Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1900-02-15

MIR. EDITOR.-AS at the coming pr
mary election the Republicans of our
county will nominate our candidates
for the next Legislature; and as that
Legislature will have the election of a
United States Senator to represent our
great State in the L. 5. Senate, II be
comes very important that the voters
should clearly understand the nature OF
that high Office and the mode and man
ner of electing the Senator. This is the
more important at the present time as
there is a contrivance called caucus
introduced into the pending primary
that may mislead honest Republican
voters unless exposed.
We propose in this briefly to show
that by both the Constitution OF the
United States and the State of Penn
sylyania the election of United States
Senators is a legislative duty and can or
should be agreed upon only in the open
Legislatures of the States. Both IN
struments direct their selection by the
said Legislatures.
The Constitution of the United States
saws: Art. 1, Sec. 3. They UNITED
States Senatorsl shall be two from each
State, and shall be chosen by the Legls-
lature of each State, and that the
manner of choosing them shall be pre-
scribed by the Legislature OF each
State.
This State, in obedience to the above
command, has prescribed the manner
of selecting the Senators. The present
law of Pennsylvania says, (see L. q l..
Digest. page 1928 as follows: 'On
the 3rd Tuesday of January after the
meeting of the Legislature each house
shall openly, by viva voce vote, name
a person for United States Senator, ana
on the following day both houses snail
convene in joint assembly and vote ana
if any one person shall then receive
majority of the votes of all the mem,
bers he shall be declared Senator, and
in case no person received majority
on the first day the joint assembly shall
meet each succeeding day and vote un-
til a Senator shall be elected.
Notice the language-'each house :
and name person. Openly, IN
the assembly. Nothing there about the
modern innovation of caucus. All
should be done openly" Was that
That was done on the night previous to
even the meeting of the Legislature?
Does not the member who enters a
caucus previous TO the assembling OF
the houses, and thus binds himself as TO
who he will vote for, in fact violate not
only the spirit but the word OF the law?
And this is saying nothing about the
violation he may be also making OF the
will and wishes of his people as to his
vote. They may have instructed MIN
to support another person for Senator.
But if he goes into caucus upon this
subject he ignores his people, blnds
himself in honor to vote for some other
than their choice, and thus their can,
didate is never even NAMED" or heard
of in either of the open" houses of the
Legislature.
Having thus. as we hope, shown that
the task of electing a United States
Senator is a Legislative duty, and there
fore cannot and ought not to be done,
in any manner, or to any extent or part.
in any other than the open sessions OF
the Legislature, we conclude with
few words about this so called caucus
system that really sets aside, II not
violates all this plain duty.
Websters Dictionary defines the word
caucus as follows.
'Caucus-Etomology uncertain-one
author, Trumbull, finds the origin of
the word in the North American Indian
word cawcawwassough, or can cau-asu,
meaning 'one who urges or pushes
promoter.
This supposed Indian origin of the
word is significant from the fact that
Al &c h. Ind
similar to the ways of the caucus. Both
are intended to obtain some unfair adj
vantage. No one at Harrisburg ever
proposes a caucus when he knows he has
a fair majority of members with him
for his favorite 1t is only when he
fears he has not a majority with him.
And so the unsuspecting member is met
on his arrival, and on the night pre-
vious to the meeting of the houses, ana
induced to go into caucus to determine
a duty he should perform only IN the
open assembly He thus binds himself,
hand and foot, and the choice OF his
people for Senator is as we say never
heard of after that.
But some one may say, the two
houses may never agree upon man Tor
the Senate. In answer, all the past
but the duty performed in the good old
way. in open Legislature from the start,
that an agreement was reached much
earlier, and easier, that when a caucus
had been forced npon the members. The
only United States Senator ever Butler
county had was Walter Lowrie, who
had but four votes on first ballot when
members began voting for him. But
they voted from day to day and his vote
increased from day to day until finally
he was elected So it would be always
if the unfair caucus is not introduced.
The right man will in the end turn up,
and this high Office will not be sold,
bargained for. or obtained in any other
way than provided for by the Constitu-
tion and the law, towit. ''openly, IN
the Legislature.
A REPUBLICAN.