The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-16


AS members of Congress. senators as well
as representatives, are officers of the United
States, their qualifications, duties and priv
ileges being prescribed by the national Con-
stitution and their salaries paid by the ma
tional government, Congress may control the
manner of their election. The Constitution
says: THE times, places and manner Of
holding elections for senators and represent
atives shall be prescribed in each State by
the Legislature thereof; but the Congress
may at any time by law, make or alter
such regulations, except as to the places
of choosing senator's" 1t further provides
that the senators from each State shall be
chosen by the Legislature thereof, and it
follows that they must be chosen at the
capital where the Legislature meets This
simple provision regarding senators was
not reached without great deal of dis
cussion on many propositions, The franz
ers of the Constitution were agreed that
the Congress should consist of two branches
an upper and lower house-one distinctly
representative of the people and the other
in some way representative of the States
but they had much difficulty in agreeing on
a basis of representation and the mode of
electing senators. The first rough draft
of Constitution, proposed by a Virginia
delegate, provided that the members of the
upper branch of the national Legislature
ought to be elected by those of the lower
branch out of a proper number of persons
nominated by the individual legislatures. ;"
Other plans proposed by different members
provided for the election of senator's by
the lower house, and the proposition was
very fully discussed. Other propositions
were that they should be appointed by the
President, tout of a proper number of per-
sons to be nominated by the individual
legislatures that they should be elected
by senatorial districts. but they should be
elected by electors chosen for the purpose
and serve during good behavior: that they
should be apportioned among the States ac-
cording to Importance; that they should be
apportioned according to wealth, and so on
1t was only after prolonged discussion of
these various propositions, and many others
relating to senators, that the provision as
1t now stands in the Constitution was
adopted. Even then many members of the
convention yielded their prejudices and as
scented to it without believing that it was
the wisest or best. Whether it was or not,
the good sense of the American people and
their aptitude for self-government have
caused it to operate on the whole very sat
isfactorily.
The present law regulating the election of
senators was passed in 1866 Previous to
that there was no uniformity among the
States as to the time or manner of elect
ing senator's except that they must be
chosen by the Legislature and at the cap
itaL No time was fixed for the election,
and the voluntary action of both houses was
necessary to a joint convention. The
whole matter was subject to political
caprice. The result was that in a closely
divided Legislature one party or the other.
by factious opposition. refusing to go into
joint convention, breaking a quorum, refus-
ing to vote, etc, might and sometimes did
prevent the election of senator indefinite
ly These factious proceedings resulted in
many contested election cases. A notable
case of this kind occurred in this State in
1859. when Henry S. Lane and William NJ.
McCarty claimed to be the legally-elected
senator's in place of Graham N. Fitch and
Jesse d. Bright, who had been elected in
1857 for the terms ending. respectively,
March g. 1861, and March g. 1863 That was
one of the great political fights of the day.
and doubtless contributed with other SIM
liar cases. to the enactment Of law reg
ulating the mode OF electing senator's. The