The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1895-10-11

burg the excitement and expense of |
an election upon these several in
dependent questions of Town policy |
and administration with no power or
privilege to discriminate between
them, but compels them to vote for
the whole or none, is not warranted
by the constitution or by statute law
but is opposed by both.
In the Midvale Borough case I62
Pa. st. there was submission to the
electors of a street improvement
question, and also question of water
works erection, but neither in the
Court below nor in the Supreme
Court was the question raised or de-
termined as to the junction of the
two subjects for popular vote there
on, But in that case no question not
strictly Of debt increase was included
in the submission vote.
In Gray ct. al. VS.. Mount, As Iowa,
sol, where the question submitted TO
a popular vote was in the following
form. "Shall the swamp land fund
of Guthrie County Iowa be devoted
"by the board Of supervisors of said
county to the erection of Court
"House at Guthrie Centre, in said
" county, and County High School" !"
Gin the town of Pariora in said "
"county, in the proportions of two "
thirds thereof to erection Of said "
"Court House and one-third to )"
erection of said High School build"
"ing.'
The decision of the Court was
against the validity of the submission
because the two questions were jointly
submitted to the popular vote. The
cogent reasoning Of Beck, ] in that
case will be entitled to consideration
whenever similar question is con-
sidered in our own state. In the case
of Fulton County Supervisors VS.. r.
r. c. 81 Ills 338, the court held
submission vote by the citizens of the
county upon proposition of subscrip-
ton to the stock of two railroad CON-
panies was unauthorized and invalid
when the statute under which the sub.
mission was made provided for SUBJ
scription "for stock in any railroad
company already or hereafter author
ized," upon conditions therein named.
The Court said "the order made "
"by the board of Supervisors Of
Fulton County under the law does "
"not seem to be in strict conformity"
"with it. The law evidently contem- I"
"plated vote for or against sub "
" scription to some one company"
"only specifying the company. The"
"order is for subscription to the "
Mississippi and Wabash River R. l."
"R. Co, and the Petersburg and !"
"Springfield r. R. Co., $4,000 ,
"each. This is notoriously not pur- 1"
"suant to the law, but is manifestly"
unfair. The truth is the voters of
Fulton County have never had an y
opportunity to vote, and have never"
"voted this subscription, for the ques-"
"tion was at no time distinctly before |"
"them. Neither road has received I"
"the approving vote of the people :"
land until the naked single question I"
shall be fairly presented to those /"
"voters they ought not to be bound. +"
"We do not hesitate to say that the !"
tacking of one measure upon l"
another is fraud upon the people. -"
eft gives the County Court the |"
"power to weigh down popular I"
single measure, by attaching odious y
measures to it and thus virtually"
depriving the people of their right !"
"to vote on the one measure; the 3"
"success of which would greatly I"
"promote their interests"
In the case of McBryde VS.. city of
Montesano, "a P. $50, 7 Wash. 60,
where the Acts of Assembly appear to
be much like our own in reference to
allowing the Council to borrow money
or create an indebtedness for munich
pal purposes greater than Il per cent.
of the city's taxable property, and al
lowing said Council to provide there
fore by ordinance specifying the
amount desired to be created, and for
the submission of the same to the
electors of the city at special cleo
ton, it was held. That where such
ordinance submitted two distinct pro-
positions, one to fund $4,000 of old
debts, and the other to borrow $1,000
for future purposes, and only one bal.
lot was used, so that the voter had no
opportunity to express himself separ-
ately as to each, the whole election
was void.
Referring again to the question of
the jurisdiction of the Court in the
matter, an objection similar to that