The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-04-24

| despoile1 by executive assumption; that
the Senate should not be kept full by revo-
| 1utionary means and unlawful procedure
and that the temporary expedient should
| not survive the emergency for which il
! was provided.
PenrOse Speaks for Quay.
Mr.. Penrose. the next speaker. submitted
| long argument in support OF Mr.. Quay s
| claim to a seat. beginning with review
c, the constitutional arguments that have
heretofore been presented. He maintained
that the progress of Interpretation of the
appointment clause" of the Constitution
had been continually in the direction OF
the ground he had taken as to the validity
of executive appointments. Taking up this
clause he discussed it in detail word by
word, after which he treated every other
clause or sentence in the Constitution hav-
ing the least bearing on the subject in a
similar manner. Summing up the mean
ings thus derived he said:
The Constitution OF the United States
clearly intended to create a Senate, and
to have Senate implies that the member
ship OF that Senate shall be represented in
full, in every principle of justice to the
people and protection to the smaller
States. To provide for the creation of that
Senate it was distinctly declared that the
Senator's should be chosen by the Legisla-
lures. and in order to meet every possible
emergency it was also provided that in
case of vacancies the Governor should ap-
point. Each authority is equal in its re-
spective sphere; one is neither inferior
nor superior to the other.
The object of the Constitution was that
the States should be represented, and for
that purpose, and in order to avoid every
of nj "a
tion, or perhaps an absence of representa-
tion, the Constitution created two methods
of constituting Senators, namely. by cleo
tion for full term or the remainder of a
term and by temporary appointment. The
former was vested in the Legislature OF
the State and the latter in the Governor
The powers of each are separately and dis
tinctly given; they are independent powers
THE Governor has nothing to do with
elections; the Legislature has nothing to
do with temporary appointment The Leg
islature is to elect and the Governor is
to fill temporarily vacancies, however oc-
curing, and by these two means the self
evident purpose of the Constitution in ere
ating the Senate is to be accomplished
that the Senate should be kept filed. Any
other Interpretation is not TO carry out,
but to defeat the constitutional intent
The Question of Prccedents.
On the question of precedents. to which
so much reference had been made, Mr..
Penrose said that many of them had been
admittedly decided. upon party lines and
must be considered as partisan decisions.
He maintained that there was no reason
why the decisions reached in the Corbett
and the Mantle cases should cause Sen
ators to bind their votes in the pending
case by tie doctrine of stare decisis or by
any principle of consistency.
In conclusion Mr.. Penrose said:
The proposition that the Constitution
provides for the election of Senators for a
term or for the remainder Of a term and
for the temporary appointment of Senators
in case of vacancies until the Legislature
meets and elects is simple and direct. On
the other hand. any proposition which in
wolves any limitations arbitrarily set up,
based upon refinement and 7tectInicality,
upon the right of the executive to appoint.
involves the question in confusion and OBJ
scurity. More than this, It has been the
why so many of these cases
are valueless as precedents. because they
have been open to the charge of having
been decided upon partisan or factional
lines.
THE moment we attempt to define and
to restrict and to limit the executive pow
er Of temporary appointment to fill vacan-
cies we open the door for discrimination
and distinction in each particular case
These cases of executive appointment will
never be settled in this Senate until they
are settled upon the plain. common sense
of recognizing the right of the
State to be represented. the paramount
purpose of the Constitution to keep the
Senate full, and the power OF the Legisla-
ture and the Governor. in their respective
spheres, to contribute to that end. Until !
that is done these cases will always be in
VOWED in partisan and personal considera- !
tions. sHl G4 --a5Il ~4". -n-
They will be acted upon from very
much the same party and personal mo-
tives as exist in the decision of a contest !
ed election case in the House OF Repre-
sentatives, or formerly in the English Par !
lament, before the abuses became so great !
that the high prerogative of judging OF |
the qualifications Of its own members was |
taken away from Parliament and referred |
to the courts. That the plain and simple !
now contended for will be the |
ultimate decision and practice CT this Sen
ate / have no doubt whatever"
At the conclusion of Mr.. Penrose's speech |
The Senate adjourned until II o'clock this
the vote on the Quay case being |
fixed for O'Clock this afternoon.