Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1915-02-25

most important is, in my Judgment,
that which will secure the right of
referendum, as 1t is called, to the
citizens of the State.
For many years, we have been
familiar, more or less, with the
terms Initiative and Referendum -
A proposition was submitted to the
last General Assembly looking to so
amending the State Constitution as
TO give both these powers to the
people. By the closest possible d.
vision Of opinion in the Senate.
three-fifths being necessary to pass.
and one vote lacking, the initiative
was not submitted; but the refer
endum was, By practically unani-
nous vote in the Senate and a con-
siderably more than the necessary
three-fifths vote in the House.
1t becomes, therefore, necessary
to begin with that the people should
understand exactly what the refer
endum, on which they are. to vote,
eontemplates. II is proposed that
no law except an emergency las for
the immediate preservation of the
public health or safety shall go
into effect until the first day of June
next after the session at which il
may be passed, but if before such
day, ten thousand citizens of the
State, not more than half of whom
shall be residents of Baltimore City
or any one County, shall petition
that the law be referred to the peo-
pie, then it does not become a law
OF take effect until thirty days after
it's approval by a majority OF the
voters voting thereon at the next
resulting election. If, however,
more than half, but less than the
whole number of signatures TO COM
plete any referendum petition shall DC
filed with the Secretary of state be-
fore the first day of June, the time
FOR the law to take effect and for
filing the remainder of the sigma
lures TO complete the petition is ex-
tended for thirty days. No meas
ure creating and abolishing an Office
or changing the salary, term or
duties of any offices or granting any
franchise, or special privilege, or
creating any vested right or interest
shall he enacted rs an emergency
law. Any increase in appropria-
lions may, rs to the increase, be re-
ferred To the people. A referendum
upon loca! laws on petition of eight
per cent. of the voters is aljo pro-
vided.
The idea of referendum to the
people of this country is a very old
one, dating even TO the formation
of our government Constitutions
and amendments TO constitutions
have been referred to popular vote
innumerablc times. Laws have
been referred TO the people under
express provisions of the Constitu-
tlops, but until of late years, the
people have not themselves been al
lowed to challenge directly the ac-
tion of Legislature and review or
confirm it. One man in the person
of a Governor has had it within his
power by direct or pocket veto to
suspend or defeat the final enact
ment Of the law, but this imperial
power has been thought, till lately,
incapable of exercise by any per-
centage or by even a majority of
the people who were benefited by
or might suffer from the enactment.
Much rs We have talked of the beau
ties of popular government, devot-
ed, as we have believed ourselves
to be, to Republican forms and
Democratic methods, we have blind
iy conferred our powers of legisla-
tIon lpon representatives whose ac-
tions We have not controlled. We
have allowed our legislatures to de-
termine with such light as thew
might ut the moment possess, ques-
tions vitality affecting our liberty or
happiness and property and the well
being of those who were to succeed
us. Our scanty hold upon them has
been in our ability to repeal their
errors at succeeding legislature,
and often this has come too late TO
be of practical value, or the succeed
ing Legislature has committed new
errors or INDUCED in new abuses
aggravating the original offense.
For the first time in its history
the State cf Maryland has an oppor.
tunity to reform this condition, and
in making such reformation, to fol-
low after the enlightened common
wealths which have proceeded it in
the same direction, the procession
including such states as Oregon.
Washington, California, Nevada.
Montana, Colorado, Arizona, Okla
homa, Nebraska, North and South
Dakota. Missouri, Arkansas, Michi-