Sec. Art. 2. I. Legislative Powers. No person or collection of persons, being one, or belonging to one, of these departments, shall exercise any power properly belonging to either of the others. The acceptance of an office in either of said departments shall, of itself, and at once, vacate any and all offices held by the person so accepting in either of the other departments. 33. IV. The legislative power of this State shall be vested in the Legislature, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives. Sec. Art. Legislative Powers. acts of legislation; and no bill, resolution or other thing, which shall have been passed by the one, shall have the effect of, or be declared to be, a law without the concurrence of the other: Provided, That all revenue bills shall originate in the House of Representatives, but the Senate may propose or concur with the amendments, as on other bills. Neither house during the session of the General Assembly, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that, in which the two houses shall be sitting, and in case of disagreement between the two houses, with respect to adjournment, the Governor may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper. 7. I. VIRGINIA, That the legislative, executive and judicial powers should be separate and distinct; and that the members thereof may be restrained from oppression, by feeling and participating the burthens of the people, they should, at fixed periods, be reduced to a private station, return into that body from which they were originally taken, and the vacancies be supplied by frequent, certain and regular elections, in which all or any part of the former members to be again eligible or ineligible, as the laws shall direct. II. The legislative, executive and judiciary departments shall be separate and distinct, so that neither exercise the powers properly belonging to either of the others; nor shall any person exercise the power of more Senate and Assembly, Number of Members. I SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, NUMBER OF MEMBERS. Sec. 2. The Senate shall consist of fifty members, except as 2 hereinafter provided. The Senators elected in the year one 3 thousand eight hundred and ninety-five shall hold their offices. 4 for three years, and their successors shall be chosen for two 5 years. The Assembly shall consist of one hundred and fifty 6 members who shall be chosen for one year. At the general election in the year eighteen hundred and seventy-six, Senators shall be elected in the even numbered districts, to serve for two years, and in the odd numbered districts to serve for four years, so that hereafter one-half of the Senators may be chosen biennially. Members of the House of Representatives shall be elected at the general election every second year. The time of service of Senators and Representatives shall begin on the day after the election, except the terms of those elected in the year eighteen hundred and seventy-six, which shall not begin until the terms of the present members shall have expired. Whenever a vacancy shall occur Sec. Art. in either house, the Governor for the time being shall issue a writ of election to fill such vacancy for the remainder of the term. 1. IX. The whole number of Senators shall be not less than one-fourth or more than one-third of the whole number of Representatives. 2. IX. The House of Representatives shall consist of not more than one hundred members, who shall be apportioned by the General Assembly among the several counties of the State, according to the number of inhabitants in them respectively, as ascertained by the decennial census of the United States for the year eighteen hundred and eighty; which apportionment, when made, shall be subject to alteration until the first session of the General Assembly after the next decennial census of the United States Ishall have been taken. 3. IX. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly, at its first session after the taking of the decennial |