Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-06-13

day in November, 1914 IF it be CON
tended that it is lawful to call an
election in any year but unlawful to
call one in specific year, each cleo
tion to be contingent upon the filing
of legally authorized petition, the
hair.splitting is so fine that The Ore
gonian cannot see it at an"
The trouble with our big brother
down the creek whom we shall endeavor
to set right at the very imminent risk
of having your ears boxed for doing
so, is that it does not accept the law
as made by the legislature, but under
takes to make another as substitute
The legislature called a special election
TO be held the first Tuesday after the
first Monday in November, 1918. 1t is
called absolutely whether there lis any
thing to vote on or not. It provides
that the referendums if any shall be
voted upon at that time. Suppose the
referendum had not been invokedl The
election must be held just the same and
it would cost $4,000 to hold it, The
Oregonian says: "Yet the succeeding
! paragraph Of the law provides that
. all measures passed by the 9th legis.
lature upon which the referendum is
| involved shall be submitted at such
special election" No doubt the legisla-
ture intended to get aronud the con
stitutional inhibition, but it did not
do it. The Oregonian attempts to read
into the law what is not there, to
make the special election in 1913,
called for the purpose of voting upon
all laws upon which the referendum
is invoked. 1t is substituting the evil
dent attempt of the legislature for its
act.
Courts do not construe laws by what
their makers intended, but by what
they did. No other course is possible,
The Oregonian is disingenuous, fos it
compares the law in question with the
local option law which provides for
holding an election on the first Tues
day after the first Monday in NOvem-
Der in any year" 1t does not, how.
ever give or attempt to give the sub
stance Of that law which is as widely
different from the law in question as
black is from white. The local option
law is n general law, laying down the
conditions under which a special elec-
tion may be called. 1t does not call an
election, but prescribes the manner in
which localities may vote upon the wet
or dry proposition, The law under dis
cussion calls for special election newt
November, whether there is anything
to vote upon or not. The local option
law prescribed the manner Of holding
certain local elections but it did not
can them. Passing upon this question
in the case Of Fouts vs. Hood River
in the opinion by Chief Justice VOL
verton, the court held;
'The local option law adopted in
, June, 1904 providing that upon the
filing Of petition Of designated
kind the county court shall order M
election to determine whether the sale
of intoxicating liquors shall be per
, mitted or prohibited in the politica
subdivision, designated in the petition
and that " the vote is against per
I mission, the prohibition shall take Of
feet on the first day Of July next
succeeding, is general act, which be
came a law pursuant to proclama
tion, and is not within the prohibition
Of the constitution Of Oregon Act l
Sec. 81, providing that no law shal
be passed the taking effect Of which
shall depend upon any authority, ex
cept as provided in said constitution
, though the operation of the prohibition
, feature is conditional upon tho vot,
in the subdivision designated in th,
! petition"
This we presume is the law the Ore
-su-su-s----us--sl-u-uu---s