San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-08-07

and money on a "test case" law that
had obviously been enacted contrary to
the organic rules would remail in force
until Doomsday eve.
However, the disclosure made by Rep
rcsentative Smith opens up multitude
of possibilities. 1t is poor rule, in the
legal as we'll as in other fields. that won't
work both ways. If it would have been
illegal to hold the highway-amendment
election set for July %, last, because
that proposed change in the constitution
had not been pre-advertised three months
prior to that date, then what about the
legality of any amendment actually
voted on and declared adopted despite
the failure of state or county officials
to track the same constitutional rule as
the one the attorney general so recently
invoked? Does the mere fact that an
adopted amendment has been in opera
ton several years save it from the nulli-
flying effect of failure to comply with
that rifle!
One might say, with equity on his
side, that everything would depend upon
the aggregate voting strength of the
counties in which advance notice, as
prescribed. had not been given. But in
the case cited by Representative Smith
the aggregate voting strength of the 90
organized counties in which the free
textbook amendment was not properly
pre-advertised exceeded the total vote by
which the amendment was carried.
But who is going to pronounce the
|free-tex tbook amendment invalid? Or,
rather, who could make such declara-
ton Stick" in practice? Now don't
all speak at once!
Mr.. Smiths discovery lends additional
oredence to the belief, expressed by va
rious people at the time the highway
amendment election was called off, that
the rule of advance publication was not
complied with in the adoption of any of
the many amendments that have been
incorporated in the Texas constitution.
Again the state is confronted by the
question of authority: Who is going
to set aside amendments that may prove
by the advance-pubication test, to have
been adopted illegally?' What is even
going to conduct a comprehensive in
vestigation to ascertain what amend
ments, if any, were adopted i'll accord
ance with that constitutional require
ment? Thus far, it seems, only one
government official. and he merely one
of many members of the Legislature, has
interested himself in the matter suffi-
GENTLY to make any sort of invcstiga-
ton.
But il citizen violates a law enacted
under the authority of constitutional
amendment which, by the test so de-
structively applied to the plans for the
highway-amcndment election, he has one
recourse: He may fight for his rights
before the courts (pluralD, and that he
can do if he is equipped with suffi-
Gent number of Iron men" to prevent
his financial humiliation.
Yet if in particular case an amend
ment should be judicially declared null
and void because the advance-publica-
ton rule had not been observed in its
adoption, other amendments subject to
the same attack would nevertheless re-
main in force--until somebody else with
sufficient capital to fight for the rights
had put such amendments to the judicial
test.
Wherefore, it may be anticipated that
many if not all of the presumably il!cg-
ally adopted Amendments will remain
operative for quite spell.
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