The log cabin Democrat., 1914-11-17

AS munlcipal corporations are but the creatures of the legislature, however,
 these powers could be just as we'll
 extended or enlarged through an act
 of either the people or the legislature
 law of the state
 1 This, in fact, is one of the chief
 objections to the proposed amend
 ment, that it is a confusing mixture
 of constitutional and statutory law,
 setting out at great length minor de-
 tails that should be left for legisla- | tion. As one of the results of it's pro-
 lixity and because of it's amateurish
 construction, several of it's provisions are vague and uncertain, while oth- CTS are absolutely meaningless. Take
 for instance the very first paragraph:
 Section 1. Legislative authority of this state shall be vested in leg
 islative assembly which shall consist of senate and house of representa- tives, but the @ power to propose legislative measures, laws, resolutions and amendments to the constitution, and to enact or reject the same at the
 polls independent of the legislative assembly; and also reserve the power, at their own option, to approve or re- ject at the polls any act, item, sec tion or any part of any section or measure passed by the legislative as sembly"
 We presume it was intended to in- sert where we have placed the aster- | isk in parentheses the words people
 reserve the, but the copy we have be- 1 fore us does not contain these words, and without them the entire section is meaningless.
 Another objection to the measure is the reduction of the number of names required for initiative and referen- dunn petitions, from Is per cent of the votes cast at the preceding election (about IA 1000 at present. to 10000 in the case of initiative petitions, and from eight per cent of the votes cast at the preceding election to 1000 in the case of referendum petitions. While we heartily favor the principle of the initiative and referendum, we believe that it's value lies mainly in it's being la means of securing legislation which is universally desired but which the legislature will not enact and safe guard against legislation which is ob- Ijectionable to a large majority of the voters. The number of names re- quired upon petitions should be in- creased rather than decreased, so that the state would not be put to the eX- pense of submitting questions which only small part of the electorate has any interest in adopting or rejecting. If the number of names required for initiative petitions is made 10000, and the number of voters in the state increases, as it doubtless will within few years, to 500,000, it will require only two per cent of the voters to in itiate a proposed law and less than two per cent to demand referendum upon an act of the legislature.
 A third objection to the proposed amendment, and this we regard the most serious of all, is it's provisions regarding the enactment of local leg islation.
 "The initiative and referendum powers the proposed amendment says, "of the people are hereby fur ther reserved to the legal voters of each municipality and county as to all local, special and municipal legisla- ton of every character in and for their respective municipalities and counties Counties, cities and towns may provide for the exercise of the initiative and referendum as to their local leeislation."