The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1915-10-29
THE AMENDMENTS.

To the Editor Of the Midland Journal
The Maryland newspapers have very gener.
ally published the text of the Constitutional
amendments to be voted upon this Fall The
State Democratic Platform Recommend all
the amendments to the favorable consider
alton of the people of the State. The Repub-
lican Platform recommended the Referendum
Amendment and the County Home Rule
Amendment and is silent but not opposed as
to the remaining amendments. Therefore. we
may anticipate the adoption of all the amend
ments by overwhelming majorities.
It may be worth our while briefly to con-
slider what the position of the people of the
State of Maryland will be after the adoption
of the several amendments.
THE REFERENDUM AMENDMENT
When this shall be adopted, If the Maryland
General Assembly shall pass any law creating,
for example, monoplies obnoxious to the
people, or conveying away part of what should
be our common wealth, without compensation,
or infringing the liberties Of the citizens, or
creating useless offices as political or personal
rewards, without thought of the public good,
or creating public debts, and increasing our
taxes in Objectionable ways, ten thousand
voters of the State, not more than five thous-
and from fillmore City, or any one County
can call halt by signing petitions within
sixty days after the adjournment of the Legis-
larure demanding that the Objectionable pro-
position be submitted to the vote of the whole
people before it shall be allowed to go into full
force and effect. Thereupon The Governor
Will cause the measure to be SO submitted and
the people can directly protect their own in
terests in such respects.
THE COUNTY HOME RULE
With the adoption of this amendment, it
will be the duty of the next Legislature to de-
termine land in this we must hope 1t will be
generously the subjects over which counties
shall have supreme control, with the result
that a great mass of legislation which now
vexes the General Assembly will be deter
mined by the Counties Immediately affected
They will organize their own local government
and will be in position to avail themselves
of the latest and best thought affecting it.
They will have the power upon petition of
twenty percent to propose to each other
changes in such local government and laws as
they may once have adopted. In doing this
they will be exercising County Initiative,
and later it will be but step from such Coun-
ty Initiative to State wide Constitutional
Initiative.
The General Assembly by this amendment
will be relieved of three-fourths of its work
now devoted to county matters, and have the
more time to pay attention to laws of State
wide effect.
TAXATION AMENDMENT
With the adoption of the taxatica amend
ment, the Legislature of Maryland will be able
to adjust the tax laws of the State to its Con-
stitution. At the present time our Constitu-
ton demands that all property, real and per-
sonal should be taxed equally. Under the
proposed constitutional amendment, all pro-
perties would be classified, and the rate of tax
so far as directed to be levied within any
particular class or sub-class would be uniform.
This constitutional amendment Is in the
line of progress and the latest thought upon
the general subject.
HUMANITARIAN AMENDMENT
The last Legislature in it's great work, while
covering the purely political side by the Re-
ferendum and the County Home Rule Amend
ments, and the revenue side by the Taxation
Amendment, did not forget social reform.
1t recognized the facts that our inelastic
criminal laws often work injustice; that men
are sent to Jail who might remain better citiz-
ems by being kept out of jail, through suspen-
sion of sentence. The adoption of this amend
ment will mean the binding up of. shattered
human lives.
JACKSON H. RALSTON.
Hyattsville, Maryland.
October 25 1915.