to be present, and is at liberty to address the meeting or to vote upon
any question that may come up.

In the first years of the colonies it seems to have been attempted to
hold town-meetings every month, and to discuss all the affairs of the
community in these assemblies; but this was soon found to be a cumbrous
way of transacting public business, and as early as 1635 we find
_selectmen_ chosen to administer the affairs of the township during the
intervals between the assemblies. As the system has perfected itself, at
each annual town-meeting there are chosen not less than three or more
than nine selectmen, according to the size of the township. Besides
these, there are chosen a town-clerk, a town-treasurer, a
school-committee, assessors of taxes, overseers of the poor, constables,
surveyors of highways, fence-viewers, and other officers. In very small
townships the selectmen themselves may act as assessors of taxes or
overseers of the poor. The selectmen may appoint police-officers if such
are required; they may act as a Board of Health; in addition to sundry
specific duties too numerous to mention here, they have the general
superintendence of all public business save such as is expressly
assigned to the other officers; and whenever circumstances may seem to
require it they are authorized to call a town-meeting. The selectmen are
thus the principal town-magistrates; and through the annual election
their responsibility to the town is maintained at the maximum. Yet in
many New England towns re-election of the same persons year after year
has very commonly prevailed. I know of an instance where the office of
town-clerk was filled by three members of one family during one hundred
and fourteen consecutive years.

Besides choosing executive officers, the town-meeting has the power of
enacting by-laws, of making appropriations of money for town-purposes,