New-York tribune., 1920-11-14
California Vote
s~--
Shows Strength
of Referendum
Value as Educative Force
! Proved When I,OOO,OOO
Z; Outof l, 100, 900 Express
! Opinion of Legislation
20 Proposals ON Ballot
Increase in Teachers Sala-
!; ries an Example of the
{. Sentiment of Electorate
By Howard D. Hadlcy

: LOS ANGELES, Nov 7.-How about
fAe initiative, referendum and recall
9tom which those in New York, New
Ngland and Pennsylvania shrink ?
How does it actually work out? Is it,
on the whole, an Improvement over the
bid method to which the East clings?
They have had it in California for
about ten years-long enough, surely.
for g thorough trial. 1t would be a
Simple and easy matter to change back
50 the old way.
. No less than twenty-three states now
make use of the initiative, referendum
and recall-apparently with great sat
Ssfaction to the majority of the voters.
= Twenty propositions were submitted
10 California voters on Election Day
for action at the polls. Of these eleven
were initiative measures, five were sub
;nitted under the referendum and four
were proposed amendments to the state
CONSTITUTION. An initiative measure is
ene placed on the ballot by petition of
8. per cent of the number of voters
who voted at the last preceding guber-
natorial election. 1t required $1,000
names to initiate q measure-that is.
put it on the ballot-this year in Cali
$9rna. Then, if q majority of those
voting on the measure in Novem ber
record themselves in favor of it it is
the law of the state. without action
by either Governor or Legislature.
Z. A referendum measure is one that
Billy passed the Legislature and has been
Signed by the Governor but has been
feld up by its opponents petition for
j.. referendum to the people. One OF
abe sound objections to the system is
that S per cent OF. the people may hold
Dup (and they do usually hold up) de-
f,rable egislation-delay it for nearly
Awo years.
: Constitution Complicated
: California has an unusually LONG and
Eomplicated state constitutional relic
sof the days when those who were domi-
aating and exploiting the state got a
Strangle hold on the state making
machinery and did their best to make
that hold permanent.
!. Californians can't do much of any
thing in the way Of enacting much
.needed progressive legislation without
amending the state constitution.
. Here are the twenty propositions and
here is what California voters did to
them;
-trther restricting ownership and leas-
-NS VI idiu ny JapaiieSS. AuoPteu oy
nearly 100000 maj ority, the vote stand
shg aboat 8 to /.
: Secord-Measure to enforce strictly
'.he Volstead prohibition act. Indica-
lions now are that it was defeated by
800 900. Californians, at first fearful Of
prohibition, having found that home
brew has caused an inordinate demand
sTbr tholr raisns are now looking with
,riore favor on bone dry prohibition,
@th hough the drys are still, apparently, in
The minority. Interesting in this con-
inection to point out that in the days of
sProgressivism the southern California
'Rrog lessives were concerned primarily
with reforming the moralsthey
'.a,anted prohibition and abatement Of
S$he social evil-while the northern Cal
economic and industrial reform. 1t was
IN ore Of a task for Hiram johnson and
Ghet Rowell to keep them working to-
gethel in double harness than it seemed
ITO be at the time to people in the East,
ssout they did it. Southern California
voted bone dry at the election, north of
.sbhc Tehachepi Pass went wet, both run
sTlng true to form.
:. Third-Rasing salaries of judges in
skighest courts from $1,000 and $4,000
40 50 900 and $4,000 year. This was
ss|oted down emphatically.
: Fourth Proposal to increase the
percentage Of voters required to ini-
.tiate any measure relating to taxation,
sfrom per cent, as at present, to 25
.ner cent. Proposed, ostensibly, to curb
the Single Takers, who every year ini-
.,..tiate a single-tax proposal and as reg
.allarly have it overwhelmingly buried.
.Hut the voters surmsed this was an
sssEspee' colored gentleman in the leg
sislative woodpile, "Espee" being Pacific
Coastal for the Southern Pacific Rail
sway. The "Espee" forces are popular
gy believed to view with complacency
sShe present taxation status in Califor-
ssnla and would fain make it even more
~diffcult to change. Anyway, the voters
&ose as mighty army and buried this
1lttle scheme by about 125,OOO major
lty.
: Fifth-A proposal to fix standard
pf training and fitness as guaranty
spt competency to the public when en-
3toying chiropractors, providing for