Mortimer v. Philadelphia Civil Service Commission

Opinion by

Mr. Justice Jones,

At a special election, held April 17, 1951, in pursuance of authority conferred by the First Class City Home Rule Act of 1949, P.L. 665, 53 PS §3421.1 et seq., the electors of Philadelphia voted their approval' of a Home Rule Charter for the City. According to the Charter’s terms, its effective date for the most part was fixed as January 7, 1952. The narrow question raised on this appeal is as to which of these two dates —April 17, 1951, or January 7, 1952 — the framers of the Charter intended by use of the phrase “at the time of the adoption of this charter” in…