Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 259, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 October 1912 — MEANING OF THE RECALL. [ARTICLE]

MEANING OF THE RECALL.

A comprehensive view of the initia* tive, referendum and recall, advocated by the Progressive party, is given by Elmer Bassett in the Shelbyvill« News, in which he says: Let us see how the Initiative, referendum and recall of judicial decisions, when coupled together, will operate By the initiative it is proposed to provide that when a certain per cent or number of the citizens of the Stat« shall petition the Legislature to pass a certain bill, the legislature shall pass the bill as petitioned for. Thee the bill shall be referred to the people at the next general election foi ratification. If the voters vote to ratify the bill, the same shall become * law. Now suppose that A shall sue B and the suit shall involve a mattei and be in reference to a matter with which the said law shall have to d« and to deal; that the controversy shalbe decided under this law. Suppose A shall contend that the said law is unconstitutional, that it is contrary to the provisons of our written constitution, and that the court trying th« cause and the Supreme Court shal: so hold the law to be unconstitutional. Suppose- B is a party of mean* and Influence, say the steel trust, harvester trust, oil trust or some other, thal he prepares and circulates a petition for an election to recall the decision of the court as aforesaid; that he gets on said petition the required number of petitioners and presents said petition to the proper authority and an election is called. Now B, being a party of great wealth, the steel trust oil trust or tobacco trust, or soma other trust with great wealth, employs speakers to stump the State and present arguments In favor of the recall of the decision as aforesaid, and suppose the said B buys space in the newspapers of the State and has printed and published in the same their argument for the said recall of said decision. Suppose A is a poor person and can not present his arguments in the same manner as to why said decision should not be recalled. The people read one side of the case, believe they are informed and that they are able to vote intelligently upon the question, and do vote to recall said decision. What is the result? A law shall stand on the statute books of the State, which law is unconstitutional, and the constitution is overridden and counts for nothing. It is easy for one to see the dangers of such proceeding and such a law. The fundamental law of the land will be broken down and our form of government changed.