have a right . . . . to make every member of
this Convention go upon his knees fifty time a day." Mr. Kirkpatrick
cared nothing for precedent. "This was a day of improvement. Let those
who believed so much in prayer, pray at home." After all "public prayer
was too ostentatious."

Mr. Sells was shocked, and would "regret to have it said of Iowa that
she had so far travelled out of Christendom as to deny the duty of
prayer."

Ex-Governor Lucas, who was a member of the Convention, was astonished at
Mr. Hall's amendment. He said that "if ever an assemblage needed the aid
of Almighty Power, it was one to organize a system of Government."
Furthermore, he believed that "it was due to the religious community,
and to our own character" to have prayer. To reject the resolution
would, he thought, "give us a bad name abroad."

Mr. Hooten reminded Lucas of the story told of Franklin, who, when a
boy, asked his father why he did not say grace over the whole barrel of
pork at once.

Mr. Hall was "opposed to any attempt on the part of the Convention to
palm themselves off to be better than they really were, and above all
other things, to assume a garb of religion for the purpose of
giving themselves character." He doubted the efficacy of prayers invoked
at political meetings, and cited an instance where a "Reverend
gentleman" fervently prayed for the release of Dorr, the election of
Polk and Dallas, and the triumph of Democratic principles. To believe in
the efficacy of such a prayer implied that "Deity was a Democrat." Now,
"if the Almighty was a Democrat, he would perhaps grant the prayer; if
not a Democrat he would not grant it." Mr. Hall desired to know what was
to be prayed for in the Convention. As for himself, "he would pray as
did the man in New Orleans, that God would 'lay low and keep dark,' and
let us do the business of the Convention." Prayers in the Convention
were, he thought, inappropriate. "There were places where the
Almighty could not be approached in a proper spirit--and this was one."

Mr. Bailey asked the members who voted against taking papers on the
grounds of economy to be consistent and vote against this resolution
to have prayers. It would save some two or three hundred dollars.
Then, too, he thought that "people were becoming more liberal in
[their religious] sentiment. No man could say that he ever opposed
another on account of religion; he respected men who were sincerely
religious; but he wanted to