Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1909-09-04

and eight, an Act was passed proposing an
amendment to Section of Article | of the
Constitution OF the State, which said Act is
in the following words, to wit
CH.IPTER 20.
AN ACT to amend Section one of Article
one title, Elective Franchise of the
Constitution of this State, and to provide
for the submission of said Amendment to
the qualified voters of this State for adop-
ton or rejection.
CECTION |. Be BeHcmacteIbyHc G0,carM Is
- SU,biy Of -NnryidNd, Hree,ftthS Cf all the
members Of each ot the hro HomSeS concurrjng,
That the following section be and the same
is hereby proposed as an amendment to
Section one of Article one, title Elective
Franchise, of the Constitution of this State,
and if adopted by the legal and qualified
voters thereof as herein provided, 1t shall
supersede and stand in the place and stead
of Section one of said Article one.
SEC. |. All elections shall be by ballot, and
every male citizen of the luitcd States of the
age of twenty one years or upwards, who has
been Il resident of the State for two years and
of the Legislative District of Baltimore City or
of the county in which he may offer to vote,
for one year next preceding the election, and
who, moreover, is duly registered as Il quail
fled voter as provided in this Article, shall be
entitled to vote, in the ward or election dis
triCt III which he resides, at all elections here
after to be held in this State, and in case any
county city shall be SO divided us to form
portions of different electoral districts for the
election of Representatives in Congress Scna
tors, Delegates, or other officers, then to cnt-
tie person to vote for such officer, he must
have been il resident of that part of the county
or city which shall form part of the electoral
district in which he offers to vote, for one year
next preceding the election but Il person who
shall have acquired residence i'll such county
or city. emitting him to vote at any such clcc-
tion, shall he entitled to vote i'll the election
district from which he removed, until he shall
have acquired residence in the part of the
county or city to which he has removed.
Every male citizen of the nitcd States haV
ing tn" above prescribed qualifications of age
and residence shall hc entitled to he registered
so as to become Il qualified voter it he be- first
apcrson who, on the first day of January, in the
year eighteen hundred and SiNty-ninc, or prior
thereto, was entitled to vote under the laws of
this state, or of any other state of the ntCd
States. wherein he then resided or second Il
male descendant of such last mentioned per
son: or third II foreign born citizen of the
United States naturaliHCd between The first day
OF January i'll the year eighteen hundred and
SiNty-nine and the date of the adoption of this
section of this Article or fourth: Il male de
Sccndant of such last mentioned person or
fifth person who in the presence of the OH
GERS of registration, shall, i'll his own hand
writing, with pen and ink, without any aid,
suggestion or memorandum whatsoever, and
without any question or direction addressed to
him 10y amy OF the officers of rcglSt tiOn, make
app icatiOn to register correctly, stating in
such application his name, age, date and place
OF birth, residence and occupation at the time
and for the two years next preceding, the name
or names of his employer or employers, ii any,
at the time and for the two years next proceed
ing, and whether he has previously voted, and
If so, the state, county or city and district or
precinct in which he voted last and also the
nam" i'll fun OF the President of the United
States, of one of the Justices of the Supreme
Court of the United States of tn" Governor of
Maryland, of one of tn" Judges of the Court of
Appeals of Mary land, and of the Mayor of Bal
tilnorC city, if the applicant resides in lialti
more city, or Ot one OF the County Commits
SiOncrS of the county in which the applicant
resides and any person who is unable to com
ply with the atOrcgOlng requirements aS to
making application for registration in his own
hand writing, solely because he is physically
disabled from so doing or sixth IL person or
the husband of Il person, who at the time of his
application Tor registration, is il bona tidc own
cr of real or personal property in an amount of
not less than five hundred dollars, is assessed
therefor ON the tax books of the City of l}alti
more or of one of the counties of this State, has
been such owner and So assessed for two years
next preceding his application for registration:
shall have paid and shall produce receipts for
the taxes on said property for said two years
and shall at the time of his application make
affidavit before the officers of rcgSt ration that
he is, or that he is the husband of the person
who is the bona tide owner of the property SO
assessed to him or to her, as the case may be,
and that he or she has been such owner for
two years next preceding his application
No person not qualified under some one of
the above clauses shall he entitled to he regis
tered as Il qualified voter or he entitled to vote.
Every written Application to be registered,
presented to the officers of registration by any
person applying to he registered under the
above tltth clause, shall he carefully preserved
10y said officers of registration and shall be pro
duCtu III any court, II required, as hereinafter
provided.
The affidavit of any applicant for rcgstra
tIOn, duly made to the officers of regiStrat ion or
i'll Court, that he, the applicant, is IA person who
was entitled to vote on or before the first day
OF january i'll tho year eighteen hundred and
sixty nine, as aforesaid, or that he has become
il natuialHcd citizen of the United States be
tween the first day of January in the year
eighteen hundred and sixty nine and the date
OF the adoption of this section of this Article,
hs aforesaid, or his affidavit upon Information
and belief that he is IL descendant of person
who was entitled to vote ON or before the first
day of January i'll the year eighteen hundred
person who has become il naturaliXcd citizen
of the United States between the first day of
January in the year eighteen hundred and
sixty nine and the date of the adoption of this
section of this Article, shall hc prima facic
evidence of any of said facts sworn to.
y wiltully false statement upon the part of
any applicant for registration in relation to
any of the matters aforesaid shall bc criury,
and punishable as perjury is punished by the
laws OF this State.
ANY person who feels aggrieVcd 10y the action
of amy board of officers OF registration in refIIS-
ing to register him as IL qualified voter or in
registering any disqualified person may at any
time, either before or after the last session of
the board of officers of registration, but not
later than the Tuesday CNt preceding the clcc-
tiOn, file II petition, verified 10y affidavit, in the
Circuit Court tor the county i'll which the cause
of complaint arises, or, if the cause of com
plaint arises in Baltimore City, in any court of
common law jurisdiction in said city, setting
forth the grounds of his application and asking
to have the action of the board of officers of
registration corrected. The court shall forth
with set the petition for hearing and direct
summons to bc issued requiring the board of
officers of registration complained against in
said petition to attend ut the hearing in person
or by counsel, and where the ObirctOf the prti-
tiOn is to strike of the name of any person sum
mons shall also hc issued for such person, which
shall hc served by the sheriff within the time
therein designated; and said several courts
shall have full jurisdiction and power to review
the action of any board of officers of rCgistra
tion and to grant or withhold, as ii may deem
lawful and proper, the relief prayed for i'll the
premises.
In determining whether any person who ap-
piled to be registered under the above fifth
clause of this section was or was not entitled
to he registered under said NTH clause, the
court shall require the board of officers of reg
iStratiOn complained against to produce the
written application prepared and submitted by
such person at the time he presented himself
for registration to said board of officers of reg
iStTtiOn, and upon said written application
the court shall determine whether or not said
person, when he presented himself for rCgistra
tiOn complied with the requirements of said
fifth clause; and if the court shall determine
that said written application, so prepared and
submitted by said person, complied with the
requirements of said tifth clause and that said
person was not disqualified under any other
provision of this Article of the Constitution to
be registered upon the books of registry in
question, then the Court shall order said person
to he registered dS Il qualified voter but if the
court shall determine that said written appi-
cation of said person failed to comply with the
requirements of said tiith clause, or that said
person was in any other respect under this
Article of the Constitution disqualified to he
registered upon the books of registry in qucs-
tiOn, then the court shall order that said per
son shall not bc registered upon said books of