The midland journal., 1917-04-06
REFORMS NEEDED IN MARY
LAND.
Corrupt Elections, Useless Offices,
Taxation and Other Political
Problems Considered.
Series OF Articles By jackson I'll.
RalstOn.
Article XIV

To the Editor of the Midland
Journal
For eighteen years in one or more
of the states of the Union, laws have
been passed by direct popular vote,
under the Initiative. A small per-
centage Of the voting population has
by petition caused to be presented
to the entire electorate laws or con-
stitutional amendments believed to
be in the public interest and these
propositions have been accepted and
rejected. From this experience use
full lessons have been learned with
reference to popular government,
some of which l shall endeavor to
point out, in the. hope that the citi-
zens of the State may be the more
ready to adopt the Initiative.
Laws to be passed upon by the
people are more carefully drawn as
rule than laws passed by legisla-
lures. This statement is SO differ
ent from the impression sought to
be created by those opposed to
popular government as to deserve
an explanation. Before any i'm
portant Initiative proposition is
placed upon petition it is usually
thrashed over by a committee of
men interested in it's presentation
to the public in the best possible
form. This done, it's friends have
not trusted to their own judgment,
but have circulated the proposed
law widely among groups of men
of like mode of, thought, to the end
that every possible objection to
phraseology should be eliminated
and the utmost clearness of express
sion obtained. Many such propo-
sitions have been printed and re-
printed score of times before com
pletion. The trainers have under
stood that, once brought before the
public eye, the text would be
criticised by thousands of men, view
ing it from every possible stand
point. Perfection, therefore, be
comes the ideal in preparing an
Initiative law.
Bills prepared for submission to
he legislature are usually the
product of the minds of interested
persons knowing exactly what they
want, and not always desiring the
interest of the people. SO prepared,
they may he given an examination
usually hasty, by the legislative com
mites to which they are referred
and generally no examination what
soever by the great mass of the
legislators, who accept without dues-
ton whatever is reported from com
mittees. An act, therefore, going
through the legislature, does not re-
ceive the careful detailed attention
given an act to be passed upon by
the people.
We are told that the people arc
not sufficiently intelligent tA them
selves enact laws. Those who say
this forget that our constitutions arc
adopted by the people, and this
body, which is intelligent enough toI
pass upon the fundamental law,
ought surely to be regarded as suf-
ficiently intelligent to pass upon any
amendment to it. In so doing the
people act upon the Initiative of the
Constitutional Convention which
proposes the Constitution to them.
There is no difference in principle
between the whole mass acting upon
a constitution proposed by consti-
tutional amendment thereto present
ed by five per cent of their own num-
ber. The same grade of public in
telligence is demanded in the one
case as in the other. Greater eff
ficiency, however, is secured under
the popular initiative because the
attention of the people is concen
trated upon the narrow propositions
instead of being confused by a
multitude of subjects.
It is again insisted that the people
are not sufficiently intelligent, and
that under the Initiative the ignor-
mt rule. Again mistake. At
he present time the ignorant and
Indifferent exercise a tremendous
power in government through their
influence in the selection of officers. /
Under the Initiative they largely
eliminate themselves. We have not
hen necessarily the rule of the ma
ority in numbers, but the rule of
the thoughtful, interested and in