Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-12-11
TOTAL REVISION
OF CONSTITUTION
ACCESSIBILITY
Multiplicity of Amendments
May Create This Neces-
sity; Decision Soon
ADJOURN UNTIL DEC. IL
Many Changes in Legislative
Practice Urged in Alters
Report

The State Constitutional Revision
Commission to-day authorized COM
mittees having charge of studies of
subjects which might be related to
hold joint sessions and then ad-
Journed until next Wednesday, De-
cember II, at noon. During the ses-
sion to-day eX-Speaker George e.
Alter reported on the constitutional
articles relative to the executive and
Legislative branches of the govern
ment, over n score of amendments
being proposed and this report will
be the calendar for the first gen.
eral discussion by the Commission
next Wednesday afternoon.
The Alter report covered various
changes in legislative practice, the
succession in the Governors office,
Senatorial confirmation of appoint
ments, proposal that the State may
do its own printing. classification of
cities, appropriations and kindred
topics. Clifford Pincho reported
tentative approvals of some sections
relative to taxation, but that the
main features were to be eXhaus-
lively studied. Francis Newton
Thorpe presented several sections
which he said other committees
might desire to study and authority
for such joint conferences as might
he necessary was granted after a
statement by Charles III. English.
TO Study Changes
The changes suggested by COM
InitteeS, almost all of which have
made some reports, will be forward
TO members for study before the
reconvening of the Commission. 1t
is probable that when the Commits
sion meets again that some ques-
uons regarding future course may
be asked as the number of amend
nents have caused the possibility
of recommendation of a complete
revision to be seriously discussed.
1t will probably develop very
soon whether the State Constitu-
tional Revision Commission will not
be required through very multi
plicity of amendments to work
toward complete revision of the
constitution. The fact that in the
neighborhood of thirty amendments
appeared yesterday purely as cor
rective of various provisions of the
document and that many of the
new subjects have not even been
discussed is causing some of the
members of the Commission to get
around to the belief that a recon-
mendation for a revision might as
well be made to the next Legis-
lature. There are other members
who are opposed to such a course
until the whole proposition has been
gone into.
Attorney General William I.
Schaffer says frankly that the
future course is contingent upon
the findings of the commission and
that If there are many amendments
the proposition of a recommends
ton for a complete revision will be
seriously considered. Should this
be decided upon there will also be
the question whether the Commits
sion should draft u new constitu-
tion and make it part of it's report.
Want Complete Revision
The manner in which some of the
committees have been operating
shows a determination to go right
through the document, while others
have not reported anything and say
that they want to make complete
studies and to get all of the lnror-
nation possible and the aid that
can be obtained from the State
officials and other states and then
TO give the fullest hearings to sug-
gestions.
One of the things that is operat-
ing toward a complete revision is
the fact that when eleven amend
ments were submitted in 1909 there
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