Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1885-12-03
HENDRICKS SUCCESSOR.
logan Reported as not Wanting tie
Position Edmunds' Candidacy

logan Reported as not Wanting the
Position Edmunds' Candidacy
Washington, Nov. 30-Whether Gen.
Logan wants to be president pro tenn
pore is the question asked on every side.
a gentleman whose relations with the
senator make 1t eminently probable that
he knows how the senator feels, says
that he does not think Gen. Logan
wants to take the chair. In the fret
place the duties of the Office would be
irksome to him. He finds sitting up
very fatiguing. and when he is not
writing his usual position is semi-re-
cumbent attitude on lounge in the
cloak room or at home. He is not very
expert in rules of order, and dislikes con-
troversies over parliamentary points.
On the other hand he Is powerful de-
batter, and the gentleman referred to
says he thinks Gen. Logan would feel
that, us the presiding officer, he was
laid away on the shelf. He is man of
very active temperament, fond of po-
litlcal controversy, and eager
to support certain measures that
will come up this winter, and to
oppose others. III he takes the chair he
has got to keep out of debate for the
most part. He would not be actually
muzzled. He would retain all his rights
| as senator, but he would not be ex-
pected to have the floor much. He is
represented as eager to retain and add
to his prestige as one Of the republican
| leaders in the senate, and feels that he
can do much more for his country, his
party and his own poiiticai future by re-
naming on the floor than he could by
taking the chair. Gen. Logan's election
to the chair would be recognized as y
senatorial nomination for the presidency
In the opinion of many of his friends
| this would be a grave disadvantage to
him, because 1888 is a good way off, and
candidates who were brought forward
too early have generally been killed off,
| 1t is felt by some senators that presi-
dental politics, either prospective or
retrospective, ought to be kept out OF
this election of a presiding officer, and
for this reason Senator Van Wyck
who is warm friend of Blaine
and not especially at. admirer
of Edmunds, desires to see the latter re-
elected president pro tenn. He thinks
there will be less OF presidential politics
in Mr.. Edmunds' election than in thai
| of anyone else, and he is for him for thai
reason. Though very warm friend o.
| both Blaine and Logan, he does not wan
| the election of 1884 resurrected to bea
Edmunds, or the election of 1858 antici
pated to elect Logan. The fact that las
March Mr.. Edmunds took occasion, un
authorized by the senate, to disclaim, il
announcing the result of an electora
count, any function except a purel,
ministerial one, will be used against min
by some extreme partisans among th
regular republican senators, who want tt
reserve for some future emergency th
claim that the presiding officer of tn
senate has the right TO count the elec
toral vote involving, as it would, in cas-
of double returns, the right o
the vice president or presiden
pro tenn. to determine what vote
to count. But there are many of the re
publican senators who claim such extra
ordinary powers for the real or acting
vice president. Some democrats ar
seeking to give the impression that Ger
, Logan cannot be elected president pr
TEN, because he is not yet a member o
the senate This is minor technicalit
which can be gotten around easily. i
, 1881 the republicans asserted the righ
of the Oldest senator to administer tn
oath of Office to senators elect before
president pro tenn was chosen. Th
democrats insisted that president pr
tenn must be chosen frat. They were il
the majority and carried their point, bu
that does not settle the right of men
| bers elect to be sworn in before the cleo
!. ton OF presiding officer. The action {
1881 was purely political and not lega
l Now the republicans have maiorit
D and they will not recognize the strit
q party vote of four years ago as pres
dent building on them. It is eve
. claimed by some good lawyers that
l senator elect may take Office before
0 Judge, without waiting for the senate
/ meet. No such upsual experiment 6
9 this need be tried. The republican Sc!
ators have majority and they can diret
the senior senator to swear the member
elect; or # they preferred another cour,
i they could agree in caucus on the ele'
r tion of president pro tem.. simply fo
the purpose of organization, and the
y elect General Logan to the chair 6
i soon as he had qualified.