Daily Yellowstone journal., 1890-01-11
THE STATUS.
Questions Of Interest to the Gan.
eral Public Relating TO the
-Four Senators.
A Refutation Of an Attack Upon
One Of Custer County's Old
and Faithful Officers.
Row WILL THEY GET THEREe

Anticipations Of What will he Done at
Washington.
The Helena Journal thus sums up
the statu, Of the rival candidates for
senaforships:
just what are the plans Of the four
gentlemen who leave Montana shortly
to claim seats in the United States
senate. what the senate will do, how
the rival claims will he examined and
acted upon and similar que.tions are
matters Of considerable interest to the
general public, and the following
points, though meagra, may be regard.
ed ssaccurate, as they have been gath
cred in brief interviews from the fur
men themselves:
Clark and Msginnis will leave in a
few days and it IL not improbable that
they may find themsslv on the same
train with Sanders and Powers. All
thst will he done by any of. the four
upon reaching Washington will be 10
appear b fore the senate and present
their credentials. The credentials
will then be 'prfed cv to the senate
committee on privileges and elections,
which will have all further charge Of
the affair until its report IL made to
the senate. The investigation will
undoubtedl involve an investigation
Of Precinct No. 81, but how this invest.
igation will be conducted Is not def
nitely known. Certainly neither the
senate nor the committee on privileges
and elections will come to Montana.
Either some one outside of the senate
will be sent out here or people living
here will be appointed to make the
investigation. How far it will he
necessary tn investigate, how deep 70
90 into the details, IL another question
which il somewhat in doubt. Mr.
Clark thinks that II will not be suffi-
ciept to show that more than three
republican votes were cast at the pre-
cinct, while only three were recorded.
In biz opinion in order 10 make good
the claims Of the republicans II will he
necessary to show that enough repub-
lican votes were east to elect all the
republican members Of the lower
house whose seats are subject of con .
troversy. In other words the mere
evidence If fraud will not be sufficient
unless such fraud IL great enough to
have changed the result. Whether
the peculiar methods INDUCED IN by
the judge Of election In pasting paper
over windows. barring the door and
otherwise excluding the p bli", will
count for anything is something that
none Of the contestants seem TO know.
How long the investigation will take
Is another undetermined question.
Maj. Maginnis says the thing will be
commenced rs coon rs the contestants
can get to Washington, and guessing
at results will not facilitate matters I'm
the least. As to the relative vslue of
the two kinds Of credentials which the
contestants will have, 1t seems to be
what in the vernaculsr of Montana IL
called q "stand.off." Neoher will be
more than prims facie evidence, and
even In the absence of any credentials
at all both sides could and will make
statements setting firth the situation
which will not be deni d by the other
side. Copies Of the journals Of the two
lower houses, and of the proceedings
Of the two joint sessions, and, In the
case Of the republicans, of the senate,
will all be used rs evidence to este blish
the claims Of the contestants. The
two democrats may find IL inconven-
lent to assert that they have been
elected by a joint session Of house and
senate. without being able to show
anything on the journal OF the senate
10 prove their assertions.
The committee on privileges and
elec, ions before which will come the
Investigation Is composed Of the fol-
lowing men: Hoar. chairman; Frye,
Teller, Evarts, Spooner, salisbury,
Vance, Pugh and Eustls. or thess
the first five are republicans and the
remainder democrats; "and we have
Mr.. Vance, said Col. Sanders yester
day. "on the strength Of aspeech hs
made recently In which he said thing'
it win now be bard to get away from.