atures--how

lled, the lower house, in the states of New York, Wisconsin, and California, is called the assembly; in Maryland and Virginia, the house of delegates; in

the governments of the colonies, while yet subject to Great Britian, there was but one representative assembly. The other branch of the legislature was called a council, consisting of a small number of men who were appointed by the king. Af

erms of two, three, or four years. In most of the states in which senators are elected for longer terms than one year, they are not all elected at the same time. They are divided into classes

d the upper house. It was designed to be a more select body, composed of men chosen wi

nty shall be in proportion to the number of its inhabitants. In others they are elected by districts, equal in number to the number of senators to be chosen in the state,

lation, counties being sometimes divided in the formation of districts. In the New England states, representatives are apportioned among the towns. In abo

ng a member to the same number of inhabitants in one county or district as to an equal number in another. But in some counties the p

sentatives, the constitution requires that, at stated times, the people of the state shall be numbered, and a new apportionment of senators and representatives be made among the several counti

his enumeration or numbering of the people is called taking the census. Census is from the Latin, and was used by the ancient Romans to signify a declaration or statement made before the censors by the citizens, containing an enumeration

hap. VI. §2-5,) they must be at least equally necessary for those who make the laws. In no state, therefore, are any but qualified electors eligible to the office of senator or representative. In some states, greater age and longer residence are required;

e election of another person at the next general election, or at a special election called for that purpose, or in such other manner as the constituti