The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1905-02-24
CRAWFORD FIGHTS
FOR THE PRIMARY
Huron Man Delivers Powerful
Address at Pierre in Sup
port Of Petition.
SAYS IT Is SUFFICIENT
And Insists that 1t is the Plain Duty,
Enjoined by the Constitution, to
Submit the Primary Meas
ure to the State.

Pierre. S. D.. Feb. lin an impas-
stoned address of two hours Coe l.
| Crawford made a plea for the enact
ment OF the primary election law under
the provisions of the initiative petition.
He started with the assertion that
the question is one as to whether the
people shall rule in fact by selecting
their administrative, legislative and
judicial officers, free from control Of
monopoly and to repress monopolics. or
! allow the selections TO be made by these
! great forces of capital
/ He ridiculed the criticisms which
! have been made of the petition; de-
! clared 1t to be an honest expression of
the opinions of the signers, and dened
any one to show anything to the con-
trary While their request might be
rejected at this time, he said, they
would come again and again until they
would make their voices heard and be
granted the, rights. He said in part:
IN this state the people have voted
into their constitution a principle which
Is binding upon the legislative branch
OF the state government, as completely
as any other principle in that conStitu-
ton, and that is The Initiative and ref
| erendum.
| Amendment Is Binding.
If the petition embodes the sub
stance OF the proposed law and suf-
fcient number of citizens Of the state
have signed it, ali that the constitu-
tlon requires has been done to invoke
the mandate to the legislature This
| petition has 1854 names appended to it.
1t is elementary that the legislature
should give effect to the apparent pur
pose and intention of the petitioners APP
pearing upon its face. The law always
presumes that a man intends the con-
sequences which will reasonably and
naturally follow any act done by HIM
1t never presumeS that men are GRIM
nals or that in performing an act of
this character they are committing
crime.
To decide that this petition is not
valid, the legislature mus, determine
that over 5000 persons signed it who
were not electors of this state. and con-
sequently that this number of persons
committed Il crime: or else it must de-
termine that the persons who circu-
lated the petition committed forgeries
to that extent; or else that the persons
who circulated the petition and OBJ
tanned the signatures procured over
5000 names to be signed by electors
whom they deceived and whose sigma
lures We're not affixed to a petition con-
tanning the substance of the proposed
law, but to some other paper, which did
not contain the law substantially as
\ proposed; and that they fraudulently
attached the same to this petition: that
is to say. that the persons who circu-
lated the petition and the members of
the primary election league, who re-
ceived and filed it with the secretary
of state, are criminals.
Maintains integrity Of Petition.
Our answer to this is. that if such a
fraud has been perpetrated the proof is
necessarily accessible, because the
league has given the name of every
man who circulated that petition, or
caused it to be circulated. and the men
whose names are affixed can be ocatel
with no difficulty We assert with alb
solute confidence that in every single
instance where a petition was signed in
the case of every one Of these 1854
signatures. the proposed law was en-
bodied in the caption of the petition
, when it was signed. Men may be found
who have been talked to since the pc
tition was filed by enemies of the p1 o.
posed law and who may say that they
did not understand the law, or did not
read the petition. or did not know what
they signed. Men of this kind may
possibly be found; but no man can be
found who can truthfully say that the
proposed law was not at the head of
the petition when he signed it. or that
the contents were misrepresented tC
him.
1t was there when he signed 1t. ant
if he were 4 qualified voter of the state
at the time, his name must be counted
I and he cannot more lie heard to change
it than he can change his ballot after
it has been marked by him and depos
tied in the ballot box. You can nj
more refuse to count it than Il canvass
! ing board can refuse to count the bal
. lots of a voter VINO appears after tn,
: polls are closed and tells them that h,
has changed his mind after depositins
: his ballot and did not understand wht
he was voting for when he stamped hi
:; ticket
,, The technical questions about dit,
f marks, in determining the residence
, and pOStoffice address of the petition
J, ers are puerle.
Maintains Integrity of Petition.
We insist that this petition is fair an
valid upon its face. If you deduct fror
it every name against which some o
: these superfine technicalities are urged
\ the number left is more than per cen,
: Of the qualified electors of the state
t It is a part of the same progra,
e which attacked the proposed law be
d fore the men who had made the attac
! had made any examination whateve
/ of the petition. 1t was given out at tn
S time this legislature was being organ
: lied that this measure would not h
berS of each legislative body spoke sal
castically and sneerngly about it &
} the beginning Of the session. We hay
e been told that this provision in OF
# constitution is a populistic clause an
q intinaation is made that for that re;
). son it is not so binding upon republ
a cans as other provisions. This is star
: ling news to those who have alwa,
i, been taught that the constitution ar
y. laws of the land wien once enacte
- were binding upon all alike without re
II erence to class, race. religion, color
l. previous condition of servitude.
Let us not deceive ourselves. "
certainly cannot deceive others in til
- matter The plain unvarnished tru
is that the opposition to this petit,
rests upon a fear to trust the matter
d. the decision of the majority of O.
Y, people.
nj What is the reason that men wi
:, claim to have been of very great Sc
~ vice to their state, and who are t
ne subjects of glowing panegyric al
It, eulogy by special advocates, fear
r- trust the people with the power
n adopt or reject this law? Asdirect a
" swer to this question cannot
,e evaded successfully by discussing t
4. expense of a primary law. If it
as too expensive to justify it's adoptic
cannot the people be trusted TO SO d
eide?
Question of Expense Not po+a,.