Evening journal., 1889-04-25

| ftANA0As AtefftNtAA11 AGHQft bS IDlJNc
On April 8, 1889, this committee sub.
mitted report which was adopted by
the Senate without a dissenting vote.
In said report this committee pre-
sented at length the reasons which con-
strained them to urgently recommend
!. that a Senate bill drawn in accordance
with the views expressed in said report,
aud in strict conformity with the pro
visions and necessary implications Of Ar
+ ticle TX of the constitution Of this state
d should Immediately be presented aud en-
acted by the General Assembly, for the
purpose Of obtaining the sense OF the
! people respecting the calling Of conven
= tion and providing for the election and
= holding of sucl convention.
Such bill vas accordingly presented
and passed by the Senate and sent TO the
House for its concurrence ON April 10th
ustant The house has refused to con.
=, ~ ia said bill and has presented to the
Sci ate a substitute therefor which has
bean referred TO their committee. The
provi V0ns Of this House substitute indi
cate an utter reputation of the mode.
prescrib vi by said Article TX for obtain
! ind a con, 7eution. They disclose an abso
| Lutte and radical departure from ths
terms of sai 4 article in three essentia
respects. viz:
First, they D -eseribe that the special
election for OBJ aiming the authority OF
the people for the calling and election OF
a convention shall " held at the general
election In Novembe. :, 1880, instead Of on
the third Tuesday of Way In every year
Second, they do not vequire that the
~ vote presc dbed in Article
TX shall be cast in Ia, o. .oed .. 'VN''N''0n
before it shall be anf"-
Thirs they do not require that the
, members Of the convention, If so author
lied. shall be elected at the second gen
eral election after the said special election,
as Is prescribed in said article.
The said Senate bill in lieu. Of which
the said House bill substitute, now be.
fore this committee has been presented
for the concurrence OF this body therein,
conformed strictly to Article TX in all
respects.
Therefore. for the reasons presented in
the aforesaid report of this committee,
and which need not be detailed on this
occasion, we feel compelled to recommend
that the said House substitute be not
concurred in by the Senate In said re-
port 1t was demonstrated beyond all rea-
sonable doubt that departure in any
material respects (as each Of those above
specified is) would create opposition to
the cause of constitutional reform where
none would otherwise exist and there
fore, in all probability, defeat the ratif-
cation Of the work Of the convention as
in, 1853 and consequently needlessly and
uselessly add to the burdens Of present
taxation, the vast cost of fruitless
convention.
in said report we did not find it neoes
sary sither to argue or declare that the
modes and conditions prescribed in Article
TX for tSa ceiling and election Of a con
yentIon were thc sole and exclusive ones,
aud that the calling ana election Of a
convention otherwise would be unauthor-
ized unlawful or invalid.
We do not consider that the needs Of
the present occasion make it necessary
for the Senate at this time TO pass upon
the question but we do believe and de-
clare that departure from the modes
and conditions of Article TX will result
as in 1858, in the rejection of the work
of the convention, if so called by the
people when submitted to them for rati-
hcation.
Hence the precise language Of said ar
tiele was incorporated in the said Senate
bill, and which language the said House
substitute II concurred in, will strike out
q Of said bill.
!. VII it be so stricken out, then the largI
btdy of voters who sincerely believe tina
4 any such departure from the provisions
Of Article TX will invalidate the title anC
the work Of the convention viii b
driven as in 1858, to oppose the move
ment for constitutional reform at ever
y step of the proceedings regarding the con
= vention IL will also excite the appre
y tensions of the prudent and timid, tha
ultra radical methods for foisting an il
valid constitution upon the people wi
Z, be fesorted TO, and that a conflict Of au
- thority between the old and new system
W Wot may result with consequent internal III
~ order confusion and violence within ou
" state. Prudent and conservative cit
~ zens will therefore be arrayed againi
~ the reform movement both at the speci
ss election fol- and against a convention, q
nv well as at the election of the member
ei thereof 1t is obvious TO the well il
'e formed, that the holding of the late spe
.as ial election of 1887 in November instel
ny of May, as prescribed in Article TX, occ
w sions the failure to receive the prescribl
N constitutional vote in favor Of conve
=" tion in that year In view of these CO
siderations the reasons given by u
trainers of the House substitute
an its adoption in lieu Of the Senate
the are insufficient.
lto 1t is absurd to urge that the spec
ess election for or against conventi
per should be held at the next general eli
om- tion instead Of at a May election becau
tax George Read and Willard Hall advocat
ties this in the convention of 1881. Tn
all proposition and arguments adh
pas ing to this provision of the old constit
any tion Of 1892 was rejected by said cow
and tion under the leadership and the UNI
this swerable reasoning Of John M. Clayt
to- II also seems inconsistent for those v
year stigmatize our present constitution
1881 as antiquated to ask that we 81
now adopt the provision Of the far m
the Anticipated constitution of 1902, wh
ap- the later one Of 1881 discarded after a
ners' and exhaustive argument and mat
,lace consideration.
81 Is The difference between the Senate
I Il. and the House substitute is this:
Eli The Senate bill provides a course wi
q will most surely secure the calling o.
az convention and the ratification of
The work. While the House substitute
tbe scribes course which will most probS
90 ~ defeat these desired results.
This is the situation, and this
true issue between these two oppo.
measures, and which we confidently
t@ne @ sent to the people for their considera