The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-05-14

to ''mend or end'' it, and Of recent years
has found expression in proposed
amendments to the constitution such as
that one which the house has again
passed, RENTING the choice of senators
to popular vote.
Going no farther back than $780, we
Mr.. Reagan, of Texas, the one a Re-
publican and the other a Democrat,
proposing such amendments in the SEN
ate; that of Senator Mitchell having
been offered In the house the preceding
year by Mr.. Williams. of Illinois. In
1890 Mr. Henderson, of North Caro-
lima, offered one in the house having
the same end in view. In the second
session of the Fifty-first congress the
senate committee reported Senator
Mitchells bill favorably, and 1T was de-
bated, but not acted on. The rising
of public sentiment was reflected in
the house, where, in this session, no
less than twenty constitutional amend
ments were introduced providing for
the election of senators by direct vote
Of the people. Mr.. Bryan's left it to
the option Of the states; Mr.. Mil
population, one for each one million in
habitants. Nothing came of these eff
forts in that congress.
In January, 1893, Mr.. Tucker, Of Vir-
ginia, reported to the house from the
elections committee a joint resolution
proposing an amendment providing for
the election Of senators "at large by
the people of the several states and
for the filling Of vacancies temporarily
by the governor. pending an election
to be ordered. After fifteen minutes
debate, under suspension of the rules,
this important measure passed the
house without division. two-thirds
voting for it, 1t went to the senate and
was buried in the committee on cleo
tons. This has been the fate of all
efforts to bring the senators nearer and
make them feel more directly respon-
sible to the voters; to make the gov
eminent more truly acknowledgement
lican; and there is no reasonable
ground for expecting that any other
fate awaits the measure just passed by
the house. The habitual attitude of
the senate to the people is that Of the
French minister who, told that the
people demanded something, replied:
THE people! 1t is a great beast"
One of the results Of the Civil war
was the demonstration of the made
quacy of stone, brick and mortar for
defense against artillery, and the rever-
sion to earthworks as in every way Su-
pcrior. The walls Of Sumter crumpled
under the fire Of the batteries, and
Sampson knocks the stone forts about
the ears Of Gov. Gen. Macias in short
order. The stone wall becomes an ad
ditional implement of destruction when
the modern projectile strikes and shat
tiers it and sends the fragments flying
among the defenders. A bank Of earth,
on the contrary, receives and buries the
projectile, or, if it is a shell and bursts
in the bank, the cavity is quickly filled
with sand bags. The veterans of our
war became expert in throwing up eff
fective shields in short order. The
tin plate was found to be a most eff
ficient implement. and, when line in
the open was to be held, the, men
would, in a few moments, scrape up
a wall of dirt. -5enind which they could
he and load and fire. Should the out
come of the imminent crash of the
battleships now demonstrate, as is pos
sible, that armor is quite as dangerous
to those behind it as are the massive
stone walls of the Spanish forts to their
defenders, it is possible that there will
be a return to the old wooden hulls,
lust as there was a return to the prim-
tive earthwork.