St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-05-08
canery some one who is not elected,
seem to have overlooked. 1t reads:

''At the general municipal election Of
said city Ill 1892, there shall be elected
at large from the electors of said city,
and at each general municipal election
held each two successive years there
after, there shall be elected at large.
from the electors of said city, nine as
semblymen. WHO SHALL RESIDE
AS HERElNBEFORE PROVIDED"
''As hereinbefore provided" is ex-
planned by the previous quotation from
the charter showing that the residence
OF the candidates Is an absolutely man
datory provision ami the very essence
of the elec ion. All of the candidates
were undoubtedly ELIGIBLE to hold
the office if properly elected. but abso-
lutely INELIGIBLE TO BE ELECTED
unless their residences brought them
within the limit of residence prescribed
by the charter. When the charter was
adopted the residence provision was in
serted to secure representation from all
parts of the city, but If this new at
tempted partisan ruling was really law
the entire nine members of the assem-
bly, might be chosen from single
block.
The intent of a law, as we'll as Its
wording. is matter which courts and
such lawyers as have the necessary in
tellect take into consideration, and
when both the intent and mandatory
wording of an act are in harmony, there
is no room for doubt, even when the
Zollmanic brain is focused upon the
subject.
The attempt fo unseat Holman and
Banholzer. Democrats, and fill their
places with Arosin and Reardon, Re-
publicans, will not win. Only those
who were elected will be members of
the next assembly.
INTERVIEW WITH MIR. CUTcHEoN.
F.W. .M.CutcheOn,c chairman of the late
Democratic city committee, was seen at
his residence last evening concerning
the Republican claim that the charter
provision tina: four assemblymen shall
reside east and four west of Waba-
sha is in violation of section OF article
of the state constitution, and there
fore void. Mr.. Cutcheon said:
"The politician lawyers of the Repub-
lican city committee have, think. gone
off at half-cock. The constitutional pro-
vision referred to says in effect that
every voter shall be eligible to every
office elective by the people of the dis.
trlct in which he resides. The pro-
vision of the charter that requires four
assemblymen to live in one quarter of
the city, four in another and one in still
another. has, in my view, no bearing
upon the question of eligibility to office.
1t merely furnishes the test that deter.
mines whether a man is elected
or not. 1t says. in effect: OF
the men voted tor, the four liv-
ing west of Wabasha that receive
the highest number of votes, the four
living east Of Wabasha that receive the
highest number of votes and the one
living in the Sixth ward that receives
the highest number of votes shall he
declared elected and shall be entitled to
seats in the assembly, 1t no more
renders any man ineligible to Office than
would provision that all assemblymen
should be appointed by the governor of
the state. With this provision in full
force. as understand it. any number
of men living anywhere in the city may
be voted for, and any one of these men
receiving ENOUGH votes can be
elected, and will then be entitled to the
Office. The fact that man lives in any
particular quarter of the city in no way
disqualifies him to be member of the
assembly. If this is true.it is plain that
the charter provision affects no mans
eligibility for office. 1t affects only the
question Of how many votes it will take
to elect hin. 1t says it shall not be
enough that Elan is one of the nine
persons voted for receiving the highest
number of votes. He must On the con-
trary be one of the four residing in his
quarter of the city receiving the highest
number. The provision affects the ma
chinery OF elections-not eligibility to
office. The constitutional provision has
no bearing ON the law in question. if 1
be right, and think am"