The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-10-14
How tho Evening Post Would Treat
the Senate.

the senate.
In . leading article. the Epenin0 Post as
sorts that the Senate Of the United States
10 on trial before the American people. The
assertion. II 1t means anything, implies
that. should the Judgment OF the people be
everse, an adequate penalty will be i'm
posed. One Is naturally curious to hear
what penalty would be suggested. The
editor OF the Evening Post is too well in
formed to make the blunder Of proposing
that the Senate should be abolished, or that
its members should be redlstributed nc
cording to population. He knows and says
that neither Of these changcA could be made
by q constitutional amendment: to effect
either would require resort to revolution.
He declares. however. that recalcitrant
minority In the Senate can DO disciplined in
constitutional ways, and he advises that
the Federal Constitution should be amended
SO rs to provide that Senators should be
elected by the people for short terms
We seem to have heard q suggestion OF
the kind before. The flibustering which
has bcen lately witnessed in the Senate Is
no new thing; the same expedient was
employed to defeat the Force bill. and at
that time some Of our Republican contem-
poraries thought that Senators would re-
dect public sentiment more faithfully IL
they were elected by the people instead of
by Legislatures. and il their term OF Office
were cut down from six years to two or
three years. However. after the Force bill
had been buried. the talk about making the
Senate more amenable to popular pressure
died away. probably from recognition OF
the extremely intricate and difficult process
by which constitutional amendments arc
brought about. There is. to be sure. no
reason In the nature OF things why the
editor Of the Eue'lin0 Post should not under
take the task which the friends II the Force
bill gave up as one beyond their strength.
II he thinks he can persuade the requisite
number OF States to accept q constitutional
amendment making Senators elective by
the people for short terms, he has, as a citi-
ZEN OF the United States. q perfect right to
start movement in that direction. The
experiment. whether successful or not.
would be full OF interest for the onlookers.
Suppose. however. that the experiment
had been successfully made, and at this
moment the Senators held their seats for
two years instead OF six, and by virtue OF
m election at the hands OF the people OF
their respective States. How would such
changes stop the resort to Alibustering In
the Senate LIS not the Evening Post aware
that the most stalwart opponents Of the
repeal OF the SHERMAN act. the representa-
tives Of the silver and Populist States, re-
feet faithfully the views Of their constitu-
ents. and. II they had to seek a reelection
tomorrow, would be triumphantly returned
by the people Of their respective common
Wealths? 1t Is even probable that such an
appeal to the electors would result in GER
tain gains for tho opponents OF the VooR-
HEKs bill Oregon. for instance, would prob
ably return two anti-repealers instead OF
one. Thus fortified with fresh mandate
from their constituents. the so-called silver
Senators would show themselves even more
determined to maintain the coinage Of the
white metal than they are now. Therefore.
eSS instrument OF discipline devised by
the Evening Post. II applied under existing
circumstances. would simply lacerate the
hand that welded 1t. The enormous diff
culties involved In successfully working the
complicated machinery OF constitutional
emendatton would have been surmounted
for nothing. and all the time and labor ex-
pended would have been thrown away.
tisidle to talk OF disciptning Senators by |
constitutional amendment. There is Just |
one way to stop flibustering In the Senate. |
and that is for that body to adopt some |
form OF closure. For some fifteen years |
after the Constitution went into operation.
the Senate had rules which permitted the |
summary termination of debate and the |
compulsory submission OF question to a
vote 1t was not until the early years OF |
the present century that the existing GUS