The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-01-24
TNOREP0RTSONQUAYC CASE.
MAJORITY OPPOSE SEATING THE
APPOINTED SENATOR.
Burrows Acts With the Democrats
in the, Matter-Other Republican
Members Of the Committee Up
hold Governors Right to Appoint.


hold Governor's Right to Appoint.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 22.--The reports
of the committee on privileges and cleo
tions in the case of M. s. Quay. who
claims a seat In the United States sem
ate on the strength of an appointment
from the governor of Pennsylvania, were
presented In the senate today. The ma
jority report opposing the seating OF Mr..
Quay was signed by Senators Caffery.
Pettus, Turley, Harris and Burrows. the
last named the only Republican signing
It. The minority report bears the sigma
lures of Senators Hoar. Chandler, Pritch-
ard and McComas. all Republicans, and
advocates giving the seat to Mr.. Quay.
The Majority Report.
The majority report first reviews the
circumstances under which Mr.. Quay's
appointment was made, including the fall
ure of the Pennsylvania legislature to
elect a senator. 1t then says:
After a vacancy in the Office Of United
Seates senator occurs or comes 70 pass
II the next legislature does not fill 1t. 1t
continues to exist. 1t Is the same va
cancy. not a new one. Now the state
executive Is given power to ma make tenn
cancy. not as long as IT continues or ex.
lists, but only until the next meeting of
me bs TSis cearn means tha
the paramount intent to have the legisla-
ture choose the senator is to prevail, and
the opportunity to fill the vacancy, either
before or after 1t occurs. the executive
has no power to appoint. And when we
resignation or otherwise during the re-
cess OF the legislature OF any state II we
concede that the general word otherwise
Is not qualified nor limited by the spe-
cific word resignation and that It In
cludes vacancies. which are caused by
affiux Of time and which can be foreseen;
by a casualty or the happenings OF an UNI
expected event, and which cannot be fore
seen STU It se p t @ ana f d
parts, and 1t thus results that the vacan-
Ss na take place. or begin during re
cess of the legislature, and this of itself
would be decisive against Mr.. Quay's
claim"
Construction Of Constitution.
Continuing, the report says:
"Thus construed, this clause Of the con-
stitution affords every facility for always
keeping the senate filled with senators
who are real representatives of their re-
spective states. senator who Is chosen
by the legislature of his state is likely
to be the choice of the majority of the
citizens Of his state. A senator who is
appointed by an executive is frequently
only the personal or political favorite Of
the executive.
1.-THE legislature as we construe the
clause, chooses the senator in the first
instance. If he declines to serve. or dies
after qualifying, he dies, resigns or is ex-
PEELED, the executive may make tempo
rary appointment until the legislature
state constitutions. the legislature. which
is authorized to fill the term at it's COM
mencement, cannot meet until after the
term commenced, the executive can also
make a temporary appointment
Every contingency is thus provided for
except the sole contingency that the legis-
lature will fail to perform it's sworn duty.
Against contingency of this kind the
trainers Of the constitution did not intend
Conclusions of the Majority.
After discussing at length the circum-
stances under which the constitution was
framed, the majority announces Its con-
clusion as follows:
stitution never contemplated nor intended
to provide for a case where a state, by it's
own. deliberate act. should deprive its
legislature of the power to fill an entire
term at it's beginning. In our opinion
they never intended to give the executive
Of state the power to i an entire term
a case where the legislature had chosen
and the person elected had refused to ac-
other words. we conclude that the power
of appointment was not to be exercised I'M
less the vacancy occurred in the recess of
the legislature and was occasioned by some
casualty like death or resignation"
Numerous Precedents Quoted.
The report then quoted numerous prece-
dents, showing that from the beginning Of
the government to the present time the
state executive to make a temporary APP
pointment where the vacancy happened or
occurred during a session of the legislature.
1t shows further that for seventy-five
years the senate has refused to recognize
the right of state executive to make n
temporary appointment, even where the
h mad or rrnd rrfVr a
recess of the legislature, II the legislature
either before after it occurred. and
prior to the date of the appointment. had
had an opportunity to fill it.
1.-The fundamental principle thus estab-
lished is that il the legislature. either be-
fore, OF, after the happening OF a vacancy,
has had an opportunity to fill 1t, then there
Is no power in the state executive to APP
point. The result Is fatal to the claims
of Mr.. Quay. No danger or evil has re-
suited to the government from the enforce
ment of this principle.
I'VE therefore submit that the senate,
for it's own honor and dignity, should stand
by its previous solemn and deliberate de-
ciSiOns."
The Minority Report.
The minority report takes the opposite
view Quoting section 8. article l.. of
the constitution, the minority say that
the failure of the governor to call the
legislature together to elect a senator
does not act to deprive the governor of
the power of appointment. Referring
to the constitutional provision the ques-
ton is asked: Does the language of the
constitution of the United States mean
Just what the constitution of the COM
monwealth of Pennsylvania says, in case
of vacancy in the office of United
States senator in q recess between ses-
sions, or does 1t mean that the vacancy
must be one which comes by chance, or
that it does not apply at all to the case
of vacancy at the beginning of a term
which does not come by chance, but Is
foreseen and inevitable?"
This question is answered as follows:
IF the words have the former mean
ing, then all distinctions between cases
where a legislature has been in session
and those where a legislature has not
been in session, between vacancies at the
beginning of a term and vacancies be-
ginning after the term itself has begun
and the office for that term only filed,
are without Importance. We think that
the former is the true meaning Of the
constitution. We think that 1t was the
intent of the constitution to provide as
fas as possible. that every state should
have two senators.