Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1922-09-02
IMPORTANT TO
ALL THE VOTERS
Several Important Questions Are At
Stake In The Proposed
Amendments

There are several important mea-
sures to be voted upon in the elections
to be held in November of this year.
A digest of the measures has been
prepared by DR.. Horace Flack, exec
rtive of Department of Legislative
Reference. All voters will note that
there two amendments dealing with
increased representation: One for the
80 per cent. increase in the Senate
and the other for the 80 per cent. in
crease in the House of Delegates.
In the agitation for increased rep
resentation we must not lose sight of
the fact that most legislation is Sc
cured by trading. Admitting this to
be true, and we must. on examination
we find a Baltimore City vote in the
House of Delegates is worth consid-
erably more, in many instances. many
times more, than the vote of a County
Delegate.
If Baltimore City measure is be-
fore the House, Baltimore with its "a
votes needs only 80 additional votes
to have the Constitutional majority
of 81. In other words in order to
have Constitutional majority for a
Baltimore City measure all that is
necessary is for every Baltimore City
Delegate to secure one vote from
some other part of the State and they
have within six votes of the Consti-
tutiona majority.
On the other hand if a certain
County Delegation want 4 measure
passed those County Delegates must
each secure 26 Delegates from other
parts of the State to have Consti-
tutional majority. In other words
Baltimore City Delegates vote is 26
times more valuable than a single
County Delegate. In the case of
county having the largest possible
number of Delegates which is six, the
value of one of its Delegates votes is
only is that of a Baltimore City
Delegate.
Two amendments are proposed to
the Constitution of Maryland provid-
ing for increased representation of
Baltimore City in the General Assem-
bly, first by adding two legislative dis
tricts to Baltimore City, which will
give two additional Senators. If the
amendment is adopted, Baltimore
City will have 6 Senators out of %.
Chapter 90, proposes to amend the
Constitution by providing an increase
of ~ members of the House of Dele
gates for Baltimore City. If the
amendment is ratified, Baltimore City
will have 36 members of the House of
Delegates out OF llS.
Chapter lll proposes to amend
the Constitution by making the term
of the State Comptroller and State
Treasurer years instead of years.
The amendment also leaves the salary
Of the State Comptroller TO be fixed
by law instead of being fixed in the
Constitution.
Chapter 227 proposes an entirely
new Article to be known as Article
II of the Constitution. This amend
ment is known aS the "Fewer Elec-
tions Bill" and provides for having
state elections every 4 years. II the
annenumcnl Is fatHicu, All cltCtiNe
State officers, except judges, and all
elective county officers shall be elect
ed for 4-year terms, beginning with
the election in November, 1926. Mem
berS of the State Senate and House of
Delegates will be elected for i-year
terms but the General Assembly will
meet every two years. II the amend
ment is adopted, however, there will
be no session of the General Assem-
bly, in 1926 but the General Assembly
elected in 1926 will meet in 1927 and
there will be biennial sessions there
after.
Chapter 275 proposes to amend the
Constitution by providing that "All
words or phrases, used in creating
public offices and positions under the
Constitution and laws of this State,
which denote the masculine gender
shall be construed to include the
feminine gender"