Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-11-04
REFERENDUM AT CLOSE RANGE,

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matter is brought right nome tnal ~ J..
IL not SO strong for the reforms as !.
imagined The Tribune now CANS upon
the voters of Cook county TO turn oown
two propositions that are to De SUP
mitted upon referendum to the voters
next Tuesday, but to make It's posltloh
clear it is compelled to quote me .
wording of the referendum petition and
then explain to the bewildered voter
what the tangle of verbiage means.
Here are the two propositions as tney
appear on the referendum ballot: ;.
For consenting to an act entitled,
can act to amend sections 8, 10 and II
Of an act entitled, An act in relation to
municipal court in the city OF chi
caRo,.' approved May IS, 1905. IN force
July /, 1905, submitted to the voters
OF the city of Chicago at the election
held November 1, 1905, and adopted
and as amended by act approved June
8. 1907, in force July l, 1907. adopted
at election held September II. 1907,
and to further amend said act, as
amended, by adding thereto two addi-
tional sections, to be known respec-
lively as" sections LA and 14b," which
act provides, among other things, Tor
civil service In the municipal court.
Against conserving to an act, ete.
(same as above). S :,
For consenting to the act entitled,
"An act to amend an act entitled, AN
act IN relation to municipal court IN
the city of Chicago approved May IL,
1905, as amended by an act approved
June 8, 1907, entitled, An act to amend
an act entitled, IAN act in relation to
a municipal court in the city OF Chi
cago," approved May 1S,, 1905. !" ... -.
Against consenting to the act, etc.
(same as above). t
Here is one of the weaknesses Of the
referendum system. Put these PROPOSE
tions up to the best lawyers In the
country and they would be unable to
gain the slightest clue as to what 1t
was ali about without reading the acts
to be amended and the amendments to
the act. But these are not available
for the ordinary voter, even II ne could
secure a fair idea by reading the acts
and amendments In question, so the
voter at this referendum election would
be compelled to vote blindly
The Tribune summarizes briefly
what the two acts mean as follows:
One OF the acts provides for bring.
ting the employees of the municipal
court under civil; service. It also pro-
vides for heavy salary Increases for
Judges OF the municipal court and for
deputy bailiffs. The chief justice is
raised from $500 to $4,000 a. year
and the associate judges from $4,000
to $4,000 each. H.. s;s,.a. I'D.
The other act provides for several
changes in the practice and procedure
Of the municipal court. It carries the
same salary increases as does the
first act, and in addition raises to
$4,000 and $3.50, respectively, the
salaries Of the chief clerk and the
chief bailifr. It also shortehs some.
what the office hours of the chief
clerk and the chief bailiff and provides
for longer vacations for the judges. =
Summed up the two propositions
give life jobs to 266 employees of the
municipal court and makes an increase
IN their nay roll of about $150,000. The
payroll already is $S50,000, so the new
increase would raise it to the half mil.
lion mark.
Certainly when people are called to
vote upon such proposition as this
they should know what they are cast
ing their ballots for. The proposition
submitted on the referendum ballot,
coached in legal verbiage as, 1t must
be to stand water in the courts, cannot
sufficiently enlighten the voter in order
to permit him to act intelligently. The
wording OF these propositions is not
unusual. Most referendum PROPOSE
tions are submitted in much the same
manner. The people vote and, in
many cases, find out afterwards when
they 20 to pay their taxes just what
they were voting on.