The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-12-30

Il
braced 3o1 pages while the private acts
covered 1908 pages and this in a ses-
sion of only So days Was this not
| enough to generate and vitalize sec
| ton 104 of the constitution prescrib-
ing local legislation on a vast num-
Der of subjects? 1t was wisely thought
that there were few subjects of merit
that could not be covered by general
laws and special elections were not
among the least of the evils to be
condemned and, If possible, suppressed
Omitting portions not germane to the
question in hand, section 1o4 of the
constitution of Alabama reads as fol-
lows:
Section 104. The legislature shall
not pass a special. private or local law
in any of the following cases
C1S) Amending, confirming or extend
ing the charter of any private or mu-
nicipal corporation or renting the
forfeiture thereof: Provided, this shall
not prohibit the legislature from al
tering or rearranging the boundaries
of the city. town or village. t2s)
Providing for the conduct of elections,
changing the boundaries of wards. pre-
cincts or districts except in the event
of the organization of new counties
or the changing of the lines of the
old counties"
Section of the act of the legisla-
ture commonly designated THE King
bill" contains, among other things,
the following:
This election shall be held under
the provisions of the general laws of
this state as far as the same may
be applicable and except as herein
modified. If at such elections
a majority of all the legal voters par
ticipating therein shall vote in IA
for of Greater Birmingham then this
act shall become in full force and ef-
feet on the first day of october, 1903;
but If a majority of the qualified
voters participating in such election
shall vote against Greater Birmins-
ham then this act shall be null ana
valid. In unincorporated por-
lions of the territory described In sec
ton l of this act polling places snail
be established where deemed neces-
sary for the convenience of electors
residing therein at such places as may
be designated by the mayor of the
city of Birmingham. In the DIS
erection of the mayor of the city of
Birmingham additional polling places
to those provided in general elections
may be established. There shall be
three managers, two clerks and one
returning officer of said elections at
each polling place to be appointed by
the mayor of Greater Birmingham
s. Within As hours from the time
of holding the election it shall
be the duty of the returning Of
ficer at each polling place to bring the
returns to the mayor of Birmingham at
the city hall. The mayor of
Birmingham shall give notice OF the
day of holding such election and OF
the places of voting in case he should
in his discretion appoint any voting
place in said territory in addition to
the regular voting places"
Municipal Corporations.
Municipal corporations being but parts
of the states internal government, mere
agencies to work out proper functions OF
government, it was but meet AMI proper
for the constitutional convention TO re-
serve to the legislature the right TO alter
or 1eaIrange the boundaries of city. town
or village. as provided by subdivision is
of section 104 of the constitution. Bat the
constitution does not provide that this
may be done by special elections. 1t is
left to the legislature itself to DO or not
to do, without resort to referendum. Sub
division % set out above contains three
distinct subjects interdicted from local
legislation, and yet only that of chang
ing the boundaries of wards. precincts
or districts seems to have been pressed
before the supreme court. If the consti-
tutional convention referred to only those
elections relating to the changing OF the
boundaries of wards, what would have
been easier than to insert the words las
to- for the word or" where the latter
first occurs in said subdivision 10, which
would have made the limitation plain and
unmistakable. If section does not pro-
vide for the conduct of special election,
then words must be read into IL or
read out of it, to convey a different
meaning to say nothing of its own con-
fesson that this election shall be held
under the general laws of this state as
far as the same may be applicable, except
as herein modified l have dwelt on the
constitutional invalidity of section be-
cause l cannot conceive how that section
can be valid law, as 1t was decided
to be in the Sgsbee case, in the face of
what 1 adjudge to be the unconstitu-
| tionality of the whole act.
| And how about the act as a whole?
| 1t is insisted by realtors counsel that
the published journal is regular, and that
! it shows the constitutional enactment OF
the law This evidence was excluded, as
| tending to contradict the record.
at cannot be doubted, We think, and
NOTICE
BIRMINGHAM Lodge No. 70