Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-10-24
TO FACILITATE MACHINE WORK

If the state adopts the proposed constitutional
relating to the application. of the inith :
tive and referendum to the current legislation and of the
to constitutional amendments, the effect will be
to keep the state in a constant condition Of uncertainty
and turmoil, and to facilitate the work of a COMPACT and
weal-organized machine in forcing upon the people fresh
and repeated consideration of matters which thew have
already settled to their satisfaction.
In the management Of a business concern a rnunic.
ipality, a state, any organization, in fact, it is accepted ev=
erywhere, except among the Socialists, that decisions of
Importance shall be preceded by ample opportunity for
consideration, and that when this consideration has been
given. and decision based upon it has been reached, that
decision shall be the basis of action, and not merely of
further debate. and that the decision shall not be reversed
or called in question without evidence of a very strong
and very general demand therefor. ~ -
1t is upon this principle that our present laws COW
ering the initiative and referendum are based The con-
stitution is accepted as the fundamental law. NOT un-
changeable inItts provisions, but with sufficient rieidity
to make it serve as the effective foundation of other and
more temporary laws. The constitution may be changed.
but before a proposed change can be forced unon the
attention Of the people, there must be a DEMONSTRATION Of
a reasonably general desire for that change. This DEM
onstratton of popular desire may be given, as under the
original constitution, by the action Of the legislature it.
self in proposing the submission Of the issue. In addition,
under the amended clause. it may be initiated by the peo-
pie themselves. The provision is that petitionk proposinp
constitutional amendments shall be signed by at least Is
per cent OF the voters in not less than half the counties of
the state. That gives reasonable assurance that the de-
mand for the changeis general, and not merely local, and
that 1t comes from a body Of people sufficiently numer-
GUS to justify its serious consideration by the people as a
whole. a.. ~
The same principle is observed In the submission of
statutory laws under the referendum. There is a differ
ence in detail in that the required number of signatures on
the petition is placed at 10 per cent instead Of rs per cent
OF the legal voters in a majority Of the counties. This is
logical because of the difference in the relative import
ance Of constitutional and statutory law. A
Now it is proposed to overturn all this by the pro-
vision that for the submission Of constitutional amend.
ments only 10000 Signatures shall be required, and for
the referendum on legislation only $4,000 signatures, and
that these gnatures~instea Of being distributed
throughout a reasonably large area. may be obtained any.
where, in whatever locality hired peddlers Of petitions find
1T most. Convenient to work.
except by enc or two individuala might as well be elm
mated; entirely. Upon the order Of a political boss a Few
workers can visit the most congested districts and have
petitions on any innasinab BILE proposition signed up in a few
days. and the people Of the state will be, put to the annoy.
lance. Inconvenience and expense Of having submitted &c
them, time after time, matters Of constitutional law and
lcu<rent LEGISLATION which they had considered settled, and
IsentinnSnt whatever. The result will be to facilitate the
work of the political machine, and to throw the whole
state government into chaos. e3