New-York tribune., 1889-12-21
ruc yrV SITUATION IN MONTANA.

THE NEW SITUATION IN NUN
perbans if is not to be wondered at that inc
Democratic members of the Montana Legs
lature have disgraced themselves. In the iirSo
Mace the reward they have hoped TO gam -
large. They did not cheat In the beginning
and they do not disregard the will OF Their con-
stituents now simply because they desire to pass
certain laws to which they are devoted. Law
MAKING Of course. is the business of Legs
lat,ue. and when thirty or more men who nave
been elected to a Legislature refuse 10 a''ehu
or to organize it, the inference is that they 40
not want to make laws. In the Montana case
the real reason is that they don't want the ne
nublicahs to secure the two United States SEN
ators whom the people OF Montana, by electng
Renublican Legislature determined IN favor
of. The Democrats of that new State concede
that the present is their last chance, ana tha'
they must capture it or fall into hopeless
minority. Soon they will realize that whether
they win or fail their doom is the same
Just now it looks as if failure were Inevitable
A month ago the Legislature convened. Inc
Republcan members of both houses assembled
and awaited the arrival of their Democratic
colleagues. They waited in vain. The Dem
with them the five frauds from Silver Bow
County, organized themselves into a House Oh
their own. The Democratic members OF the
Senate simply stayed out without even taking
the oath. This action left the Senate without
a quorum for it was composed OF eight kepuo-
Icars and eight Democrats The Republicans
were powerlesS TO compel the attendance OF
men who had not qualified Thirty days were
thus idly spent. each house meeting and ad-
iourning every day, and the Democratic " rump
| Uouseu doing the same thing with amusing
zeal.
Under the Montana law the seats of legis-
! lators who for thirty days neglect the perform
ance of their duties are declared vacant, and
now elections must be ordered. The Demo-
cratic Senators were not willing to go before
the people for vindicatiCn of their behavior,
knowing well enough that the result would be
an overwhelming defeat So, as their days of
grace were about to expire, they trooped into
the Senate Chamber and qualified believing
that organization would even then be impos-
sibe since the Chamber was evenly divided,
| and they intended to refuse to vote. When they
put this intent into execution, however, the
Lieutenant Governor startled them by ruling
that the Republican votes cast were entirely
sufficient for the purposes of organization, If a
full quorum was present, even though less than
quorum chose to avail themselves of their
right to vote.
The righteousness of this ruling is unde-
nabe. The Democrats have pursued course
which from start to finish was SubverSve OF
public order, dishonest in motive, and treach-
+lo -bnln
State Even the petty techncalities that they
attempted to stand on are such that no argu-
ment can be hung upon them. The Legislature
should now go on and complete its work. 1t
should perform all its duties under the new
Constitution, pass such laws as were commend
ed to it, elect the United States Senators, and
leave the Democrats and Governor Toole to
their own devices.