The San Francisco call., 1913-08-04
Dunish Petition PadderS
District Attorney q

District Attorney CharleS M. F1ckeTl has dIi-
nounced that he purposes to prosecute the
verihcation deputies charged with forging sigma
lures to the '.red light law referendum petition
The district attorney has applied to Registrar
of Voters Zemansy for evidence which, it is said,
will be supplied in the shape of several hundreds
of forged affidavits verified by the deputies
The honest men and women of California will
be unit behind District Attorney Fickert in this
prosecution
The honest and decent men and women OF
California are not agreed as to the merits OF the
so called red light abatement law, borrowed from
Iowa.
There are thousands Of God fearing, home low
ing men and women in this state who, deprecating
commercialized vice, not prepared to believe
that it can be wiped out by disruption of the seq
regated districts in our cities
They fear 'scatteration' more than segrega-
.ton. They believe that their sons and daughters
will be exposed to greater perils from skulking
vice operating throughout the cities than from
open vice operating in restricted districts.
Those men and women will vote against the
red light bill when it shall be submitted to the
people at the referendum election. Perhaps they
will defeat it They will if they in the ma
iorty If they are in the minority they not
complain They will not complain.
They are the men and women who will stand
soidly behind District Attorney Fickert in his
attempt to punish the persons charged with forg-
ing referendum petition signatures.
They are the citizens who will agree that the
law provides no punishment too severe for those
who would tamper with the machinery Of cleo
tions
There is just one place where all living men
are equal. That is at the polls, where every eit-
zen may be insured of the right of recording his
will
Destroy popular confidence in the election
machinery and popular confidence in government
is destroyed.
Arouse public distrust in the submission of the
first referendum questions in this state and popu-
lar confidence in direct legislation, which is none
too sound, will be sadly shaken
1t is only reasonable to believe that the persons
immediately interested in the defeat of the red
light abatement bill no wise directly respon-
sble for the forged afhdavits
Their financial interest is too great to permit
them TO incur the risk of invalidating their pet-
tion and destroying their opportunity to prevent
the operation of the law
These forgeries undoubtedly the result of
the system which most readily lends itself to piece
payment for petition circuators.
It probably will be disclosed that the persons
guilty OF forgery were to be compensated a
basis OF a few cents for each signature. They
padded the list to pad their pay checks
That system is also employed in the circula-
tion of petitions for the primary nomination OF
candidates for public office. The same incentive
for fraud exists in those cases. The opportunities
for the practice OF fraud are infinitely greater.
Unless it is checked now, once for all the
direct nominating and direct legislation systems
so hardly by the people will be undermined
District Attorney Fickert can render this state
no higher service than hunting down the guilty
men and sending them to serve long prison terms.