The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-01-26


committee with a fOrty-minute speech.
/ He said that il matteTed little whether
he spoke long or briefly. The argu-
ment for the minority resolutions had
/ been made beyond the power Of any
I gentleman ia or out Of tie hOGsa 60
answer when the gentleman from
Maine. Mr. Littlefeld, concluded his
mastery effort on Tuesday Anything
he might say would be, in effect, a rep
etitiOn. The argument of the majority
that the method Of turning Mr.. Roberts
/ out mattered not, was the argument of
/ Judge Lynch The real question at is
/ sue was Of Importance through the cen
I turtles 1t was: Shall the constitution
/ be Observed?'
Entitled to Be Sworn.
Roberts was entitled to be sworn in.
Some gentlemen feared that if Roberts
! were declared entitled to be sworn in
he might HE himself off to Utah with
/ out taking the oath, and leave the
house pOWerleaS to eXpel him. n such
remote and improbable contingency,
! Mr.. De Almond said, there would be no
difficulty. If Mr.. Roberts declined to
{ be sworn in, he vacated his seat in
stauter.
Mr.. De Almond devoted much of his
/ time to a legal argument against the
proposition that the house could add TO
/ the constitutional qualifications of
/ members. He scored those who had
! unnecessarily abused MI Roberts. Mr..
| Roberts, ne said, had not a solitary
Z champion or defender on the floor, and
he would scOTn as beneath him and be
meath contempt an effort to evoke ap-
plause by denunci7tiOn.
Il oppose pOlygany; / scorn it, said
/ he. but 1 do not feel it necessary, in
/ order to show how good 1 am, how I
/ love motherhood and chastity, to lend
myself to cheap abuse which requires
/ neither ability nor courage"
This Utterance drew forth round of
/ applause. Mr.. Roberts, who sat within
/ twenty feet of Mr.. De Almond, his head
/ resting on his hand, did not move a
/ muscle
Mr.. Lanham of Texas closed the de-
/ bate in behalf of the majority TesOlu-
tiOns. His speech was listened to at
/ tentively, and frequently evoked ap-
/ DlaUse-
! Representative Lanham spoke in sup
/ port of the majority resolution. He
said that if there ever had been a ne
/ cessity for a rational assertion and vim
dicati0u of the supreme prerOSatlYe OF
/ the house. this occasion was now upon
ue He loved the constitution Of his
/ country. and the Institutions Of his gov
4 eminent. but neither the constitution
/ requires. nor do the people expect the
/ house 20 do anything ridiculous.
Speaks For Exclusion.
I'VE can never convince the Ameri-
can people" said he, that to admit
. Roberts and instantly expel him is a
/ logical and consistent procedure. The
motive that VIII prompt the vote either
/ to expeI or exclude viii be precisely the
Edme-and that is because he is d pO-
. lygamist, if a disqualification not men
toned in the constitution is imposed IN
. one case. it viii be equally super-aGded
in the other.
He maintained that the house pos
/ sessed the inherent power, aside from
/ its express and implied constitutional
/ warrant. 10 protect and uphold itself
/ in its dignity, integrity and reputation,
He cited Instances which = Ould war
rant the house in standing aside a per-
son bearing a certificate of election.
No Fear Of Precedent
suppose he said. there had been
an election for territorial delegate held
in our alleged antipOdaI possessions
/ the Philippine islands, and coming with
certificate Of election issued by the
president OF consul. whoever might be
authorized to sign the commission. the
sultan of JolO. fresh from his seraglio
should appear and demand TO have the
oath administered TO him as a delegate
to this congress, if the facts which have
been alleged against him We're ascer-
tanned 60 be true, should he not be ex-
cluded2 Under the theory Of the mi
I u0rity OF the committee we mi ght say:
/ win ycur royal highness be sWOrn2
and then kick him out Instantly Under
the theory Of the majority we would
say to him at the thresholds 'AvaUnt
and quit our sight
Tie said there was no danger Of the
Roberts case ever being invoked as a
precedent-that il was unique and sol
itary in it's originality. and the case and
the precedent would expire with each