CHAPTER LXXVIII.

THE ORIGINAL CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF
LIBERIA.

ARTICLE I.

DECLARATION OF RIGHTS.

THE end of the institution, maintenance and administra tion of government is to secure the existence of the body politic, to protect, and to furnish the individuals who compose it with the power of enjoying, in safety and tranquillity, their natural rights and the blessings of life; and whenever these great objects are not obtained, the people have a right to alter the government, and to take measures necessary for their safety, prosperity, and happiness.

Therefore we, the people of the Commonwealth of Liberia in Africa, acknowledging with devout gratitude the goodness of God in granting to us the blessings of the Christian religion, and political, religious, and civil liberty, do, in order to secure these blessings for ourselves and our posterity, and to establish justice, insure domestic peace, and promote the general welfare, hereby solemnly associate, and constitute ourselves a free, sovereign, and independent State, by the name of the Republic of Liberia, and do ordain and establish this Constitution, for the government of the same.

SEC. 1. All men are born equally free and independent, and have certain natural inherent and inalienable rightsamong which are the rights of enjoying and defending life and liberty, of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property, and of pursuing and obtaining safety and happiness.

SEC. 2. All power is inherent in the people; all free governments are instituted by their authority and for their

benefit, and they have a right to alter and reform the same when their safety and happiness require it.

SEC. 3. All men have a natural and inalienable right to worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences, without obstruction or molestation from others. I All persons demeaning themselves peaceably, and not obstructing others in their religious worship, are entitled to the protection of law in the free exercise of their own religion, and no sect of Christians shall have exclusive privileges or preference over any other sect, but all shall be alike tolerated; and no religious test whatever shall be required as a qualification for civil office, or the exercise of any civil right.

SEC. 4. There shall be no slavery within this Republic. Nor shall any citizen of this Republic, or any person resident therein, deal in slaves, either within or without this Republic, directly or indirectly.

SEC. 5. The people have a right at all times, in an orderly and peaceable manner, to assemble and consult upon the common good, to instruct their representatives, and to petition the government or any public functionaries for the redress of grievances.

SEC. 6. Every person injured shall have remedy therefor by due course of law; justice shall be done without denial or delay; and in all cases not arising under martial law, or upon impeachment, the parties shall have a right to a trial by jury, and to be heard in person or by counsel, or both.

SEC. 7. No person shall be held to answer for a capital or infamous crime, except in cases of impeachment, cases arising in the army and navy, and petty offenses, unless upon presentment by a grand jury; and every person criminally charged shall have a right to be seasonably furnished with a copy of the charge, to be confronted with the witnesses against him, to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and to have a speedy, public, and impartial trial by a jury of the vicinity. He

shall not be compelled to furnish or give evidence against himself, and no person shall, for the same offense, be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb.

SEC. 8. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, property, or privilege, but by the judgment of his peers, or the law of the land.

SEC. 9. No place shall be searched nor person seized, on a criminal charge or suspicion, unless upon warrant lawfully issued, upon probable cause, supported by oath, or solemn affirmation, specially designating the place or person, and the object of the search.

SEC. 10. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor excessive punishments inflicted; nor shall the legislature make any law impairing the obligation of contracts; nor any law rendering any act punishable, in any manner in which it was not punishable when it was committed.

SEC. 11. All elections shall be by ballot, and every male citizen of twenty-one years of age, possessing real estate, shall have the right of suffrage.

SEC. 12. The people have a right to keep and to bear arms for the common defense. And as, in time of peace, armies are dangerous to liberty, they ought not to be maintained without the consent of the legislature, and the military power shall always be held in exact subordination to the civil authority, and be governed by it.

SEC. 13. Private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation.

SEC. 14. The powers of this government shall be divided into three distinct departments, the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial, and no person belonging to one of these departments shall exercise any of the powers belonging to either of the others. This section is not to be construed to include Justices of the Peace.

SEC. 15. The liberty of the press is essential to the security of freedom in a State: it ought not, therefore to be restrained in this Republic.

The press shall be free to every person who undertakes to examine the proceedings of the legislature or any branch of government; and no law shall ever be made to restrain the rights thereof. The free communication of thoughts and opinions is one of the invaluable rights of man; and every citizen may freely speak, write, and print on any subject, being responsible for the abuse of that liberty.

In prosecutions for the publications of papers investigating the official conduct of officers, or men in a public capacity, or where the matter published is proper for public information, the truth thereof may be given in evidence. And in all indictments for libels, the jury shall have a right to determine the law and the facts, under the direction of the court, as in other cases.

SEC. 16. No subsidy, charge, impost, or duties ought to be established, fixed, laid, or levied, under any pretext whatsoever, without the consent of the people, or their representatives in the legislature.

SEC. 17. Suits may be brought against the Republic in such manner and in such cases as the legislature may by law direct.

SEC. 18. No person can, in any case, be subjected to the law martial, or to any penalties or pains, by virtue of that law (except those employed in the army or navy, and except the militia in actual service), but by the authority of the legislature.

SEC. 19. In order to prevent those who are vested with authority from becoming oppressors, the people have a right, at such periods, and in such manner as they shall establish by their frame of government, to cause their public officers to return to private life, and fill up vacant places, by certain and regular elections and appointments.

SEC. 20. That all prisoners shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, unless for capital offenses, when the proof is evident or presumption great; and the privilege and the benefit of the writ of habeas corpus shall be enjoyed in this Republic in the most free, easy, cheap, expeditious, and

ample manner, and shall not be suspended by the legisla ture, except upon the most urgent and pressing occasions, and for a limited time, not exceeding twelve months.

ARTICLE II.

LEGISLATIVE POWERS.

SEC. 1. The legislative power shall be vested in a Legislature of Liberia, and consist of two separate branches-a House of Representatives and a Senate, to be styled the Legislature of Liberia; each of which shall have a negative on the other; and the enacting style of their acts and laws shall be: "It is enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic of Liberia in Legislature assembled."

SEC. 2. The representatives shall be elected by and for the inhabitants of the several counties of Liberia, and shall be apportioned among the several counties of Liberia as follows: The county of Montserrado shall have four representatives, the county of Grand Bassa shall have three, and the county of Sinoe shall have one, and all counties hereafter which shall be admitted in the Republic shall have one representative, and for every ten thousand inhabitants one representative shall be added. No person shall be a representative who has not resided in the county two whole years immediately previous to his election, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of the county, and does not own real estate of not less value than one hundred and fifty dollars in the county in which he resides, and who shall not have attained the age of twenty-three years. The representatives shall be elected biennially, and shall serve two years from the time of their election.

SEC. 3. When a vacancy occurs in the representation of any county by death, resignation, or otherwise, it shall be filled by a new election.

SEC. 4. The House of Representatives shall elect their own speaker and other officers; they shall also have the sole power of impeachment.