The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-07-23
The Constitutional Amendment
OTTAWA, July ID, 1881.

"and there shall he no election OF County
Jndpe. County Clerk and Treasurer until
1882" or To have used the words THE aert cleo
ton" appropriately
With regrets for past omissions lei US en-
deavor to ascertain what the words, 30 eco
nomlcally used, really do mean, when coaslru'
ed by the light OF surrounding circumstances
The object of the amendment seems 20 have
leen TO prevent sheritls and treasurcrs from
staying in office too long before being relieved
by others; and MS incident thereto to DIMINISH
the number of the elections by having the
terms of more of the elected commence and
end mt the same time.
The time for electng state senator came in
1878 and 1882, of sheriff and coroner in 1850
and 1889, of county treasurer IN 1881 ana 1855,
of county Judge and county clerk III 1877 ana
1881, of clerks of the circuit court IN 1850 ana
1884 of county surveyors III 1879 aud 1888, ol
comfy superlntendent OF schools In 1877 and
1881 The attempted changes seem TO have
been all from the odd to the even years.
The constitutional amendment fixed the
time for electing county judge, county clerk,
treasurer and sheriff in November, 1857,
changing the time as to the lrst lhrec, ana
making It coincide with that OF The sherlll,
and making no change as To coroner anu cieik
of the circuit court, whose election came IN
the even years. Whether the legislation OF
GERS not named in the constitutional amend
ment, is not for discussion low. sufficient
for the day Is the evil thereof" What does
the amendment mean, as to county Judge
comfy clerk and treasurer, the only ones
whose time of election is changed 10 1857 anu
whose term AS the writer claims, Is heightened
one year thereby? 1t seems to me that the
intention was to leave the time unchanged rs
TO coroner and circuit clerk, and to so change
the time rs to Judge, clerk, treasurer ana shcr'
III as to make the terms OF all these four years,
and all to commence IN A. ID. lSSs. IL was not
deemed lust to deprive all shcrils OF the last
wear of their terms, and therefore Il year more
was given to the judges, clerks and treasurrrs,
and therefore, under the maxims or rules OF
construction in relation to 1.-THE expression OF
one excluding the other" &c, the words ION
the Tuesday after the first Monday, A. d. 1852"
eyclude the similar words of date in 1881, rs
10 Judge, clerk and treasurer.
1t is true that in the absence OF any provis-
ion IN the constitution on the subject OF Judge,
clerk and treasurer, the Legislature could well
create these offices, and fix the terms thcrcot;
but the Legislation on this subject was not real
" intended TO create the offices, so that per.
hans an express repeal or abrogalion OF all
provisions on the subject in the constitution
might put an end to the offices. /, Is not i'm.
Dortant, however, to consider whether that
might have been so or not. The act OF lS'2
was a valid act until superseded by the amend
ed section of the constitution The question
is when did this occur | think when the vote
for the amendment was canvassed Others
that it was not until the election OF 1852 shall
have taken place.
Suppose by way of illustration, that the
amendment had fixed the time for the election
of Judge, clerk, sheriff and treasurer in the
month of December, A. ID. 1881. Would there
he any doubt about December, 1881, having
been substituted for November, 1881, and that
the old officers would have had a month added
tc their terms? Suppose the time for the cleo
ton had been fixed for March, 1882, would
there be any doubt about March 1882 having
been substituted for Nov, 1881, and that 1t was
not IN addition to 1t, and would there not have
been four months added to the terms OF the
old officers? If no doubt yet, when, between
March, 1882, and November 1882, would the
date be late enough to create the commence
mcnt of doubtingY
If the amended section took the place of
section of article 10, and the last named sec
ton absolutely ceased to exist in 1850, II must
be that the term of n treasurer, If he possibly
m,pht he elected in 1881, must cease In De
cember. A. d. 1882, or there could be no cleo
ton in November, A. d. 1882 as provided for
in the amendment And so 1t must be In case
of n sheriff elected IN November, A. D. 1881,
10 ill a vacancy He would continue IN office
but one year, and yet If the amendment com.
menced to take effect in 1880 the PLAIN imam
biruous language, mo person having once
been elected to the Office Of sheriff or treasurer
shall be eligible TO reelection to said Office for
four wears" &c. must apply to sheriff or
treasurer elected at any time after the amend
ment took effect by the canvass of the votes,
and nv its then substitution for the old section.
There Is no dormant section OF art. 10. 1t
Is a dead and not sleeping section. The DIS
tincton is rs plain rs the difference between
death and its hat.brother sleep" In the
case in 3D. Gray's report, COL, the old constitu.
ton slumbered but in our case-section OF
article l0-died when ITS substitute was born,
Both could not live together from the canvass
of the votes llurds stat. OF 1884, p l32, sec
II until the election in 1882.
The case in Gray's reports Is to tins elect;
By the constitution of Massachusetts certain
officers called councillors, were to be elected
bv the Legislature. An amended article was
voted for and adopted, providing for an cleo
tion nv the people in districts to be thereafter
created There was no express repeal OF the
former provision 1t was properly held, by the
Judges of the Supreme Court, that as the re
peal was not express, but merely by lmpllca-
lion the Legislature could select the councillors
until the districts were formed, and the new
councillors were elected by the people. There
was the substitution of an election by the peo-
pie for one by the legislature, and there was no
express repeal of the former by substitution OF
the latter, at fixed event or date The case
IN Gray's reports is too unlike our case to be
an authority in point The election by the
people in districts to be thereafter formed
was OF course necessary to complete the substl'
tuition. The canvassing OF the votes in our case
puts the new then In force, and causes the old
lien to cease to exist And the time in Novem'
her. 1881. when the election was to he held un.
der the act of 1872, is merely put of until No
vember, 1882. II an officer was properly cleo
ted under the act of 1872 In November, 1881,
he was elected for four years, and not for one
only. The amended constitution should do a.
way with the &C. OF 1872 entirely or leave Ii