six, as the public interest requires, the General Assembly may rearrange the said circuits and increase or diminish the number thereof. But no new circuit shall be created containing, by the last United States census or other census provided by law, less than forty thousand inhabitants, nor when the effect of creating it will be to reduce the number of inhabitants in any existing circuit below forty thousand according to such census.

Sec. 96. For each circuit a judge shall be chosen by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly. He shall, when chosen, possess the same qualifications as judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals, and during his continuance in office shall reside in the circuit of which he is judge. At the first election under this Constitution, the General Assembly shall elect, as nearly as practicable, one-fourth of the entire number of judges for terms of two years, one-fourth for four years, one-fourth for six years, and the remaining fourth for eight years, respectively; and thereafter they shall be elected for terms of eight years.

Sec. 97. The number of terms of the circuit courts to be held for each county and city shal! be prescribed by law. But no separate circuit court shall be held for any city of the second class until the city shall abolish its existing city court. The judge of one circuit may be required or authorized to hold court in any other circuit or city.

Sec. 98. For the purposes of a judicial system, the cities of the State shall be divided into two classes. All cities shall belong to the first class which contain, as shown by the last United States census or other census provided by law, ten thousand inhabitants or more, and all cities shall belong to the second class which contain, as thus shown, less than ten thousand inhabitants. In each city of the first class, there shall be, in addition to the circuit court, a corporation court. In any city containing thirty thousand inhabitants or more, the General Assembly may provide for such additional courts as the public interest may require, and in every such city the city courts, as they now exist, shall continue until otherwise provided by law. In every city of the second class, the corporation or hustings court, existing at the time this Constitution goes into effect, shall continue hereafter under the name of the corporation court of such city; but it may be abolished by a vote of a majority of the qualified electors of such city, at an election held for the purpose, and whenever the office of judge of a corporation or hustings court of a city of the second class, whose salary is less than eight hundred dollars, shall become and remain vacant for ninety days consecutively, such court shall thereby cease to exist. In case of the abolition of the corporation or hustings court of any city of the second class, such city shall thereupon come in every respect within the jurisdiction of the circuit court of the county wherein it is situated, until otherwise provided by law, and the records of such corporation or hustings court shall thereupon become a part of the records of such circuit court, and be transferred thereto, and remain therein until otherwise pro

vided by law; and during the existence of the corporation or hustings court, the circuit court of the county in which such city is situated, shall have concurrent jurisdiction with said corporation or hustings court in all actions at law and suits in equity.

Sec. 99. For each city court of record a judge shall be chosen by the joint vote of the two houses of the General Assembly. He shall, when chosen, possess the same qualifications as judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals, and during his continuance in office shall reside within the jurisdiction of the court over which he presides; but the judge of the corporation court of any corporation having a city charter, and less than five thousand inhabitants, may reside outside its corporate limits; and the same person may be judge of such corporation court and judge of the corporation court of some other city having less than ten thousand inhabitants. At the first election of said judges under this Constitution, the General Assembly shall elect, as nearly as practicable, onefourth of the entire number for terms of two years, one-tourth for four years, one-fourth for six years, and the remaining fourth for eight years; and thereafter they shall be elected for terms of eight years. The judges of city courts in cities of the first class may be required or authorized to hold the circuit courts of any county and the circuit courts of any city.

Sec. 100. The General Assembly shall have power to establish such court or courts of land registration as it may deem proper for the administration of any law it may adopt for the purpose of the settlement, registration, transfer, or assurance of titles to land in the State, or any part thereof.

Sec. 101. The General Assembly shall have power to confer upon ehe clerks of the several circuit courts jurisdiction, to be exercised in the manner and under the regulations to be prescribed by law, in the matter of the admission of wills to probate, and of the appointment and qualification of guardians, personal representatives, curators, appraisers, and committees of the estates of persons who have been adjudged insane or convicted of felony, and in the matter of the substitution of trustees.

Sec. 102. All the judges shall be commissioned by the Governor. They shall receive such salaries and allowances as may be determined by law within the limitations fixed by this Constitution, the amount of which shall not be increased or diminished during their terms of office. Their terms of office shall commence on the first day of February next following their election, and whenever a vacancy occurs in the office of judge, his successor shall be elected for the unexpired term.

Sec. 103. The salaries of the judges of the Supreme Court of Appeals shall be not less than four thousand dollars per annum, and shall be paid by the State.

The salary of the judge of each circuit court shall be not less than two thousand dollars per annum, one-half of which shall be paid by the State, the other half by the counties and cities com

posing the circuit, according to their respective population; except that of the salary of the judge of the circuit court of the city of Richmond, the State shall pay the proportion which would otherwise fall to the city of Richmond. The salary of a judge of a city court in a city of the first class shall be not less than two thousand dollars per annum, one-half of which shall be paid by the State, the other half by the city. The whole of the aforesaid salaries of said judges shall be paid out of the State treasury, the State to be reimbursed by the respective counties and cities. Any city may, by an ordinance, increase the salaries of its city or circuit judges, or any one or more of them as it may deem proper, and the increase shall be paid wholly by the city, but shall not be enlarged or diminished during the term of office of the judge. Each city containing less than ten thousand inhabitants shall pay the salary of the judge of its corporation or hustings court.

Sec. 104. Judges may be removed from office for cause, by a concurrent vote of both houses of the General Assembly; but a majority of all the members elected to each house must concur in such vote, and the cause of removal shall be entered on the journal of each house. The judge against whom the General Assembly may be about to proceed shall have notice thereof, accompanied by a copy of the causes alleged for his removal, at least twenty days before the day on which either house of the General Assembly shall act thereon.

Sec. 105. No judge of the Supreme Court of Appeals, of the circuit court, or of any city court of record shall practice law, within or without this State, nor shall he hold any other office of public trust during his continuance in office; except that the judge of a corporation or hustings court in a city of the second class may hold the office of commissioner in chancery of the circuit court for the county in which the city is located.

Sec. 106. Writs shall run in the name of the "Commonwealth of Virginia," and be attested by the clerks of the several courts. Indictments shall conclude "against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth."

Sec. 107. An Attorney General shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time and for the same term as the Governor; and the fact of his election shall be ascertained in the same manner. He shall be commissioned by the Governor, perform such duties and receive such compensation as may be prescribed by law, and shall be removable in the manner prescribed for the removal of judges.

Sec. 108. The General Assembly shall provide for the appointment or election and for the jurisdiction of such justices of the peace as the public interest may require.

Sec. 109. The General Assembly shall provide by whom, and in what manner, applications for bail shall be heard and determined.

ARTICLE VII.

Organization and Government of Counties.

Sec. 110. There shall be elected by the qualified voters of each county one county treasurer, one sheriff, one attorney for the Commonwealth, and one county clerk, who shall be the clerk of the circuit court. There shall be elected by the qualified voters of each county, for four years, commissioners of the revenue for each county, the number, duties and compensation of whom shall be prescribed by law.

There shall be appointed for each county, in such manner as may be provided by law, one superintendent of the poor and one county surveyor.

(Ratified by vote of the people on November 8, 1910, and proclaimed by the Governor on December 5, 1910.)

Sec. 111. The magisterial districts shall, until changed by law, remain as now constituted; provided, that hereafter no additional districts shall be made containing less than thirty square miles. In each district there shall be elected by the qualified voters thereof one supervisor. The supervisors of the districts shall constitute the board of supervisors of the county, which shall meet at stated periods and at other times as often as may be necessary, lay the county and district levies, pass upon all claims against the county, subject to such appeal as may be provided by law, and perform such duties as may be required by law.

Sec. 112. All regular elections for county and district officers shall be held on Tuesday after the first Monday in November, and all of said officers shall enter upon the duties of their offices on the first day of January next succeeding their election, and shall hold their respective offices for the term of four years except that the county clerk shall hold office for eight years; provided, that the term of the clerks first elected under this Constitution shall begin on the first of February, nineteen hundred and four, and end on the first of January, nineteen hundred and twelve.

Sec. 113. No person shall at the same time hold more than one of the offices mentioned in this article. Any officer required by law to give bond may be required to give additional security thereon, or to execute a new bond, and in default of so doing his office shall be declared vacant.

Sec. 114. Counties shall not be made responsible for the acts of the sheriffs.

Sec. 115. The General Assembly shall provide for the examination of the books, accounts and settlements of county and city officers who are charged with the collection and disbursement of public funds.

ARTICLE VIII.

Organization and Government of Cities and Towns.

Sec. 116. As used in this article, the words "incorporated communities" shall be construed to relate only to cities and towns.

All incorporated communities, having within defined boundaries a population of five thousand or more, shall be known as cities; and all incorporated communities having within defined boundaries a population of less than five thousand, shall be known as towns. In determining the population of such cities and towns the General Assembly shall be governed by the last United States census, or such other enumeration as may be made by authority of the General Assembly; but nothing in this section shall be construed to repeal the charter of any incorporated community of less than five thousand inhabitants having a city charter at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, or to prevent the abolition by such incorporated communities of the corporation or hustings court thereof.

Sec. 117*. General laws for the organization and government of cities and towns shall be enacted by the General Assembly, and no special act shall be passed in relation thereto, except in the manner provided in Article Four of this Constitution, and then only by a recorded vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house, and except also in the case of cities having more than fifty thousand inhabitants as hereinafter provided. But each of the cities and towns of the State having at the time of the adoption of this amendment a municipal charter may retain the same, except so far as it shall be repealed or amended by the General Assembly; provided that every such charter is hereby amended so as to conform to all the provisions, restrictions and powers set forth in this article, or otherwise provided in this Constitution.

Notwithstanding, however, anything in this article contained, the General Assembly may, by general or by special act (passed as prescribed in Article Four of this Constitution), depart in any respect (except as otherwise in this section expressly provided) from the form of organization and government prescribed by this article for cities and towns, and may provide from time to time for the various cities and towns of the Commonwealth, such form or forms of municipal government as the General Assembly may deem best; but no form or forms of government authorized by the second paragraph of this section shall become operative except as to such cities or towns as may thereafter adopt the same by a majority vote of its qualified electors at an election to be held as may be prescribed therefor by law. All the limitations on the powers of the councils of cities and towns imposed by this article shall apply in like manner to the principal legislative authority under any form of government which may be authorized hereunder. The term "council," as used in sections one hundred and twenty-five and one hundred and twenty-seven of this Consti

*As amended and ratified at an election held November 1, 1912.