to the house which rejected it, and the latter house shall not be considered to have rejected it again unless by a vote of two-thirds of the members present.

ART. 42. A bill amended or corrected by the revising house shall be returned to the house where it originated, and if the latter approves such amendments or corrections, by a majority of all the members present, the bill shall be sent to the President of the Republic.

But if the amendments or corrections are rejected, the bill shall be sent a second time to the revising house; if this house again passes the amendments or corrections by a majority of two-thirds of the members present, the bill shall be returned to the other house, and the amendments or corrections shall not again be rejected by that house unless by a vote of twothirds of the members present.

ART. 43.

THE SESSIONS OF CONGRESS

The regular sessions of Congress shall commence on the first day of June of each year, and shall close on the first day of September.

ART. 44.

When convened in extraordinary session Congress shall occupy itself with the business which occasioned its being convened, to the exclusion of all other matters. The Senate shall not begin or continue in session without the presence of one-third of its members, nor shall the House of Deputies hold sessions without the presence of one-fourth of its members.

ART. 45.

ART. 46. If Congress should be in extraordinary session upon the day fixed by the constitution for the opening of the regular session, the extraordinary session shall come to an end and the business for which it was convened shall continue to be considered in the regular session.

ART. 47. The Senate and House of Deputies shall open and close their regular and extraordinary sessions at the same time. The Senate, however, may convene without the pres

ence of the House of Deputies for the exercise of the judicial functions referred to in clause 2 of Art. 30.

The House of Deputies may continue its sessions without the presence of the Senate if at the close of the regular session there are pending any impeachments against the officers mentioned in clause 2 of Art. 29, but for the exclusive purpose of deciding whether or not an impeachment should be made.

THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (COMISION CONSERVADORA)

ART. 48. Before the close of the regular sessions of Congress, each house shall annually elect seven of its members, who shall together as a single body constitute the Executive Committee, and whose functions shall expire de facto on the thirty-first day of the following May.

ART. 49. The Executive Committee as the representative of Congress shall exercise the supervision belonging to that body over all of the branches of the public administration. It shall therefore be its duty:

1) To watch over the observance of the constitution and of the laws, and to aid in the protection of individual rights. 2) To address representations to the President of the Republic that conduce to the above-mentioned objects, and to repeat the representations if the first do not appear sufficient.

When such representations relate to abuses or offenses committed by authorities responsible to the President of the Republic, and he does not adopt measures within his power to put an end to the abuses and to punish the guilty officer, it shall be understood that the President of the Republic and the minister of the proper department accept the responsibility for the acts of the subordinate authority as if such acts had been executed by their order or with their consent.

3) To give or refuse its consent to such acts of the President of the Republic as, according to the provisions of this constitution, require the concurrence of the Executive Committee.

4) To convene Congress in extraordinary session, whenever in its judgment such action is proper, or when a majority of the two houses request it in writing.

5) To report to Congress at its first meeting the measures which it has taken in the discharge of its duties.

The Committee is responsible to Congress for any failure to discharge the duties imposed upon it by the preceding clauses.

CHAPTER VI. THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC

ART. 50. A citizen with the title of "President of the Republic of Chile" shall be the administrative head of the state and the supreme head of the nation.

ART. 51. The qualifications of the President of the Republic shall be:

1) Birth in the territory of Chile.

2) The qualifications necessary to be a member of the House of Deputies.

3) Age of at least thirty years.

ART. 52. The President of the Republic shall continue in office for a term of five years and shall not be eligible for the succeeding term.

ART. 53. For election a second time, or oftener, the period of one term shall always intervene between each such election.

ART. 54. The President of the Republic shall be elected by electors chosen by direct popular vote. The number of electors shall be three times the total number of deputies chosen by each department.

ART. 55. The electors shall be named by the departments upon the twenty-fifth day of June of the year in which the presidential term expires. The qualifications of electors shall be the same as those required of deputies.

ART. 56. The electors shall assemble on the twenty-fifth

day of July of the year in which the presidential term expires and shall proceed to the election of a President, in conformity with the general law of elections.

ART. 57. The electoral boards shall make two lists of all persons who have been voted for and after such lists have been signed by all of the electors, they shall be sent closed and sealed, one to the municipal authorities of the capital of the province, in whose archives it shall remain deposited and sealed, and the other to the Senate, where it shall be kept in the same manner until the thirtieth day of August.

ART. 58. On this day such lists shall be opened and read in a public joint session of the two houses, in the Senate Chamber, the president of the Senate presiding, and that body shall proceed to count the votes and if necessary to verify the election.

ART. 59. The person receiving a majority of all the votes shall be proclaimed President of the Republic.

ART. 60. In case the votes are so divided that no one obtains a majority, Congress shall elect one of the two persons who has obtained the highest number of votes.

ART. 61. If the highest number of votes obtained prove to be in favor of more than two persons, Congress shall choose from among all of them.

ART. 62. If the highest vote should prove to be in favor of only one person, and two or more persons have the next highest vote, Congress shall make its choice from among all those who have obtained the first and second highest votes.

ART. 63. The election in Congress shall be by majority vote and by secret ballot. If no one obtains a majority on the first ballot, a second ballot shall be taken, the voting being limited to the two persons who received the greatest number of votes on the first ballot. In case of tie, another ballot shall be taken, and if a tie again results, the president of the Senate shall have a deciding vote.

ART. 64. These elections shall not be canvassed or veri

fied unless there is present a majority of all of the members of each house.

ART. 65. When the President of the Republic commands the army in person, or when, because of illness, absence from the territory of the Republic, or other serious cause, he is not able to perform the duties of his office, the minister of the interior shall take his place with the title of vice-president of the Republic. Should the disability of the President be temporary, such minister shall occupy his place until the President is able to perform his duties. In case of death, resignation, or any other kind of permanent disability, which cannot be removed before the termination of the constitutional five-year period, the minister vice-president, within the first ten days after assuming the office, shall issue the proper orders for the holding of a new election for President, in the manner provided by the constitution.

ART. 66. In default of a minister of the interior the senior minister of state shall take the place of the President; in default of all the ministers of state, the senior councilor of state who is not an ecclesiastic shall take his place.

ART. 67. The President of the Republic shall not leave the territory of the state during his term of office or within one year thereafter, without the consent of Congress.

ART. 68. The President of the Republic shall retire on the day when his five-year term expires, and shall be succeeded by the newly elected President.

ART. 69. If the newly elected President is temporarily prevented from assuming office, the senior councilor of state shall take his place for the time being; but if the disability of the President-elect be permanent or likely to continue indefinitely or for a longer period than the presidential term, a new election shall be held in the constitutional manner, the office in the meantime being filled by the senior councilor of state who is not an ecclesiastic.

ART. 70. When, in the cases referred to by Arts. 65 and