The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1880-07-21
The Constitutional Amendments.

Communicated.
Contrary to the ordinary rule, the decision
OF the Supreme Court, holding that the pro
posed amendments to the Constitution have
not been adopted, is being savagely attacked
by the press and leaders of the Republican
party. The same men who proved the dis
loyalty Of the fusionists of Maine by the
opinion of the Supreme Court OF that State
are now denounoing the decision of our
Court as being merely partisan. The Demo.
cratic party is noted for its obedience to law,
and when the law is declared by the Court,
opposition ceases. The Republican party
is its exact antipodes in this respect: 1t
never yields to law where the law stands be-
1--WE en 1t and its ambitious purposes as has
been demonstrated on many occasions.
That the decision of the Court on the Con-
stitutional amendments is correct it seems
10 us, after an examination of the question,
is not open to doubt. 1t may do for mere
partisans, for an ignoble purpose, to attack
the Court, but members OF the profession
who seek to see the laws of their STATE Justly
administered, should not, for party's sake,
degrade their noble calling by attacking
Court for the discharge OF
conscientious duty. Messrs
Biddle, WordeD aud Howk, who concur in
the opinion pronounced by the Court, are
men who have made characters for honesty
and integrity as we'll a. ability in their pro-
fession, and it is not to be supposed that
they would violate their oaths and lend
themselves to the miserable business of
prosttutiDg their high offices for mere par
tisan purposes.
Those who attack the Court persistently
falsify the case made before the Court. The
question was not whether the Court should
sat no m M mi of had
been adopted by the people, but whether
they bad in fact been thus adopted. Had
they2 fe ..e
The Constitution saws:
Any amendment or amendments to this
Consultation may be proposed in either branch
of The General Assembly, and, If the same
shall be agreed to by a majority of the MEM
bers elected to each OF the two Houses, sucn
proposed amendment or amendments SHALL
with the yeas and nays thereon, be entered on
the journals and referred to the General AS
semoly to be chosen at the next general
election; and IT. n the General Assembly so
next chosen, such proposed amendment or
anne ndments shall be agreed TO by majority
of all the members elected to each House, then
II shall be the duty OF the General Assembly
to submit such amendment or amendments
to the electors OF the state; and If majority
amendment or amendments shall become a
part OF this Constitution.
Now, il will be observed that a proposed
amendment, before it can become part. of
the Constitution, must pass three oideals-
two General Assemblies and the vote of the
people. It will not be disputed that an
amendment is required to receive amsjority
of all the members constituting the separate
Legislative Assemblies, or that il requires
titty-one in the House and twenty-six in the
Senate to pass it; and If this is
admitted, Why is IL that less than
ratlfy2 The electors of the State, as de-
fined by all authority, are the legal voters of
the State-not those who do vote, but those
entitled to vote. There can, therefore
be no doubt that it requiresIa majority of
the legal voters of the State to ratlfy an
amendment no more than it can be douoted
that il requires a majority of all the men,
bers elected to each House to pass it In the
General Assembly. The fact that the
amendments must be so submitted to
the voters that all can vote for
or against them has no force to combat the
position we take, for, in their passage through
the General Assembly, the same thing is re-
quired, and the vote registered. although it
requires certain affirmative vote to pass
them. Besides, il was evidently the inten-
ton of those who made the Constitution that
amendments should be submitted to the peo-
pie at separate election held for that pur-
pose alone, and when this is done, as We
shall presently see, the vote for and against
the amendments submitted will be held to
The Legislature OF 1879 submitted the
amendments to 4 vote of the people in the
following language: a-
"Section l. Be It enacted by the General
Assembly of the state of Indiana. That eacn
of said proposed amendments shall be submit
ted to the electors of the state, at the election
to be held on the first Monday OF April, 1850,
for their adoption or rejection"
Here the Legislature defined the electors
to whom --the amendments were to be sub
mitted, viz To the electors who should
assemble and vote at the April election, 1880.
This was the body Of men who, under the
law. were TO constitute "the electors of the
State to ratify or reject the amendments.
Who shall say that any other body could
ratify them2, Shall Court cruelty its con-
science at the dictatioh of partisan clamor,
and say that less than this body fixed by
the law to determine the question shall be
sufficient? Shall the highest Court in
the : State, . M, .snothsrx = rule than
that laid down by the Con-
stitution and the law? When it does 30, let
the people deride and scorn it; but all honor
to men who hold the scales of Justice