Arizona republican., 1910-11-11

ner of filling vacancies. The plan pro-
posed by the minority report, he said
was the fairer The system contem-
plated the trial of officers for alleged
offenses, the voters to act as a jury.
The only question before them should
be that of the guilt or innocence of
the accused. This question should not
be clOuded by the personality of anoth-
er candidate for the office. The ma
jority plan he said meant that an Of
ficial was recalled as soon as the pc
titiOn was filed and he found himself
involved in another contest for office
with the chances agains: him, regard
less of his guilt or innocence.
Mr. Parsons believed that the ma
majority plan should commend itself for
the reason that it was the more econom-
ical Under the other plan there would
have to be two elections unless the va
cancy in case of a recall should be
filled by appointment. a plan contrary
to the spirit of the initiative and ref
erendum. Recall systems. he added
were not set up for the benefit of ac-
cused officials.
MI. w tDD dulllllltu llldl Dlil ilt SdiNl
that they should be set up in the in
terest of justice and the recall cleo
ton. he said, should not be affected
by the popularity or any candidate.
Mr. Cunningham objected to many
features of the majority plan which he
declared would be found imperative
and would defeat the principle. For
instance he said, it was required that
the petition should be signed by 25 per
cent of the voters who had voted for
candidates for that office. That he
said would require the circulatOrs of
petitions to hunt for scattered voters
over half the world. 1t was stated on
the other side, however, that it was
meant that only 25 per cent of the
number of such voters would be re-
quired.
OF Doubtful Meaning.
Another provision of the report is
that though the names of the signers
do not have to appear on the same
paper there must be an affidavit by
one of them that the statements con-
tanned herein are true and that the sig
natures are genuine" Considering the
number of papers that would have to
be put into circulation, Mr.. Cunning
ham said that it would be impossible
to secure the required number of affi-
davits.
1t developed that the members of
the convention were divided as to the
meaning of the word statements" 1t
was the idea of Mr.. Cunningham and
perhaps half of the others that it ap-
piled to the charges made against the
accused officer. That was the inter-
probation placed upon it by Mr.. Rob-
erts later when he tried to have the
reference to Statements" stricken out.
Another member also sought to modify
theiphrase by the addition of the words,
ito the best of his knowledge and be-
lief" The Roberts motion later in the
day carried.
Others believed that the word had
no reference to the charges against the
accused but to the allegations of the
signers of the petition that they were
qualified voters. There is really no
way to tell what is meant
Mr.. Cunniff objected 20 the majority
plan because it was pregnant with
Legislative detail. Replying to the state
ment of Mr.. Parsons that the appoint
to fill vacancies was contrary to the
spirit of the initiative and referendum,
he asked how it was proposed to fill va
cancies caused by death or resigna-
ton.
Mr.. Cunniff said that it could not be
said of any recall plan that it's excel
lence had been proved by experience
as to states, as no plan had ever been
tried. Sacred as "the Oregon plan"
may be, 1t cannot be claimed for it that
it was handed down from Mount Sinai.
1t was plain, he said, that the result of
the majority plan would not be the de-
termination of the guilt or innocence
of the accused official, but of a new
party fight for the same office.
The Sacred Bird of Oregon.
Chairman Weinberger of the COM
mittee urged the majority plan because
it was the oregon plan, the plan of
twenty cities, while the minority plan
had been established in only one. He
admitted though that none of them had
ever been used in a state, and only
once in city.
Remarks for the majority were made
by Messrs. Feeney, Crutchfield, Short
and Ingraham and against it by Mr..
Lynch.
A vote was taken on the Cunniff
amendment. which was defeated by a
vote of 27 to 81.
Mr.. Orme then moved an amendment
excluding the judiciary from the op
Grafton of the provision. Mr.. Ellinwood
offered an amendment to this by max
ing the exclusion apply only to su-