The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1917-07-29
THE ALABAMA CONSTITUTION

dial measures, will be swift to undo their
own work.
If it is claimed that the power of the
governor to call special sessions obviates
the objection to the quadrennial system,
it should be remembered that in the
course of four years many vacancies will
occur in the legislative body, vacancies
of sufficient number to frequently change
the character of the legislature and to
alter it's complexion. 1t is, therefore,
evident that if we relied upon special
sessions of our lawmaking body 1t might
happen that by the action of one or two
counties the whole policy of the state
government might be radically altered
and without the consent of the people of
the state or without giving them an OPP
| portunity to express their views. More
over, the right of the people to secure
such legislation as they may demand
should not be limited to special sessions,
which can only be convened at the dis
cretion of the governor. The right of the
people through their trusted representa-
tives to make, revise or repeal laws,
should not be dependent upon the pleas
ure or caprice even of the governor
The quadrennial system has failed tc
realize the hopes of it's advocates and
| should be abandoned and when a new
| constitution is framed, we should re-
store the state legislature to the full
constitutional powers that should be pos
sessed by every lawmaking body. In
necessary restrictions and limitations
upon legislative power Is in effect a
check upon the power of the people to
govern themselves and too frequently
checks or forbids wise and progressive
| legislation.
SESSIONS TOO SHORT
| If feverish and unseemly haste are to
| be avoided and full opportunity given
for debate and consideration, the present
| limitations upon the length of legislative
| sessions should be abandoned. We should
| not unwisely fetter legislative action or
deny to the people lawmaking bodies
meeting often enough and long enough
| to give voice to their calm, sober and
serious judgment.
| The Improvement then of the legisla :
| tive department is admittedly the most
| important duty that would confront a
new constitutional convention. In the re-
organiza ton of the legislative department,
| the guiding consideration should be to
make such changes as would elevate its
| standard and remove the distrust that
now exists
| We should not undertake to abolish but
rather to reform our lawmaking body.
\ Nor should we undertake the task in
the pessmistic spirit that controlled a
majority of the members of our last con-
stitutional convention. They seemed to
have reasoned this way about the legis-
lature. that 1t was a necessary evil which
could not be abolished. but It's power to
do harm might be considerably lessened
| by allowing 1t to meet only once In four
years. 1t would be better. they thought,
| II 1t did not meet at all, but as there
must be some body with power to make
laws to pass necessary appropriation
| bills at the beginning Of each state adj
ministration we reluctantly consent to
| its meeting quadrennially We can only
regret that We cannot abolish body that
passes SO many bad laws. that causes so
much unrest, business disturbance and
public apprehension, but as we cannot
Rwell do that. we will allow them to do
as little harm as possible By letting them
meet as seldom as possible and In addi-
ton we will nuiiify as far as we can
their power to do harm by placing every
conceivable restriction on their power to
| legislate. This was practically the course
OF reasoning Of the constitution makers
| of 1901 yet this reasoning embodies a
very singular admission for self-gov-
erning democracy to make. confession
| that government by representation was
| a failure.
But. call 1t what you will. there
must be lawmalSing body In every
democratic government AS PresidcnL
| Wilson once said. "a government must
| have organs: 1t cannot act morgan
4 ically by masses"
! If. therefore. the lawmaking power
cannot be entrusted to representatives
\ 1t must necessarily be exercised by
| the people in their primary capacity
| We must. therefore. either have a
legislature or substitute for repre- .
| sentative government direct action BY
| the people, "the initiative and refer
endum." system to which more Sc
rious and conclusive objections can
be made than to any other form OF
llawmaking ever undertaken. As Lord
Bryce said about the initiative and
referendum. whatever may be the adj
vantages. the dement's of the system
are evident" It's adoption would be
| in effect a substitution of new apd
untried system. contrary to our tra-
ditions and policies. Representative
| government would he abandoned or
| largely restricted and direct govern
ment by the people substituted. As .
| distinguished writer on American gov T.
eminent recently said: Such funda-
mental principle and tradition as that
= of representation should not oe
thrown away unless the change can