360 PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONVENTION [1776.

until the meeting of the next general court or county court, as the
case may be.

48. That the governor for the time being, with the advice and
consent of the council, may appoint the chancellor, and all judges
and justices, the attorney general, naval officers, officers in the re-
gular land and sea service, officers of the militia, registers of the
land office, surveyors, and all other civil officers of government,
(assessors, constables and overseers of the roads only excepted)
and may also suspend or remove any civil officer who has not a com-
mission during good behaviour, and may suspend any militia offi-
cer for one month, and may also suspend or remove any regular
officer in the land or sea service; and the governor may remove or
suspend any militia officer in pursuance of the judgment of a court
martial.

49. That all civil officers, of the appointment of the governor
and council, who do not hold commissions during good behaviour,
shall be appointed annually in the third week of November, but if
any of them shall be re-appointed, they may continue to act with-
out any new commission or qualification; and every officer though
not re-appointed shall continue to act until the person who shall be
appointed and commissioned in his stead shall be qualified.

50. That the governor, every member of the council, and every
judge and justice, before they act as such, shall respectively take an
oath, "that he will not, through favor, affection, or partiality, vote
for any person to office, and that he will vote for such person as in
his judgment and conscience he believes most fit and best qualified
for the office, and that he has not made, nor will make any promise
or engagements to give his vote or interest in favor of any person."

51. That there be two registers of the land office, one upon the
western, and one upon the eastern shore; that short extracts of the
grants and certificates of the land on the western and eastern shores
respectively be made in separate books, at the public expense, and
deposited in the offices of the said registers, in such manner as shall
hereafter be provided by the general assembly.

52. That every chancellor, judge, register of wills, commissioner
of the loan office, attorney general, sheriff, treasurer, naval officer,
register of the land office, register of the chancery court, and every
clerk of the common law courts, surveyor, and auditor of public
accounts, before he acts as such, shall take an oath " that he will
not directly or indirectly receive any fee or reward for doing his
office of ————— but what is or shall be allowed by law, nor will
directly or indirectly receive the profits or any part of the profits of