Kingsbury

Mandate. The petition shows that at the general election held in this state on November 3, 1906, petitioner was duly elected to the office of surveyor general for the term of four years from and after the first Monday in January, 1907; that he duly qualified and thereupon became such officer, entered upon the discharge of his duties as such, ever since has been and now is the duly elected and qualified surveyor general, and now is entitled to receive the salary and emoluments of the said office; that at the regular session of the legislature commencing January 7, 1907, an amendment to section 19 of article V of the constitution of this state was proposed by the Senate, and on March 14, 1907, [Stats. 1907, p. 1364], a resolution entitled “Chapter thirty-seven. Senate Constitutional Amendment number fourteen, a resolution to propose to the people of the State of California, an amendment to the Constitution . . . amending section nineteen of Article five of said constitution, relating to the compensation of state officers,” was duly passed by both houses, which said proposed amendment was in words and figures following :

The petition then sets forth the various steps taken in…

I concur in the judgment and generally in the opinion of the presiding justice.

It seems to me there is no escape from the conclusion that the “compensation” which, it is provided, “shall not be increased or diminished during the term for which they shall have been elected,” is t'he “compensation” fixed by the amendment. Grammatically, the amendment is substantially the same as though it provided: “The governor, lieutenant-governor, secretary of state, controller, treasurer, attorney-general and surveyor-general shall at stated times during their continuance in office receive for their services the following compensation: Governor, ten thousand dollars per annum; lieutenant-governor, four thousand dollars; the secretary of state, controller, treasurer and surveyor-general, five thousand dollars per annum, and the attorney-general six thousand dollars per annum, which compensation shall not be increased or diminished during the term for which they shall have been elected.”

There is nothing whatever in the language used to indicate the intention of the people that the amendment should not take immediate effect, but, ex industria, they have specified that this increased…