The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1919-05-15

$4,000 ON INITIATIv V E

number of signers requesting the
initiation OF measures 10 substitute fof
league legislation up to $4,000, OF
three and half the minimum re
Quired by the constitution.
Referendum petitions were filed as
follows:
Industrial commission-3S, ,lO1.
Printing bill-3S,562. -
Educational bill-37,917.
immigration ill-37,S35.
Bank bill-37, ,481.
Judicial redistricting-37,43S.
One man tax 1858.
The total number OF signers to
initiative petitions was increased to
approximately the following:
Nonpartisan elections-36,00O.
Mill and elevator association-36,-
900.
+ Rural credits-35, ,O00
Home building association-34 ,OOo.
A very large percentage of signers
of. both Initiative and referendum pc
titiOns are said to be farmers.
Many Are Yet Out
1T is hard to tell just how many
people have signed our referendum pc
titi0ns,' said Secretary Nelson last
night. Many WHO have petitions that
they have been circulating live way
out in the county and you know that
the roads have been almost impassible
for a long time, help scarce and the
season late. Farmers are not paying
much attention to their mail just now
,s,d have nos horses. to spare for q
trip to town. They, can VI 9 he. auto,
20 l expects that petitions will con-
1ainue to come in from many sections
fof 4 long time. The date set for re-
.nurning referendum petitions was
May 10. but they will PROBABLY keep
coming in tillffthe end sof 1.-THE month.
.t. Since the initiative petitions were
filed we have received additional pc
titions containing over 10000 names.
There would probably be- as many adj.
'ifitionfl names for the, referendum
petitions, IT there we're: any object IN
spending any. time on them"
One Name Withdrawn.
Referring to the reported withdraw
oil of names, Of which much mas been
made i'll the Townley press, Mr., Mel.
son said:
f"All the noise that Townley organiz-
ers have made about people withdraw
Ing their names Is only gas. Up till
the filing OF the petitions today there
hadbeen only one lonesome request to
have q name withdrawn, and that
came through atthiri party
Uses Short and Ugly Word.
what will be the program OF the
/. ": A. II the governor ignores the
initiative petitions? Wen cross that
bridge when we get to it. :.
&, >,"If the governor il. correctly quoted
In the Townley press, he lies when
he says that the voters might vote
for two laws on the same subject at
the same time. II he will let the
people vote on the initiated laws,
which he might do at the referendum
election without q single dollars ad
ditional cost, there would be only one
bill on any subject for or against.
q There could be no confusion. The
people will demand some other Tea,
son than that they are not Intelligent
enough to know what they wait to
vote for as an argument for turning
down q petition to vote on laws sign
ed by $4,000 (mOre than three and a
half times the number required by
law, especially when he cou!a let ii
be done by calling the election just
few days later
Notes Significant Fact.
Mr.. Nelson regards it significant
that the referendum petitions on the
industrial commission, which is the
key to the leagues entire economic
program. rank second in number OF
singers. The league provides through
tho industrial commission act for tae
political control by a board OF three
of all state.owned utilities and enter
prises.
In order to procure favorable action
in the Senate on the league program
bills, Governor Frazier agreed that
he would call special election to
give the people an opportunity to vote
on these measures if petitions were
signed by $4,000 representative cleo
tors. The acts to which his promise
principally referred are those the In
dependent Voters association has
sought to submit through the medium
of initiative petitions. Although these
netitions are signed by two and a
half times the number OF electors des-
ienated by the governor, he has de-
cIared his intention OF invalidating
these petitions by setting the special
election on the referendum petitions
for a date which will l.not admit of the
submission of the initiated measures.
The Independent Voters association
did not take advantage of the gov
ernor's generosity in the matter Of the
referendum petitions, but has filed ap-
proximately 5000 more signatures
than the 10000 required by the con-
stitution to make the calling of a spe-
cial election mandatory upon the part !
pf the governor. nr,.. .4s