Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1914-10-30

to widows who are clearly not en-
titled to them.
No. 9. Confers upon the General
Assembly the power to create the
! Office of Assistant District Attorney
in any Judicial District. Almost
every session the Legislature sub
mits to the people an amendment
! to the Constitution providing for an
additional Judge in some Judicial
District, but no provision has ever
been made for an additional District
Attorney, and in some of the Dis
tricts the District Attorney cannot
properly attend to the criminal bus
mess of the District. The General
Assembly should be left unhampered
30 that it can create such an Office
whenever it is shown that the GRIM
inal business of the District justifies
it.
No. 10. Gives to cities and towns
the right to impose taxes for the
creation and maintenance of fire de-
partments. 1t is most necessary that
every town should have a fire de-
partment, but as the Constitution
now stands taxes cannot be levied
for that purpose, the proposed
change is a good one.
No. IL. Authorizes the New Or
leans Dock Board to open a navi-
gable canal through the city con-
Meeting the Mississippi River and
Lake Pontchartrain. The adoption
of this amendment is needed as a
part of the development plans OF the
Port of New Orleans. It imposes
no taxes on any body.
No. IL. Imposes a license of
Twenty-Five Cents per horse power
on automobiles or other motor driv-
en- vehicles. All licenses collected
under the proposed amendment will
20 to the Good Road fund of the
parish in which same is collected.
The license proposed is small. but
in the aggregate will mean quite an
addition to the Good Roads fund
throughout the State.
No. 13. Authorizes the City of
New Orleans to issue g. 0OO, 900
of bonds and levy special taxes on
all the property in the City Of New
Orleans, to create Lake Shore
Park. In submitting this amend
ment to the people, an error was
made, "a very serious one.-in this,
that the amendment under its pro-
visions does not exempt from. taxa
ton the property in the city used
for religious worship, as parsonages
and rectories or other homes for the
clergy, grave yards, monuments,
public libraries, or any other prop
erty exemr. from taxation under
the Constitution as it now stands.
Then, too, the right to expropri-
ate property by the Park Board and
sell the property, 30 appropriated,
to private persons, could well cause
great and very serious abuses of this
very dangerous power. The amend
ment is too defective, 80 defective
| in fact, that its author has come out
in the public press in a card, urg-
ing the voters to vote against this
amendment, 30 we in turn urge the
voters of this parish to vote against
Amendment No. 13 on account Of
the many and very serious defects
contained in it.
No. IA. Enables the New Orleans
| Public School Board to bond some
of its revenues, and with the money
30 secured, make some needed per-
manent Improvements. 1t imposes
no taxes on any body, and its adop-
ton is urged by the people Of New
Orleans III aid Of their public school
system.
No. Is. Creates four additional
District Judges, one in each Of the
following Districts, the First (which
already has two), the Thirteenth.
Twenty.fifth and Twenty-eighth.
These Districts claim that an ad-
ditional Judge is absolutely neces-
sary, and we are satisfied that they
are, but it only goes to show how
necessary it 10 that the Judiciary sys-
tern of the State should be remodled.
In some Districts, composed Of two
parishes, and having but one Judge.
the Judge has practically nothing
to do, while another District, COM
posed of one parish, finds that three
Judges are necessary to properly
conduct the business Of the Court.
Our entire Judiciary system should
be remodeled, but this can hardly
be done until We have wide open
Constitutional Convention.
However, the people Of the above
mentioned Districts are not respon-
sible for the chaotic condition Of our
Judiciary system, and are entitled
to proper Court facilities; therefore
the amendment should be ratified.
}, No. 16. IL practically merged in
No. Is, and il both should lie adopt
ed they would nullify each other.