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Rh also complicated by racial and religious prejudices, a large proportion of the factory operatives being foreigners and Roman Catholics, and most of the country people native Protestants. The former were in general associated with the Democratic party, the latter with the Whigs. A convention summoned without any authority from the legislature, and elected on the principle of universal manhood suffrage, met at Providence, October 4-November 18, 1841, and drafted a frame of government which came to be known as the People's Constitution. A second convention met on the call of the legislature in February 1842 and adopted the so-called Freeman's Constitution. On being submitted to popular vote the former was ratified by a large majority (December 27, 28, 29, 1841), while the latter was rejected by a majority of 676 (March 21, 22, 23, 1842). At an election held on the 18th of April 1842 Dorr was chosen governor. The supreme court of the state and the president of the United States (Tyler) both refused to recognize the validity of the People's Constitution, whereupon Dorr and a few of his more zealous adherents decided to organize a rebellion. They were easily repulsed in an attack upon the Providence town arsenal, and Dorr, after a brief period of exile in Connecticut, was convicted of high treason on the 26th of April 1844, and was sentenced to imprisonment for life. He was released by act of the Assembly in June 1845, and was restored to the full rights of citizenship in May 1851. The Freeman's Constitution, modified by another convention, which held its session at Newport and East Greenwich, September 12-November 5, 1842, was finally adopted by popular vote on November 21-23, 1842. Only a partial concession was made to the demand for reform. The suffrage was extended to non-freeholders, but only to those of American birth. Representation in the lower house of the legislature was apportioned according to population, but only on condition that no city or town should ever elect more than one-sixth of the total number of members. Each city and town without regard to population was to elect one senator. In order to perpetuate this system the method of amending the constitution was made extremely difficult (see Administration). Since the adoption of the constitution the conditions have become worse owing to the extensive immigration of foreigners into the large cities and the gradual decay of the rural towns. From about 1845 to 1880 most of the immigrants were Irish, but since 1880 the French-Canadians have constituted the chief element. In 1900 over 30% of the population of the state was foreign-born. A constitutional amendment of 1888 extended to them the right of suffrage in state and national elections, and an amendment of 1909 partially remedied the evils in the system of apportionment. When the last Federal census was taken in 1910, Providence, Pawtucket, Woonsocket and Newport, with a combined population of 341,222, had four senators, whereas the remainder of the state, with a population of 201,452, had thirty-four. Providence, with a population of 224,326 out of a total of 542,674, had one member in a Senate of thirty-eight and twenty-five members in a House of Representatives of one hundred. The Republican machine finds it easy with the support of the millionaire summer colony at Newport and the street railway corporations to corrupt the French-Canadians and a portion of the native element in the rural towns and maintain absolute control of the state government. The majority has occasionally protested by electing a Democratic governor, but he has not been able to accomplish a great deal, because until 1909 he did not have veto power nor effectual means to induce the Senate to ratify his appointments. Bonds were issued on the 8th of November 1892 for the construction of a new state house at Providence, the corner stone was laid in October 1896, and the building was thrown open to use on the 1st of January 1901. A constitutional amendment of 1900 dispensed with the session of the legislature at Newport.

In presidential campaigns the state has been Federalist, 1792-1800; Democratic Republican, 1804; Federalist, 1808-1812; Democratic Republican, 1816-1820; Adams (Republican), 1824-1828; National Republican, 1832; Democratic, 1836; Whig, 1840-1848; Democratic, 1852; and Republican since 1856.

GOVERNORS OF RHODE ISLAND