The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-02-12

instancinz the agreement with refer
ence to the Plus fund. declared that
even that should have been presented
to the senate, notwithstanding the
general provision for submission to
The Hague tribunal.
Senate on It's. Dignity.
The discussion in the senate showed
a determination 10 stand firm in re-
gard to the prerogatives of the SEN
ate and TO insist that the word Urea
ty" should be substituted for agree
ment' in all the treaties, which is the
crucial point in the contention be-
tween the president and the senate
The discussion, which was character
lied by expressions of highest regard
for the president, was along the line
surrender it's part of the treaty-making
power.
Among the senator's who took this
position today, i'm addition to Mr..
Spooner. were Messrs. Foraker and
Lodge.
Duty to Be Performed.
The latter was especially firm in
supporting the committee amendment
and insisted that, with all due regard
ate TO determine its rights and to sup
port its pTerogatives. Senator Foraker
was no less emphatic in his declara ton
/ to the same effect.
Senator SpoOner insisted that the
senate should uphold its dignity as a
coordinate branch of the government
and that il could not accept the view of
any other branch of the government
{ in the matter of exercising its consti-
! tutional functions as part of the
treaty making power.
Excuses For Roosevelt.
Senator Lodge followed with an ar
gument that it was for the senate to
determine its amendments according to
the constitution and insist on all of
its prerOgatives. He spoke of his per-
sonal relations with the president, and
said that il was hard for him to take
a position so directly contrary to the
view of the president. He declared
that he was sure the president was not
trying Wilfully to uSurp the power of
the senate nor TO gather TO himself
any powers other than those which
constitutionally belonged to the ex-
ecutive. and that the differences were
| confined to phraseology in the trea-
I ties. The most honorable motives were
ascribed to the president by Senator
I Lodge, and senators who followed eX
/ pressed the highest regard for the
1 president.
Foraker Was Emphatic.
The presidents letter also was dis
/ cussed by Senator Foraker. who was
/ emphatic in his assertion that the sen
/ ate was in duty bound to maintain its
! position in this matter, if only to pre-
/ vent the establishment of a dangerous
! precedent. Several senators took ex-
/ ception to the tatements made by
! Senators Platt Comm and Fairbanks,
/ that the words treaty and agree
ment" a used in the original treaty
/ and the proposed amendment were
| synonymous and that there could be
! no reason for the adoption OF the
/ amendment.
| Senator Foraker was talking when
4 the hour arrived for the converting of
( the senate as court on the Swayne
/ trial.
The letter of President Roosevelt fol-
! lows:
The Presidents Letter.
The White House. Washington. d.
! g. Feb. 10, 1905-My Dear Senator Cul-
! lom: L learn that the senate commit
/ tee on foreign relations has reporte ed
/ the arbitration treaties 10 the senate
amending them by substituting for the
/ word agreement in the second article,
/ the word treaty. The effect of the
/ amendment is TO make it no longer pos
| sible, as between its contracting par
! ties, TO submit any matter whatever
/ to arbitration without first obtaining
\ a special treaty to cover the case. This
/ viii represent, not d step forward. but
] a step backward. If the word agree
ment were retained. il would be pos
/ sible for the department of state to do
as. TOR instance, 1t has already done
under The Hague treaty i'm The Plus
fund arbitration case with Mexico. and
1 submit to arbitration such subordinate
matters as BIZ treaty the senate had