The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1908-19??, 1913-09-12
Mistake OF CLERK
KULLlFIES Law
Making New Congressional
District in Florida.

from Franklin county, made the dis
coYery on Tuesday that by a mistake
OF the enrolling clerk the law passed
by the recent legislature redistrict-
ing the State into four congressional
district becomes null and void. Col
Floyd Immediately telegraphed his
discovery to the Pensacola News and
through that and other papers the dis
coVery has been made public.
a reference to the General Laws
recently published corroborates the
discovery. By the mistake of the en-
crossing clerk two Third districts
have been created, also First and
Fourth district, but no SECOND dis
trict
The law as published is as follows.
CHAPTER 6l72.
AN ACT Dividing the State of Flori.
da into -Four Congressional Dis
tricts and Prescribing and Setting
Fourth the Territorial Limits and
Boundaries of Each District.
Be it Enacted by the Legislature Of
the State of Florida:
Section /. That the State of Flori-
do be and the same is hereby divided
into four Congressional districts, same
to be numbered and designated as
District Number One, District Num-
Der Two, District Number Three, and
District Number -Four.
Section 2. The counties of Lee,
DeSoto, Manitee, Polk, HilIsborough,
Piiellas, Pasco, fernando, Citrus,
Sumter and Lake, constitute and com
pose the First Congressional District
Session 3. The counties ofNassau,
Baker, Hamilton, Columbia, Suwan-
nee, Bradford, Alachua, Marion, Le-
w, Lafayette, Taylor, Madison and
Jefferson, shall constitute and com
pose the Third Congressional District.
Section 4. The counties of Leon,
Gadsden, Wakulla, Liberty, Franklin,
Calhoun, Jackson, Holmes, Washing
ton, Bay, Walton, Santa Rosa and Els
Gambia, shall constitute and compose
the Third Congressional District.
Section 5. The counties of Monroe,
Dade, Palm Beach, st. Lucie, Osceola,
Brevard, Orange, Seminole, Volusia,
Putnam, st. Johns, Clay and Duval
shall constitute and compose the
!
Section 6. That when any new
counties shall he created such new
counties shall compose a part of tie
Congressional District out of which |
the territory for such new county is
located.
Section 7. This Act shall take eff
feet at the expiration of the present |
terms Of Office of the congressman
now serving from this State.
Approved May 16, 1913.
1t will be noticed that Sections
three and four of the above act name
the counties in their respective sec
tions as constituting and composing |
The THIRD Congressional District, |
Section 3 should read, "shali |
constitute and compose the SECOND |
District" AS the law
eads there is no Second Ccngression.
a. District under this act
That the failure to thus designate
IS the mistake of the enrolling clerk
here can be no doubt. A mere slip |
Of the pen which went undiscovered |
Dy the proof reader and the printer.
That this mistake will nullify the law
S the opinion of attorneys.
Thus the congressional districts OF |
Florida will be the same in the, coming |
election as in the last, when the fourth |
nan was named as Congressman-at-
Large and was nominated and elected |
)y the people Of the entire state.
Claude L'Engle now the Congress
tln-at- Large, but who since the act |
If the legislature has been recognized |
1t Washington by the departments as
representing the new Fourth District,
will therefore go before the entire |
,tate for his denomination, and Franl; |
Clark will go before the old Second |
District
The mistake will result in some
hanges in the calculations of ambi-
.ious politicians who had counted on
the next Congress from |
Florida, as well as in the calculations
of those who are already in.
Blunder of the Printer.
Tallahassee, Sept 11.-Editor Pa
atka News: 1t has been found on
examination that as far as the divi-
sion into districts is concerned that
the enrolled bill on file in the office of
the Secretary of State is all right. 1t
provides for first, second, third and
fourth districts. The error in the print
ed bill is a mistake of the printer
which was overlooked in the proof
reading.
The Seventh section of the bill fix
ing the time of its going into effect,
however. it is conceded here renders