The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1914-10-29
THE AMENDMENTS
ARE IMPORTANT
ELEVEN PROPOSED CHANGES IN
THE STATE CONSTITUTION
TO BE VOTED ON.
STUDY THE PINK BALLOT
ALL AMENDMENTS MUST RE-
CEIvE A MAJORITY OF
ALL VOTES CAST.

tom Noswal in the Mortified News)
st. Paul, Oct. 20.-There are eleven
proposed amendments to the constitu-
ton to be voted upon at the election to
be held on Nov. 8. These eleven pro-
proposed amendments will be found on
a separate ballot that will be handed
every voter as he calls for his ballots
on that day. This ballot will be pink
in color. A statement setting forth
the purposes and effect of the propos-
ed amendments has been prepared by
the attorney general in a letter to the
secretary of state, the full text of
which can be found in another column
of the Herald, but consideration of
them is well worth the space in these
columns. The voter cannot have it too
often impressed upon his mind that it
will require a majority of all votes
cast on election day to carry any one
of these amendments. In other words,
if the voter does not vote on any of
the amendments, or fails to vote for
all of them, and votes any other bal
lot, he will have cast a vote against
one or all of the proposed amend
ments. Consequently, too much care
cannot be taken in considering the
propositions to be voted upon.
The first proposition on the pink
ballot is the so-called initiative and
referendum, which has been consider
ed in the legislature for several ses-
sions past, but which was never car
ried until the 1913 session. If this
amendment is adopted it will enable
the voters Of the state to submit by
petition to the legislature amend
ments to the constitution and propos-
ed laws, and in case that body fails to
submit any such proposed amendment
or enact any such proposed law, then
the amendment or proposed law may
be submitted directly to the people. 1t
also provides that where the legisla-
ture has enacted law certain per-
centage of the voters of the state may
ask that this law be submitted to the
people for their approval or rejection.
In other words, it places the veto or
approval power into the hands OF the
people, after the legislature and the
governor have both passed upon the
measure. This gives the voters the
right to enact, suspend or annul laws.
A certain percentage of the voters OF
the state must sign petition in either
case, and when this petition is in
proper form and properly filed with
the Secretary of State that official is
required to set in operation the ma
chinery necessary for giving the peo-
pie the right to vote upon the matter
at the next election. The measure has
it's friends and its opponents, the for
mer claiming that it is the real step
towards the people shall rule" theory,
while the opponents insist that it will
so cucumber the voting machinery OF
the state as to make it impossible for
the people to vote intelligibly upon
any proposition. In states where the
initiative and referendum have been
tried out there have been so many
measures submitted that this conten-
ton has been sustained.
The second proposed amendment is
one relating to the supreme court OF
Minnesota. At the present time that
court consists of one chief justice and
four associate justices. The court, up
to the 1913 session, has contended
that it has been overworked, and that
there was a great need of two addi-
tional justices. It realized that the
constitution would have to be amended
in order to get the two additional men.
The legislature is always composed OF
a large sprinkling of attorneys, many
of whom are ready to respond to the
call of the bench. Consequently, this
amendment was passed for submis-
sion without any opposition. But at
the time that it was enacted pecul-
lar law, patterned after one passed
in Indiana, was adopted. 1t provided
that the court should have relief by
permitting the members to appoint two
COMMISSIONERS, at O ooioAy VI Ys,SSS
per year, which is the salary the as
sociate justices receive, these commits
sioners to perform such work as the
court should determine. The commits
sioners were appointed Immediately
after the bill became law, and are
now receiving the regular stipend, and
are performing the work assigned to
them. This consists of writing de-
cisions just the same as the members
of the bench. But it is stated that
when the court retires into its con-
sultation room these commissioners
do not participate in deciding cases
but simply receive an assignment to
do as much work, otherwise, as do the
other members. Consequently, the ar
gument in favor Of this amendment
is that the court really has seven
members, and the constitution may as
well be corrected so as to conform to
the wishes of the court and the legis-
lature. The amendment also provides
that, instead Of slecting the clerk Of
the supreme court by the people every
four years, he shall be, instead, ap.