

forever, of the inhabitants of each town in the several counties of this Commonwealth, to be called by the Selectmen, and warned in due course of law, at least seven days before the first Monday in April, for the purpose of electing perfons to be Senators and Councillors : and at fuch meetings every male inhabitant of twenty-one years of age and upwards, having a

And

freehold eftate within the Commonwealth of
the annual income of three pounds, or any
estate of the value of fixty pounds, shall have
a right to give in his vote for the Senators for
the diftrict of which he is an inhabitant.
to remove all doubts concerning the meaning
of the word" inhabitant," in this Conftitution,
every person shall be confidered as an inhabi-
tant, for the purpose of electing and being.
elected into any office or place within this
State, in that town, diftrict, or plantation,
where he dwelleth, or hath his home.

The Selectmen of the feveral towns fhall prefide at fuch meetings impartially; and fhall receive the votes of all the inhabitants of fuch towns present and qualified to vote for Senators, and shall fort and count them in open townmeeting, and in prefence of the town-clerk, who fhall make a fair record, in prefence of the

Select

Selectmen, and in open town-meeting, of the name of every perfon voted for, and of the number of votes against his name; and a fair copy of this record fhall be attefted by the Selectmen and the Town-clerk, and shall be fealed up, directed to the Secretary of the Commonwealth for the time being, with a fuperfcription expreffing the purport of the contents thereof, and delivered by the town-clerk of such towns to the sheriff of the county in which fuch town lies, thirty days at least before the last Wednesday in May annually; or it fhall be delivered into the Secretary's office feventeen days at least before the faid last Wednesday in May; and the fheriff of each county fhall deliver all such certificates by him received into the Secretary's office feventeen days before the said last Wednesday in May.

And the inhabitants of plantations unincorporated, qualified as this Conftitution provides, who are or fhall be impowered or required to affefs taxes upon themselves towards the fupport of government, fhall have the fame privilege of voting for Councillors and Senators in the plantations where they refide, as town inhabitants have in their refpective towns; and the plantation meetings for that purpose shall be

held

held annually on the fame first Monday in April, at fuch place in the plantations refpectively as the affeffors thereof fhall direct; which affeffors shall have like authority for notifying the electors, collecting and returning the votes, as the Selectmen and town-clerks have in their feveral towns by this Conftitution. And all other perfons living in places unincorporated (qualified as aforefaid) who fhall be affeffed to the fupport of government by the affeffors of an adjacent town, shall have the privilege of giving in their votes for Councillors and Senators, in the town where they fhall be affeffed, and be notified of the place of meeting by the Selectmen of the town where they fhall be affeffed, for that purpose accordingly.

III. And that there may be a due convention of Senators on the last Wednesday in May annually, the Governor and five of the Council for the time being fhall, as foon as may be, examine the returned copies of such records; and fourteen days before the faid day he shall iffue his fummons to fuch perfons as fhall appear to be chosen by the majority of voters, to attend on that day and take their feats accordingly; provided nevertheless, that for the first

year

year
the faid returned copies fhall be examined
by the Prefident and five of the Council of the
former Conftitution of Government; and the
faid Prefident fhall, in like manner, iffue his
fummons to the perfons fo elected, that they
may take their feats as aforefaid.

IV. The Senate shall be the final judge of
the elections, returns, and qualifications of their
own members, as pointed out in the Conftitu-
tion;
and shall, on the said last Wednesday in
May annually, determine and declare who are
elected by each district to be Senators by a ma-
jority of votes and in cafe there shall not ap-
pear to be the full number of Senators elected
by a majority of votes for any district, the de-
ficiency shall be supplied in the following man-
ner, viz. The Members of the Houfe of Re-
prefentatives, and fuch Senators as fhall be de-
clared elected, fhall take the names of fuch
per-
fons as shall be found to have the highest num-
ber of votes in fuch diftrict, and not elected,
amounting to twice the number of Senators.
wanting, if there be fo many voted for; and
out of these fhall elect by ballot a number of
Senators fufficient to fill up the vacancies in fuch

diftrict and in this manner all fuch vacancies fhall