San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1886-02-13
THOSE ALDERMEN .
Another Letter from Mr.. Bergstrom on the
Subject.
Editor san Antonio Light

Editor san Antonio Light.
Is the matter of the Aldermen hold
ing over have no selfish end to crafty,
and will say now that my objection is
not to the personnel of the members, as
| believe their constituents would re-
elect them TO fill the offices they now
hold if they would accept, but the only
object is to avoid complications in the
fHure; every citizen is interested in see
ing the laws enforced, and the acts of
our Council accepted as legal and abide
by them. If the legality of their acts is
to remain in doubt, the administration
will be hampered and the progress and
Improvement of the city retarded. The
present Council will levy taxes, etc, and
in time people will oppose the collection
of such taxes, as well as other acts of
the Council, and thereby involve the
city in endless litigation because of this
doubt of the legality of their right to
hold over. and the wheels Of the
city government CiOgged, AT least
during the peudenCy of such suits
besides the cost thereof. There
fore these matters ought to be deter
mined now, that their future acts might
q
and be accepted as such.
The ballot is said to be the palladium
OF the liberties of American citizens. and
truly so. for it is the only mode in which
the citizen has of governing himself, and
declaring his will in the administration
OF the government, municipal, state or
federal, OF which he forms Il constituent
part. This being the only power of self
government, which is the only attribute
of free government, and therefore an
invaluable right, it should not be lightly
taken from the citizen and exercised by
a few. This much has been said TO show
that the Legislative act extending the
term of an elective office should be
strictly construed, and If it can be con
strued upon any other hyp0th-
esis except that Of extension.
then it must be done, so as 10 reserve to
the citizen the right to elect his own
officers. Much has been said with refer
ence to the word ALL in my former COM
municatiOn. 1t was left out inadytT-
family, but 1t is better so, as ii will serve
to illustrate the fallaCy of the position
that the terms were thereby extended.
| said 1.-The terms of aldermen elected
prior to February, 1887, shall expire
etc. What does that mean, that the term
of ALL aldermen elected prior 10 Febru-
ary, 1887, shall expire ut that date. or
only some of them. If that sentence as it
stands means all aldermen, as it certain
ly does, then what effect has the word
all upon the sentence. 1t neither adds
to or takes anything from il. 1t is mere
surplusage and means nothing, and if the
right to hold over is based on the word
ALL. it is based upon nothing. That
straw is too light TO save Il drowning
man.
1t is further commended that section >,
of the old charter, is abrOgated and the
amendment is in force. | contend that
the election clause Of the old charter is
still in force, rs sections ) of the amend
ment specially provides that il shall not
begin until the second Monday in Feb
ruary, 1857; will it be cOntended that we
had no election law from 1885 to 1851;
that cannot be, as one act does not ter
inmate until the other begins. Section
> provides that ION the second Monday
in February. beginning with the year
1887, etc., therefore the old charter con-
tinues until that time. by the same
process of reasoning il might be argued
that when the amended charter was
enacted, providing that the Council
should before December, 1856, d.
vide the city into eight wards
instead of four. it immediately
Obliterated all ward division lines. and
We had no wards until ii was again d.
yded into eight, and we had during
that time no Aldermen representing
wards as required BY the charter. and
therefore the entire board was Illegal;
this proposition would not be sound and
yet it would be as reasonable as the
other. They are both acts to be done at
a future time, and the former act con-
times until the subsequent act by its
own terms goes into operation.
AS | said before, the act of the Iegis-
lature taking from the citizen his right
by ballot TO select elective officers, must
be stristly construed, and Ii il can be
construed upon any other reasonable
hypothesis it must be done. Now 10 it
not the plain provision, as well as a rea-
sonable hypothesis, that the provision
of section q, that the terms Of all Alder
men elected prior to February, 1887,
shall expire at that time, means that
none shall extend beyond il.
1t does not attempt to interfere in any
manner, except to say that all terms
must expire here. 1t has nothing to do
with or say about terms expiring before
that time. 1t does not go into operation
until February 1887, therefore does not
and cannot operate Oh terms expiring
before that time. 1t simply provides
that it goes into operation on the second
Monday in February 1887, and from that
time on, aldermen must be elected under
its provisions, and consequently the
terms Of all aldermen elected prior
thereto, under the provisions of the old
charter must expire, so that the election
can be held under the amended charter
going into operation on that date.