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ERA OF CONSTITUTION MAKING 207 there were such scenes that these delegates declared, "We may be permitted, in honor of the country, to pass silently the occurrences which took place within the house that day. They were such that the under- signed, abandoning all hope of a central assembly, de- clared their absolute separation, and retired to com- municate it to their constituents, and resolved unani- mously to notify the executive, recommending to him the public peace, so greatly disturbed." They closed their exposition by expressing regret that they had passed no important laws during their sitting. On the 6th of July, Freire issued a convocatoria, call- ing a congress for September 5th. This was intended to be a general constituent congress composed of pub- lic deputies freely elected by each district, on the basis of one deputy to each i5,o"'oo of population. Six days afterward the director issued a proclamation to the people setting forth the urgent circumstances which had led him again to convoke a general congress. Europe had recognized the independence of Mexico, Colombia and Buenos Ayres, it was desirable that Chile should be so recognized ; the new governments of South America had extended an invitation to assist and prepare a form looking to a general South Ameri- can assembly, the purpose of which was to form a grand pact, or union, of all the states ; the government was embarrassed by the lack of a code and was without authority to establish principles or a policy adapted to the institutions. The director declared that he had no other interest at heart save that of the greatest good of the country, and from motives of delicacy announced that he would withdraw, during the period of the elec- tion, all the governors dependent on the directorial nomination, in order that the slightest influence on the part of the government should not be exercised.