Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1885-11-28
NO VICE PRESIDENT.

Opinions OF Prominent Mcn-Senatsr
sherman and Supreme Judges
Strong and Miller
New York, NoY. Ex-senator John
Sherman was seen at the Fifth Avenue
hotel. and said that the death of the
vice president would not effect the or
ganization OF the senate in any way, as
the case was extremely simple. Out of
courtesy president protein was not
elected in the presence OF the vice presi.
dent, who, with party opposite in poll
tics in power could not exercise much
influence. He did not even appoint the
senate committees which are named in
caucus by the dominant party. At pres
ent, however, the senate was without q
presiding officer. 1t must be remembered
that the senate, unlike the house, was u
permanent body, and there is no ques-
tion about electipg permanent officers.
81 have not the slightest idea who will
be elected" continued Sherman" The
matter is altogether one of friendly con-
sideration. l was personal friend of Mr..
Hendricks, and knew him very well.
lie was man of marked character
and a regular attendant upon the Epis-
copal church. The death of Hendricks
| will probably not have any
| effect upon Indiana poIitics,and the loss
of no one man nowadays makes much
difference to the country. But he was
certainly one of the most prominent OF
men in the democratic party, and re.
member him we'll when he first came
into congress in 1863 and took leading
part in the reconstruction policy. ]
think that Hendricks, Thurman. Morton
and Mcdonald were all Ohio men liv-
ing in Indiana. The contingency had
never arisen when president OF the
senate became president of the United
States, and only remember one ia.
stance when the vice president has died,
and that was king, who WAS elected with
Pierce. He took the oath of office.
| don't want to discuss probabilities, and
we on our side certainly want to see
Cleveland serve his term out"
| Washington, Nov. 26-Ex-J Justioe
Strong, of the supreme court, said: "It
is customary at the close of the session
of the senate for the vice president to
leave the chair and permit the election
of president pro tempore, in order
that there might be succession to the
presidency in the case of the sudden
death of both the president and vice
president. Mr.. Hendricks, I understood,
declined to permit the election of g pres
| ident pro tempore of the senate, hence
| that body is now without presiding
officer, and if Cleveland should also die
before the meeting of congress the coun-
try would be without head, and most
difficult problem would be offered for Its
solution. A constitutional amendment
is not necessary, but a congressional en-
actment is certainly needed, and under
the circumstances will probably be
adopted by the incoming congress- leay-
ing the presidential succession, in case
of the death of the president,
vice president and speaker of the
house in the hands of the secretary OF
state until On election could be held. Ir
that contingency the secretary of state
would be legally the only acting presi
dent. The same would be true of th.
vice president, president pro tempore o.
speaker of the house, in case of the sue
cesaion falling upon either Of them.
Justice Miller, of the United State
supreme court, in speaking of president
ial succession, said: "If Mr.. Edmund
had been elected pro-tempore of tn
senate at the recent extra session o
, that body, he would now be the constitu
; tional successor to the presidency Il
case of the death of Cleveland durin
his term of Office, though the tenure c
office of the president pro-tempore ca
T, be terminated at will by q vote of tn
) senate"
"Do you think that the sudden deaf
OF the vice president will give rise to
constitutional amendment defining mor
clearly the status of the president prt
Z tempore of the senate?"
. mo; it is not needed. The preslden
pro tempore holds Office until the retur
of the vice president, or until the senat
8 elects his successor. Nor is his tenur
Q of Office limited to a single session, fc
@ the senate is body in perpetua, not g,
plrlng by limitation, as does the hous
OF representatives"