The Baltimore County union, the Towson news., 1909-10-09

General Assembly of Maryland, held in the year
of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and
eight. an Act was passed proposing an amend
ment to Section of Article of the Constitu-
tion of the State, which said Act is in the fol-
lowing words, to wit:
CHAPTER 26.
AN ACT to amend Section one of Article one,
title, Effective Franchise of the Constitu-
tion of this State, and to provide for the submis
sion of said Amendment to the qualified voters
of this State for adoption or rejection.
SECTION l. Be it enacted by the General As
sembiy of Maryland, three tifthS of all the mem
bers of each of the two Houses concurriDg that
the following section be and the same is hereby
Article one, title. Effective Franchise" of the
Constitution of this State, and if adopted by the
legal and qualified voters thereof, as herein pro-
vided, it shall supersede and stand in the place
and stead of Section one of said Article one.
SEC.1. All elections shall be by ballot, and
every male citizen of the United States of the age
of twenty-one years or upwards who has been
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, more
over, is duly registered as qualified voter as
provided in this Article, shall be entitled to vote,
in the ward or election district in which he re-
sides at all elections hereafter to be held in this
State, and in case any county or city shall be
divided as to form portions of different electoral
districts for the election of Representatives in
Congress, Senators, Delegates or other officers,
then to enttle person to vote for such officer
he must have been a resident of that part of the
county or city which shall form part of the
electoral district in which he offers 10 vote, for
one year next preceding the elections; but per-
son who shall have acquired residence in such
county or city. emitting him to vote at any such
election, shall be entitled to vote in 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 United States having
| the above prescribed qualifications of age and
residence shall be entitled to be registered so as
to become qualified voter if he be- first per-
son who, on the first day of January in the year
eighteen hundred and sixty nine, or prior there
| to, was entitled to vote under the laws of this
State or of any other State of the United States,
wherein he then resided; or second: male de-
scendant of such last mentioned person; or third:
foreign born citizen of the United States natur-
allied between the first day of January in the
| year eighteen hundred and sixty-ni and the
date of the adoption of this section of this Arti-
Gle; or fourth: a male descendant of such last
mentioned person; or fifth person who. in the
presence of the officers of registration shall, in
| his own handwriting, with pen and ink, without
and without any question or direction addressed
| to him by any of the officers of registration,
make application 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, If any,
at the time and for the two years next preced-
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
| name in full of the President of the United
States, of one of the Justices of the Supreme
| of Maryland, of one of the Judges of the
| Court of Appeals of Maryland and of the
| Mayor of Baltimore City, if the applicant resides
in Baltimore City, or of one of the County Com
missiOners of the county in which the applicant
resides and any person who is unable to COM
ply with the aforegoing requirementsa as to max
in rQf in nun hon
writing. solely because he is physically disabled
from so doing; or sixth person, the hus-
band of person, who at the time of his applca-
tion for registration is bona tide owner of real
or personal property in an amount of not less
than five hundred dollars, is assessed therefor
| on the taxbooks of the City of Baltimore or of
one of the counties of this State, has been such
owner and so assessed for two years next pre-
ceding 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 registration 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 ext pre-
| ceding his application.
No person not qualified under some one of the
above clauses shall be entitled to be registered
| as a qualified voter or be entitled to vote. Every
written application to be registered presented
to the officers of registration by any person ap-
clause, shall be carefully preserved by said Off
GERS of registration and shall be produced in any
| Court, IL required, as hereinafter provided.
The affidavit OF any applicant for registration,
| duly made to the officers of registration or in
Court, that he, the applicant, is person who
was entitled to vote on or before the first day of
| January, in the year eighteen hundred and
| siXty-nine, as aforesaid, or that he has become
| a naturalized citizen of the United States be-
tween the first day of January, in the year eigh-
teen hundred and sixty nine, and the date of the
adoption of this Article, as aforesaid, or his afi
| davit upon information and belief that he is
descendant of person who was entitled to vote
on or before the first day of January, in the year
eighteen hundred and sixty mine. or that he is
| descendant of person who has become natur-
| allied citizen of the United States between the
first day of January, in the year eighteen hun
| dred and sixty-nine, and the date of the adop-
ton of this section of this article shall be pTinG
fdcie evidence of any of said facts so sworn to-
wilfnliy RAISE @ stateRen6 upon the part Oh
| of the matters aforesaid shall be perjury and
punishable as perjury is punished by the laws of
Any person who feels aggrieved by the action
of any board of officers of registration in refuS-
ing to register him as 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 next preceding the election,
file petition verified by affidavit, in the Circuit
| Court for the county in which the cause of COM
plant arises, or, if the cause of complaint arises
| in Baltimore City, in any court of common laws
| 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 forthwith set the
| petition for hearing and direct summons to be
issued requiring the board of officers of registra
| tion complained against in said petition to at
| tend at the hearing in person or by counsel and
where the object of the petition is to strike off
the name of any person. summons shall also be
issued for such person, which shall be served by
the Sheriff within the time therein designated;
and said several courts shall have full jurisdic-
tion and power to review the action of any board
| of officers of registration and to grant or with
hold as it may deem lawful and proper, the re-
lief prayed for in 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
| be registered under said fifth clause, the court
shall require the board of officers of registration
| complained against to produce the written ap-
plication prepared and submitted by such per-
| son at the time he presented himself for regis
tration to said board of officers of registration,
and upon said written application the court shall
| determine whether or not said person, when he
presented himself for registration, complied
| with the requirements of said fifth clause and
if the court shall determine that said written ap
| pication so prepared and submitted by said per-
son, complied with the requirements of said fifth
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 be registered as qualified voter,
| but ii the Court shall determine that said writ
ten application of said person failed to comply
with the requirements of said fifth clause, or
| that said person was in any other respect under
| this Article of the Constitution disqualified to
| be registered upon the books of registry in ques
ton. then the court shall order that said person
shall not be registered upon said books OF
registry.
The court may enforce any order by attach
ment for contempt in said cases neither party
shall have any right of removal; exception may
| be taken to any ruling of the court at the hear
| ing of said cases and appeal shall be allowed
to the Court of Appeals as in other cases; all
| such appeals shall be taken within five days
from the date of the decision complained of, and
shall be heard and decided by the Court of APP
| peals upon the original papers, or otherwise as
| the Court of Appeals may by rule prescribe, as
| soon as may be practicable.
| The General Assembly shall have power to
| provide more fully by legislation not inconsis
/ tent with this section of this Article, for the
hearing and determination of all such cases.
| SEC. 2. And be it further enacted by the au
thority aforesaid, That the aforegoing section
| hereby proposed as an amendment to the Con-
stitution of this State shall be at the next Gen
| eral Election for members of the General AS
| sembly to be held in this State, submitted to the
legal and qualified voters thereof for their adop-
tion or rejection, in pursuance of the directions
| contained in Article XIV of the Constitution of
! this State, and at said general election the vote
| on the said proposed amendment shall be bv
ballot, and upon each ballot there shall be prin-
| ted the words For the Constitutional Amend
| ment" and Against the Constitutional Amend
| ment" as now prescribed by law, and immedi-
| ately after said election due returns shall be
made to the Governor of the vote for and against
| said proposed amendment, as directed by the