each parish composed of all the inhabitants domiciliated therein, which must be previously convoked, and must be presided by the political chief, alcalde or regidor, and each one of them must elect the number of electors to which it is entitled, in the proportion which its population bears to the total population, and the act of the election must be transcribed in a book kept for this purpose, and be signed by the president and the secretary, which the board may appoint.

9. A parish board cannot be held in towns not having fifty inhabitants, and those being in this predicament must unite among themselves, or with such as are nearest; but all such towns as have hitherto enjoyed the privilege of nominating electors for the appointment of justices, councils or deputies in common, shall retain this privilege.

10. If, notwithstanding what has been provided in the preceding article, there should still be a greater number of parishes than there are electors, still an elector is to be nominated by each parish.

11. If the number of parishes should be less than the number of electors, each parish will elect one, two, or more, until it has completed the requisite number; but if an elector were yet wanting, he must be appointed by the parish having the largest population; and if another be still wanting, he must be elected by the parish having the next largest population, and so successively.

12. Inasmuch as it may happen, that there exist in the ultramarine provinces some towns, which, owing to peculiar circumstances, ought to have common councils for their better government, but whose inhabitants are not in the enjoyment of the rights of citizens, they have nevertheless the right to elect, among themselves, the officers of their councils, in conformity to the rules herein prescribed for other towns.

13. The common councils will not in future have any permanent assessors, with fixed salaries.

Decree of the 10th July, 1812.

Rules for the Formation of Constitutional Ayuntamientos.

The general and extraordinary Cortes, desirous of avoiding, in all the towns of the monarchy, the doubts which have been referred to them by the governor of the island of Leon, in relation to their decree of the 23d of May last past, as well as all other doubts which might arise in the construction of said law, decree:

1. That, in order to carry into effect the formation of the councils in the mode and manner prescribed by the 3d article of the decree of the 23d of May last, the functions shall cease to exist from this moment, not only of the perpetual regidors, but of all the individuals actually composing the said bodies or institutions, reserving to them the faculty of election to charges in the new councils.

2. In order to be eligible to the office of secretary of the ayuntamiento, it is not necessary to be notary public.

3. The boards of health shall continue to discharge the same functions, which they have hitherto fulfilled, until the regency of the kingdom, after examining the powers granted by the constitution to the common councils, shall adopt and reduce to order, through the ministry of the government, a plan, which ought to govern in this particular, and said plan has been adopted by the Cortes.

Decree of the 9th October, 1812.

Chapter Third.

Of the Constitutional Alcaldes in the Towns.

ART. 1. Inasmuch as the alcaldes of towns exercise in them the office of amicable compounders, every person who wishes to attack another before the district judge, either on account of some civil wrong, or some tort, must present himself before the competent alcalde, who, with two good men (hombres buenos) appointed, one by each of the contending parties, shall hear both parties, and take into consideration the reasons they allege, and, after hearing the opinions of the two associates, shall give, within eight days at most, his conciliating decision, calculated, in his opinion, to terminate the litigation without going any farther. This decision will, in effect, terminate the dispute, if the parties acquiesce in the decision, which must be inscribed upon a book, which the alcalde must keep, bearing the title of Decisions of Conciliation, signed by the said alcalde, the good men, and the parties, if they know how to write, and certificates of the same are to be given to such as may desire the same.

ART. 2. If the parties do not conform to this decree, it must also be inscribed in the same book, and the alcalde shall give a certificate to the party requiring it, that he has brought an action of conciliation, and that the parties interested have not assented thereto.

ART. 3. When some person, residing in another town, is cited before the competent alcalde of conciliation, the alcalde must cause him to be cited, by means of the judge of his residence, that he may appear, either personally, or by attorney with competent powers, within a sufficient period of time, which must be prescribed; and if he should not appear, the plaintiff will be entitled to a certificate, specifying, that he has made a demand in conciliation, which has failed, because the defendant has neglected to appear.

ART. 4. If the demand in conciliation has reference to the effects of a debtor about to remove the same; or to prevent the construction of some new work, or other things of like urgency, and the plaintiff requires the alcalde to take provisional measures in order to avoid the injury which might arise from delay: the alcalde shall do so immediately, and forthwith proceed with the conciliation.

ART. 5. The alcaldes will moreover take cognisance in their respective towns of all civil suits wherein the sums in controversy do not exceed fity reals vellon in the Peninsula and the adjacent islands, and one hundred silver dollars in the ultramarine provinces; and in criminal cases of slight faults and injuries which only require reprimand or light correction, the proceedings in both cases being verbal. For this purpose, the alcaldes, as well in civil as in criminal matters, will associate good men, as before mentioned, chosen by each of the contending parties, and after hearing the plaintiff and defendant, and taking the opinion of the associates, shall give such a decision before the notary as they may deem just, and from such an opinion the parties cannot appeal, nor does it require any other formality than to inscribe it, together with a succinct exposition of the proceedings, in the book which is required to be kept for verbal judgments and to have it subscribed by the alcalde the good men and the notary.

ART. 6. The alcaldes of towns shall likewise take cognisance of all judicial proceedings in civil suits until litigation arise among the parties thereto, in which event, they shall transfer them to the district judge.

ART. 7. They may all take cognisance, at the request of the parties, of such proceedings as are litigated, when they are very urgent, as the preparation of an inventory, the quieting of possession, or others of a like nature, referring the matter to the judge, as soon as the object of their intervention has been accomplished.

ART. 8. The alcaldes, when a crime has been committed in their towns, or some delinquent has been discovered, ought to proceed ex officio or at the request of a party, to institute the first proceedings of the inquest (sumaria) and cause the criminals to be apprehended, in every cause where an offence has been committed which according to law deserves corporal punishment, or when the offender has been found flagrante delicto; but in such cases, they shall immediately transfer to the district judge the proceedings by them had; and place the criminals at his disposal.

ART. 9. The alcaldes of towns in which the district judge resides may, and ought to make all the preparatory proceedings spoken of in the preceding article, and give immediate notice of the same to the district judge, that he may continue the proceedings.

ART. 10. In all the proceedings which may be required as well in civil as in criminal causes the district judges cannot employ other alcaldes than those of their respective towns.

ART. 11. As it respects the government, economy and the police of the towns, the alcaldes shall exercise the same jurisdiction and powers, which existing laws grant to the ordinary alcaldes, observing in every respect the provisions of the constitution on this subject.

BOOK V.

TITLE I.

LAWS AND DECREES OF THE STATES OF COAHUILA AND TEXAS.

DECREE No. 1.

The Constituent Congress of the State of Coahuila and Texas has thought proper to decree as follows:

1st. Said Congress is solemnly and legally installed in conformity to the decrees relative to its institution, and qualified to exercise its functions agreeably to the constitutive act of the Mexican Confederation, and other federal laws, that have been, or may be hereafter enacted by the general congress.

2d. The state of Coahuila and Texas is an integral part of the federation, equal to the other states of which the same is composed, and is free, sovereign and independent in whatever exclusively relates to the internal administration and government thereof, agreeably to the constitutive act, and to the constitution of the United Mexican States, which shall be promulgated by the general congress.

3d. The territory of the state shall be that recognised as both provinces until the present time.

4th. The state of Coahuila and Texas solemnly pledges itself to obey and to sustain at all hazards the supreme federal powers, and its own federal union with the rest of the states, and the constitutional independence of all and each one of the same.

5th. The deputies shall be inviolable as regards their opinions, and at no time, in no case, and by no authority shall they be called to account for the same, and with respect to the causes or demands against them, the same shall be observed as provided for the deputies of the general congress.

6th. As the form of its government is representative, popular, and federal, and, in order to its exercise ought to be divided into the three powers, legislative, executive and judicial, the first is vested in

congress.

7th. The executive power shall be provisionally deposited in one sole person, who shall be styled the Governor of the State, and shall be appointed by congress.

Sth. For the better discharge of his functions congress shall appoint him a council, composed of a vice governor and four other persons, the former supplying any default of the governor in case of vacancy, or should he be rendered unable to discharge his office by moral or

physical impediment. The Governor shall consult with this council on all occasions he shall deem proper, and it shall be his duty to do so in all cases, and in the manner the laws do now or shall hereafter provide.

9th. The ordinary powers granted the executive of the Union by the constitutive act shall constitute his powers in the state, with the exception of such as are exclusively reserved to the federation in the

same act.

10th. The judicial power shall for the present be vested in the authorities, by which it is now exercised in the state, and in the administration of justice they shall be governed by the laws in use, so far as they are not opposed to the form of government adopted.

11th. All officers, authorities, and corporations, both civil and military, belonging to the state are hereby for the present confirmed, and in the exercise of their functions they shall be governed by the same laws, and in the same terms as specified in the foregoing article.

12th. It is established according to settled and universal principle that the inhabitants of the state, of whatever class or rank they may be, can only be burthened in the same proportion as those of the other states of the Union.

The governor ad interim of the state, for the fulfilment thereof, shall cause the same to be published and circulated.

Given at Saltillo, on the 15th of August, 1824.

DECREE No. 2.

The Constituent Congress of the State of Coahuila and Texas has thought proper to decree as follows:

1st. All the authorities, corporations, and officers of the state, of whatever class or rank they may be, shall take the oath to acknowledge and to obey the constituent congress of the state.

2d. All the towns, the clergy both secular and regular, and all the military corps of the state shall take the same oath.

3d. The said oath shall be administered in the following form, viz. In whatever relates to the internal government thereof, do you recognise the sovereignty and independence of the free state of Coahuila and Texas, represented by its constituent congress, elected according to the constitutive act, and other decrees relative to the institution thereof? Yes, I do acknowledge. You solemnly swear to obey and to observe the laws and decrees that shall issue therefrom? Yes, I do swear. So help you God, and should it not be thus you shall be responsible to the state, according to the laws. In the oath that shall be taken by the authorities, after the word "observe" shall be added "and cause to be observed."

4th. The vice governor and other members of the council (when appointed) shall take the oath of recognition and obedience to the congress in the hall of its sessions on the day the said congress shall