Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1906-06-02
VOTE TO DUST
SMOOT FROM SENATE
Vote of Committee Stood Seven
to Five.
is NOT ENTITLED TO HIS SEAT
The Senate Committee on Privileges
and Elections Voted Unanimously to
Have Vote in the Senate at the
Present Session
Present Session.

Washington, June 1-That Reed
Smoot is not entitled to his seat in the
United States senate as senator from
Utah, was the decision of the senate
committee on privileges and elections
declared Friday by a vote of to 5.
The deci~4On a.; on Senator Dubois
resolution offered at the meeting of
two weeks ago, which was carried by
Senators Burrows, Dolliver, Petus,
OVerman, Bailey and Dubois, and Fra
zler voting in the affirmative and Sen
ators Foraker, Dillingham;, Hopkins,
BeVeridge and Knox in the negative.
The vote of Senator Depew was not
cast. Votes were had on the consti
tutlonal questions of expulsion and
exclusion, after which the members
OF the committee expressed themselves
in favor of a vote in the senate at
the present session of congress. The
resolution on the subject of exclusion
was offered by Senator Foraker, as a
test CT tne question whether Senator
SmoOt should be ousted from his seat
Dy majority vote of the senate. or
whether by a tWo-thirds vote of the
senate he shall be expelled from his
seat. The resolution declared that it
is the sense of the committee that
Senator Smoot's seat shall be declared
vacant If carried, this will be equiv
alent to recommendation that he be
excluded by majority vote. 1t was
lost by vote of 7 to 5, the affirma-
tive votes being Senators Burrows.
DolllVer, Pettus, Dubois and Frazier,
and the negatives being Senators For
aker, Dillingham;, Hopkins, Beveridge.
Knox, Bailey and Overman.
Senator Bailey then offered resolu.
tlon declaring the sense of the commit
tee to be that Senator Smoot should
be expelled from his seat, which would
be a recommendation that the senate
take the course required a two-thirds
vote OF the senate to unseat him. The
result was a tie vote, Senators Bur
rows, Pettus Dubois, Bailey, Oyerman
and Frazier in the affirmative. and
Senators Foraker, Dolliver, Beveridge.
Dillingham;, Hopkins and Knox in the
negative.
The debate during the deliberation
was INDUCED in by nearly every sen.
ator. That devoted to the constitu-
tional question of expulsion or exclu-
sion was the most heated. Senators
Bailey and Overman, who argued in
favor OF the resolution, declaring that
the Utah senator is not entitled to
his seat, were of the opinion that af-
ter the oath has been administered to
senator, the only possible procedure
against him is to eXpel him from his
seat and that there could be no aues-
tion as to this procedure requiring a
two-thirds vote of the senate. The
senator's voting in favor of the meth.
cd requiring only a majoriy to unseat.
argued that the offense, if any had
been committed, existed at the time
the oath of office was taken and that
the protests are not in relation to any
offense of origin since the oath was
taken.
During the last week petitions have
been sent to senators from nearly
every state and territory protesting
against Senator Smoot being retained
as member of the senate. The
signers were women and were from
nearly every state in the union.
The effect of the resolution adopt
ed will be to place squarely before the
senate the question whether Senator
Smoot be excluded and under the
form of the resolution proceed to un-
cpat him hv that poatbod