United labor bulletin., 1910-10-20

ana tn1S was defeated by vote OF 35, 291
to 45,144. 1t will be noticed that in the
first instance the issue was affirmatively
presented and in the second instance
negatively with a view to befogging the
people, but the popular expression was
the same in both.
For many years city charters in Ore
gon had been made the trading stock of
political factions in the legislature The
dominant faction amended city charters
as a reward to political allies. Traffic
in local legislation even went SO far that
it sometimes served as consideration
in election of United States senator's
But, in 1906. having tired of this disre-
gard of the interest of good municipal
government, the people, acting under the
initiative, adopted constitutional
amendment which took away from the
legislature the power to enact or amend
a city charter and vested that power in
the people of the municipalities, thus es-
tablishing home rule. The amendment
was adopted by vote of 52,567 to 49,
S52
In Oregon, as in many other states
there has long been feeling that GER
tain classes of corporations which own
very little tangible property do not bear
their proper share of the burden of tax
alton Legislatures failed to provide
remedy. For the purpose of securing
more equitable distribution of the bur-
den of taxation the State Grange pro-
ceeding under the initiative, proposed
law levying a gross earnings tax of 8
per cent on sleeping car, refrigerator
car, and oil car companies, which meas
ure was adopted by vote of 69,635 to
6,441- The Grange also proposed a SIM
liar law 1evying gross earnings tax of
8 per cent on express and per cent
on telephone and telegraph companies,
and it was adopted by vote of 7O,S72
to $3.50. Each of these gross earnings
tax laws applied only to intra-state busi-
ness That the people can and will study
measures and vote with discrimination
is shown by the record upon two appro-
priation bills passed by the legislature
of 1907. One of these bills proposed to
increase the annual fixed appropriation
for the state university from s47,5OO to
s125.000. The other bill appropriated
100000 for construction of armories for
the National Guard. The referendum
was demanded upon both measures, and
both were submitted to a vote of the
people at the general election in 1908.
There was full and fair discussion
through the press, at public meetings.
and at sessions of the Grange. The bill
increasing the appropriation for the uni
versity was approved by the people by a
vote of 44.115 to 40.535. The armory ap-
preparation bill was defeated by a vote
of 3S.507 to 54.s4S
Anticipating the objection that direct
taert los ,-
will say that the submission of a total
of thirty-two measures at three different
elections in Oregon has cost the state
$4,000. or an average of about $7S1 for
each measure. 1 have no hesitancy in
saying that the people of Oregon feel
satisfied that they have received full
value for the $4,000 they have spent
for the submission of measures under
the initiative and referendum
The people are not only intelligent.
but fair and honest. When the initia-
tive and referendum was under consid-
GRAFTON, it was freely predicted by enc
mics of popular government that the
power would be abused. and that capi-
talists would not invest their money in
state where property would be subject
to attacks of popular passion and tempo
rary whims- Experience has exploded
this argument. There has been no hasty
or ill-advised legislation. The people act
calmly and deliberately and with that
spirit of fairness which always charac-
terizes a body of men who earn their
living and acquire their property by le-
gitimate means. Corporations have not
been held up and blackmailed by the
people. as they often have been by leg
islators.