Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1910-01-20
The Initiative and Referendum

The best governed country in
the world is New Zealand. She
holds that the crown of her
achievements is the Initiative and
Referendum. Several of our
American states have now adopted
the same system. Missouri one
of the last of all. This new con-
s~titutional law is much talked
about. 1t is the medium through
which the temperance people will
force a vote in Missouri, November
Sth, 1910, on constitutional prohi-
bition of the liquor traffic.
Political trickery and corrupt
influence in the legislature often
thwart the will of the people. We
had an illustration of this in our
last Missouri legislature in this
very year. In spite of good and
true men in that body, coercion,
political knavery and lucre COM
bined to absolutely defeat the will
of the people. The legislatures of
Texas, Arkansas, Iowa, Utah and
West Virginia this same year de-
feated in the same way the strong
ly expressed will of the people, for
prohibition. The court of last re-
sort of the demagogues and
money-bags of the land has
always been the legislatures. They
coolly plan to whip into line,
through party measures, honest
men that they cannot buy, and
then buy enough more votes out
right to defeat any measure that
would hurt them.
The purpose ofthe initiative and
referendum is to prevent this very
thing. 1t puts into the hands OF
the voters the power to bring be-
fore the body of the people any
measure of statewide Importance
whether the legislature acts in the
matter or not. There is enough
red tape and labor attached to
the getting up the Initiative that
no one is going to invoke it, un-
less it is indeed a matter OF real
and far-reaching interest. But
these restrictions are only a spur
to those interested, body and
soul, in getting a measure before
the people. There are four def
mite things to be done, but each Of
these, when accomplished, is q
nile stone won.A
First comes the drafting of the
form of the petition bill, once
circulated, it cannot be changed
no, not by the dotting of an 'i' OF
the crossing of a ct" The keenest
legal wit of expert constitutions.
lawyers has been used to put this
petition into shape SO that the en-
emies of the measure can find nc
loop-hole of escape and that there
can be no chance of a reversior
by the Supreme Court.
The next step is to get a certain
per cent. of bona fide voters tt
sign these petitions. No slip-snod
work will do. Every man mus
be known to the circulator anC
sign in his presence. So it can
not be a mass meeting affair, but {
man-to-man canvass. No ont
can sign a mans name for him
His postofice must be given ant
his name signed either in ink 0
with an indelible pencil. Their
must be no repeating. No crimi
nal, pauper, idiot, minor o
woman's name can go on thi
petition. The signer must no
live out of the state and all on tn
same petition must live in tn
same Congressional district.
The third step is to swear as tn
circulator must, before a Notar
Public, mot a Justice of the Peace
that he believes each of thes
signers to be a lawful voter, an
then send at once to William +
Wallace, Kansas City, Mo.
The last step is to file thes
petitions, each endorsed on il
back as to the COMPRESSION;
districttand county, with the Sec
rotary of State, and this will /
done by Judge Wallace, in til
presence Of the Governor of tt
state.
Our prohibition amendment he
been most carefully drawn up b
expert lawyers. Every sing,
provision Of it, both in substanc
and wording, has already bee
passed upon and upheld by X
Supreme Court.
The red tape Of these four steI
Is not hard to comply with. Ont
done, and we'll done, and it is a
over with. Then we can bend o,