Evening journal., 1911-01-17

matter of law enactment ne could see
the time when even the General As
sembly could not be deemed competent
70 pass on matters of law. He said that
in this State there are about 200 bills
enacted into laws every year and TO
make these equitable they must be just
little more complicated than others,
until it is coming to the point when
the complexity of the enactment of
laws will make lawmakers seem In
competent. Perhaps the masses are not
able to read each and every bill pre-
sented to the Legislature but a few
could read them and influence their
friends into what was right by way of
the referendum vote. provided it had
been passed by the City Council, in
case of its application to the city, or by
the initiative vote provided it has not
been passed, simply by the securing
of the names of the required per-
centage of the voters to a petition.
Mr.. dupont said the principal had
been applied to the government Of
cities with marked success and had
served to impress the fact upon the
minds of the people that they did have
something to say in the enactment OF
laws of the city In closing Mr.. du-
Pont appealed to the Legislators for
fair consideration of the measure.
People Often Disappointed.
The Rev. Hubert Wells was the
next speaker on behalf of the measure
and he spoke also upon the funda-
mental principal at stake He said
that Wilmington was face to face with
the approach of sweeping democracy
and that il was only short time
before the people would decide as to
whether they would have popular vote
or not Mr.. Wells said the people
choose men to represent them in the
Legislature who are not always hon
est and who defeat the bills which
they draw up I'm total disregard Of
their will, and ventured that there was
some power back of them that was
not for the good of the people. Mr.
Wells said he did not believe that all
of the Legislators truly served the peo-
pie who sent them to Office Further
more. he remarked that the simple and
direct bill which was proposed repre-
sented a corrective power and sug-
gested it to the Legislators as most
excellent to the welfare of Wilmington.
When Mr.. Wells finished his short
speech he was heartily applauded by
the two hundred assembled men.
Following Mr.. Wells talk, r. 5.
Monck, president of Plasterers Union.
spoke. He said that in his mind thee
was no doubt that something would
soon be done on the question. whether
II happened i'm 1911 or some other
year. In his judgment the measure
requires no studying whatever to be
understood as being the best thing
/ for rho pfttr thnf fbara d.. II
said that heretofore the matter had
been left TO few and they had run
! things" but under the initiative and
! referendum laws everyone would have
a chance to voice his sentiments in
legislation
Sees Revolution Ahead.
Another interesting speaker upon
the matter was the Rev. Robert l..
Jackson, who said that he considered
it as much his duty 10 appear before
the citizens and legislators last even
ing, as it was his duty TO occupy the
pulpit on the Lords day. Furthermore
he said the time is coming when there
would be a direct form of government,
not because long-haired men. short
haired women and fanatics had so
declared. but because deep; earnest
AhAhhAH6 lAAln Mdu WfNIEtu lIIH T0NOlU-
tion and were working for Il. Mr.
jackson voiced a thought that the
writing of the initiative and referen-
DUN into the laws would be conducive
OF material prosperity throughout the
State. Mr.. Jackson also said that they
were economical measures despite
statements made to the contrary BE-
cause now there is the expense of re-
pealing laws which in the first place
were not tested to their merits and
demerits. 1t would serve, Mr.. Jackson
said, to give the people a prOfounder
regard for the law. Also it would
serve to give those people who are
called unqualified chance to qualify
themselves to take a part in the gov
ernment Of the city.
The final speaker was William w.
Knowles, who said he has been inter
ested in the movement and who has
drawn up the measure that will prob
ably be presented to the Legislature.
Mr.. Knowles was asked to explain the
meaning of the references made 10
the percentages mentioned i'm the bill
and this he did at length. He said
that should the city adopt the mea-
sures OF Initiative and referendum II
would eliminate all possibility of
bribery and corruptive practices at
the elections and said that in his es-
timation it was the disgust of the vot-
ers in the actions of the men who have
been trusted with offices that lead 50
many OF them to sell their votes. He
cited an instance where the proposed
new laws would apply in the city. say
ing that the Council would have no
power to vote so much of an expendi-
ture for a public building without the
consent of the people. Another state
ment was that at the present time II
required five times as much money
. to conduct the affairs Of the State as
II did in 1897.
In closing Mr.. Knowles said that
should the Legislature grant the
measures, the people would have a
voice in the law-making and would
control the Legislature, where now
. they have no voice and are controlled
, by the officials.