Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-11-26

/ eminent lawyers. The Governor
has not made this entirely a
lawyers commission. but has includ-
ca educators, the State Banking
| commissioner, n business man and
banker. journalists. farmers and
two notable women. Thus 1t should
/ be possible to frame q document
from other than purely a lawyers
standpoint. Most of the members
of the commission are practical per-
sons who have had experience in
various walks of life and they
| should be able to produce an instru-
! ment that will meet the demands of
! the time and of the future. There
has been some opposition to the re-
vision of the Constitution in this
! State on the ground that conditions
were too unsettled to permit of a
calm and unbiased consideration of
the document. Fear of radicalism
has prompted conservatives to urge
a postponement, but it must be re-
| membered that this commission
merely recommends changes. They
must be approved by the Legislature
and that cannot be before 1921. and
it will be 1923 before they are voted
upon by the people. 1t will be seen,
| therefore, that there will be ample
/ time for q full and comprehensive
| discussion of the subject. The men,
bers of the commission are charged
to study the Constitution "in the
! light of modern thought and condi-
| tions." There is every reason to
| feel that they will do their work
well, but in any event the people
will have the last word on the sub
| ject.
Philadelphia Rccord-The COM
mission appointed by Governor
Sproul to frame recommendation
! for changes will obviate the neces-
sity for another convention If its
suggestions find favor with the
Legislature, and subsequently with
the voters. The personnel is gen.
orally strong, with Il tendency to
conservatism. AS that is eminently
7 the temper of Pennsylvania, which
dislikes radical innovations of any
kind, no fault can he found on that
account. 1t may be forecast that
the commission, while urging i'm
portant changes in the Constitution,
VIII avoid those extremes TO when
many Western states have gone ana
which do not find favor in the East
As all recommendations must be
submitted to a vote of the electors
the latter can pick and choose, ac-
cording to their fancy, without ap-
proving or rejecting the work as
whole. This seems a better plan IN
some respects than that followed In
New York, where, after a constltu-
tional convention dominated by
Elihu Root had presented an entire
ly new document, at an estimated
cost to the taxpayers of S1,OOO,OOO,
the voters rejected the new Consti-
tuition overwhelmingly. The COM
mission has over a year in which to
complete its work and in that time
ought to be able to agree upon
changes which will meet with popu-
lar approval.
Philadelphia Public Ledger-Gov-
ernor Sproul. by his appointment of
the commission provided for by the
Legislature, has at last set in mo-
ton the machinery for the long
needed exhaustive examination of
the State Constitution with a view
to its future amendment or revision.
Under the terms of the enabling act
this commission is free to recon-
mend either a piecemeal revision of
the States fundamental law or the
submission of an entirely new
document. 1t is natural that the
personnel of the new Commission
should be closely scrutinized by
tllOSC wiz ilt AlOPlliS bllSAI
vania will by q revision of its consti-
tuition along enlightened and pro-
gressive lines put itself abreast of
the times in its method of dealing
with social and economic problems.
Candor compels us to say that the
Governors selections do not hold
out great promise of advancement
along these lines. He has chosen
able lawyers and publicists, most of
them of the old school of thought,
apparently in the fear that radical
opinion might enter into the coun-
sells of the commission. Fortunately
however. the State will not leave the
final word on the subject to any ap-
pointed commission. Its work must
Of necessity be advisory to the elect
ed convention which should be call
ed to do the actual work of revising
the old or of creating the new con-
stitution which the Commonwealth
requires. Such a commission is es-
sential to prepare the way and ac-
cumulate the material. But no con-
stitutional proposals which bear the
E,rmarks of reaction, or which omit
provision for municipal home rule,
for revision of our tax laws, for
the protection of women and chill
dren in industry and for the Simpli-
ficatlon and unification of the ad-
ministrative structure of the State
government can hope to receive
serious consideration at the hands
of the convention, the summoning
of which by the Legislature of 1921,
to which this commission must re-
port, may be taken as a foregone
conclusion.
Philadelphia Bulletin-The COM
mission of citizens whom Governor
Sproul has chosen to examine into
all the questions pertaining to an
amending or a revision of the or
ganic law of Pennsylvania is not in
tended to be sort of make-shift or
stopgap. 1t has been planned and
selected with the purpose of per-
forming. with as near an approach
as possible to thoroughness and
completeness, an unusual duty in
the spirit of the wisest and highest
practical service to the Common
wealth. In times like these
with their agitations over social, in
dustrial and political rights and the
manner in which the powers of gov
ernment should be fundamentally
defined. it is especially in order to
crystallize public opinion along the
lines which enable long steps in
progress to be taken without a sacri-
flee of stability or an indulgence in
the merely experimental fancies of
the hour. The Commission is so
made up that there may be expected
from its members a wide recogni-
ton of all opinions and demands
among the people as TO the changes
,,-I,icb chorld hn made in fla Com