The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-03-11
DAILY DOES His DUTY
Hudson's Senator Makes a
Gallant Fight Against
the Term Ex-
tender.
IsTHE BILL CONSTITUTIONAL
Republicans Afraid to Submit 1t
TO Lawyers for an Opinion
Second Reading Passed.
IsTHE BILL CONSTITUTIONAL
Special I } the Jerseu Citu Neaps,

IhEN ION, Mafcn IL, 1SJl.-COlOHel
Sammy" Dickinson, ED WooIley and
other representatives of all that is good
and pure in politics. from Republican
standpoint, were in the Senate Chamber
/ all day urging the passage of the election
extension bill. Their price Of liberty was
rewarded at the afternoon session by the
appearance of this pet scheme on second
reading. AS soon as it bobbed up Mr..
Daily moved to refer the bill to the At
torney General for his opinion as to its
constitutionality. This was supported by
Mr.. Kuhl. in whose judgment, he said,
there was no doubts as to the constitu-
terms of officeholders for eight months
beyond the terms for which they were
elected.
1t was time enough to have the opinion
of the legal authorities, Mr.. Francis said,
when it was contested after it had be-
come law. The Attorney General s
opinion had been given to the Senate be-
fore and not sustained.
The power of the Legislature to ex-
tend terms of officials. Mr.. Reed said,
had been upheld by the Attorney General
and the courts, and he quoted authorities
sustaining his assertion.
The motion to refer to the Attorney
General was denounced by Mr.. Ketcham
as a subterfuge to defeat the bill. There
was no partisanship in the BILL he said,
as far as Newark was concerned, as it
would keep a Democratic Mayor and
ether officials in power
Mr.. DAILY in reply said that his motion
70 inc, "a
bills defeat. He simply wished to have
the Attorney Generals opinion SO that
the question of constitutionality might
be eliminated when the bill came up for
final passage next week. To show that
he was not partisan in the matter he
offered to have the bill referred to some
Republican lawyer for his opinion as to
its constitutionality. He felt sure of the
response. He said that Jersey City had
already spent $4,000 in advertising and
other necessary preliminaries of the com
ing charter election, and the Senators
ought to be sure they were right before
wasting that money. He asked if the
Senate of New Jersey was there merely
to obey the behests of a horde of hungry
office seekers who were dancing attend
ance around the Chamber? Were the in
stitutions of one hundred years standing
to be upset to help keep men at the public
crib who had never earned dollar by the
sweat of their brow?
Mr.. Days motion was lost. Then he
made another to ask Samuel H. Greys
opinion, and that went to keep the other
one company.
Mr.. johnson of Bergen then moved to
amend the bill with a clause providing
that the people should vote upon it be-
fore it became operative. He denounced
the bill as vicious legislation, mixing up,
as 1t did. State and local issues. Since
1t had been so stoutly declared by the
promoters of the bill that the people of
Jersey City and Newark were so anxious
for the bill it would do no harm to let
them express that desire at the polls.
Mr.. Keteham opposed the amendment,
and Mr.. Stokes said that if it was adopt
ed it would leave the bill a confused
mass. It would postpone the operation
of the measure until after fall election,
which would be the first opportunity to
submit 1t to the vote of the people, and
the result would be to leave hiatus in
some local elections. The amendment
Mr.. johnson then offered another.
amendment striking out Section Z, the re-
suit Of which would be to make the act
operative after July instead of immedi-
ately. He said by this means the people
could elect their ticket as usual in the
spring and then in the fall another selec-
ton could be held under the new law.
This latter amendment, Mr.. Stokes de-
clared, was open to the same objection
as the former. Let the bill go through
on second reading" he said "and be
killed or passed on third reading" The
amendment was lost by vote of Z to r.
Those voting in the affirmative were:-
Messrs. Barber, Daily, Kuhl, Gould, John
son of Bergen, Miller and Parry. The
bill passed second reading. Its friends
were jubilant and their smiles were of
the hea1thiest kind.