Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1917-03-23
The Initiative And Referendum.
To the Editor of the Montgomery County
Sentinel.


Sentinel.
The accredited maps of the times of
Columbus, prior to returning from his dis
coveries, pictured upon the western edge
of the known ocean all imaginable mon
sters of the sea and air. Whoever sailed,
therefore, far to the West felt that he was
exposing himself to instant destruction
But few years back it was the belief of
large portion of our population that the
ideas in government particularly developed
the far side of the Mississippi River were
as monstrous and dangerous to human
well-being as were those pictured in the
West in the time of Columbus.
The result of the trip of Columbus was
to dissipate the monsters into thin air and
to give to the so-called civilized world of
four centuries ago a new outlet for its en-
mendous impetus to the development of
mankind. Those of us who will today take
trip to our West and witness the successful
working of the initiative and referendum.
once depicted to us as populistic inven-
tons designed to swallow up our civiliza-
ton, will discover that to the contrary they
are broadening and developing and benef-
cient institutions.
Maryland for more than year without
a cOnvulsion of nature and without de-
structiOn of society has had the referen-
dun. Already it has served to allow the
repeal by its people of law Objectionable
to the citizens of one county. More than
that, 1t has undoubtedly. even in its be-
ginning. stood in the way of the passage
by the Maryland General Assembly of acts
which the General Assembly feared to
have submitted to popular test, as they
might have been under the referendum. If
these slight things may be done in green
tree, what may be done in the dryS"
While we may rejoice that we have the
referendum. Maryland has not yet the
more important thing, the initiative, and
it is the duty of the next legislature--I
would say its most important duty-to
submit to the citizens Of the State an ade-
quate constitutional amendment providing
for 1t.
Even today it is proper to describe in
our State what is meant by the initiative,
although in one-third and more of the
States of the Union where it exists, such
explanation would be superfluous By the
initiative we mean the right of a certain
number of voters. usually from five to eight
per cent, to petition the Governor to sub
nit to the entire electorate law or consti-
tuaional amendment. Upon the submission
of the petition, it becomes the duty of the
Governor or other proper officer to see that
the ballots at the following election present
this particular proposition in adequate de-
State or other jurisdiction affected. and
upon its receiving majority, the law or
amendment is adopted.
The essential theory. therefore, is ex-
tremely simple. Five per cent of the peo-
pie make a motion. The Governor as pre-
siding officer puts it to the electors and
the people accept or reject the motion
If State legislature were actually al
ways representative and if it also did its
full duty. there would be no necessity for
the initiative. That State legislatures do
not always do their duty; that they are
guilty of sins of omission to be corrected
by the initiative or in some other way,
ust as they are guilty of sins of commits
sion which may be corrected by the refer
endum, must assuredly be admitted. If
proof were necessary. il was afforded by my
last letter, in which pointed out the man
ner in which the General Assembly treated
four constitutional amendments adopted
by the people less than two years ago.
That legislatures equally fail and must ever
fail to be thoroughly representative is alb
solutely true, as will be evident from
moments thought. We send men to the
leg islature who agree with the majority
upon certain general propositions, but as
suredly do not represent them on ALL AS
voters we make the best we can of the
situation. When they meet, those propo-
sitions upon which the majority in a large
part unite. may never come before the
legislature in any shape, but an infinite
variety of other propositions are voted on,
about which the legislature received no
mandate from the people. Some PROPOSE
tons may be rejected although the majority
of the people sincerely desire their adop-
ton and vice versa. For wrongful rejec-
| ton or refusal to submit to the whole peO-
government fails
A representative government is one
which represents. We may well enough
be represented in ninety cases out OF one
hundred by the average legislature. The
matters usually determined by 1t are not
Of the gravest importance, and even IL
errors exist. we may well put up with
them. but deeper matters Of principle
should, as the believers in the initiative
and referendum feel, be subject to review
at all times by the people. the Legislature
often failing to be representative for rea-
sons given.
South Dakota among the States Of the
Union was the first to rise to an appreca-
ton Of this apparent governmental defect.
and adopt the initiative and referendum
as a part of its government. In so doing.
It followed an example set by Switzerland,
where. in both national and cantonaI gov
eminent. the initiative and referendum
have protected the people for scores Of
years. Oregon quickly followed the lead
Of South Dakota. and from that time to the
present some eighteen or nineteen States
have followed their example, among them
the States Of the entire western const and