The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1916-03-03
SUPERVISORS ACTION LAWFUL
Says Supreme Court--6ut Ono Local
Option Petition in a Pre-
cinct Legal.

Lansing, Mich, March In re-
fusing to mandamus the Shiawassee
county board of supervisors to recon-
vene and submit the local option ques-
tion at the. April election, the supreme
court today in an opinion written by
Chief Justice Stone settled a much
mooted question-that of how many
petitions may be filed from a given
precinct, township or ward.
For two years the construction Of
the local option statute regarding
this feature, has been decided several
different ways and circuit courts have
divided on it. A year ago, Attorney
General Fellows decided that where
more than one petition is filed from a
given township or ward, the super
visors should throw them all out. This
happened in the Shiawassee county
case and the "wets" asked for a
mandamus alleging first that such
procedure was illegal; and second,
that if the law did not permit of more
than one petition from township or
precinct, one of them must be recog-
nized.
BY counting at least one of the two
petitions from New Haven township,
and one of the four from the Fifth
ward of Owosso, the "wets" had
enough to force a local option elec-
tion.
The supreme court, however, rules
that the holding of the attorney
general was the proper one, and that
all petitions should be thrown out.
"We cannot agree with counsel in
the contention that more than one
petition or list can be circulated and
a copy thereof posted in one township,
ward, or election district" says Chief
Justice Stone, "under any proper
construction of the statute.
"Let us not be misunderstood here ::
We think that any number of head
ings may be circulated in precinct,
and signed, and if all the headings
are alike and in proper form, and if
they are all attached together, and a
copy thereof posted, and filed as one
petition, the statute is complied with.
The affidavit or affidavits of the genu-
ineness Of the signatures and that the
signers are qualified electors may be
attached to each heading, but the afli-
davit or affidavits as to the posting
should be attached to the completed
petition after the headings have all
been attached together as one peti-
tion, and should refer to it as such.
The difficulty and infrmity here in the
Shiawassee case is, that there was no
proof that the several petitions were
ever attached together so as to form
one petition, and as such were ever
posted"
One of the arguments for the
"wets' was to the effect that with
the law really meaning that more
than one petition did not go, it would
be easy for the "drys" to spoil a
submission by circulating and fling
petitions themselves. The court, how
ever, refuses to go into a discussion
of this feature, saying:
"This is purely an academic ques-
tion and one that does not confront
us in this case. No claim is made
that the numerous petitions here
under consideration were the result of
persons hostile to the question of sub
mission, and no question of fraud is
here involved. -
According to Superintendent Grant
NJ. Hudson, of the Michigan Anti
Saloon league, the decision is one of
the most important given on the local
option question in years. Incidentally
he figures that the decision settles
in favor Of the "drys" the arguments
now on in Otsego and Jackson coun-
ties.