Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1906-08-09

ernmental policy to so select sem
ators; though his anti-convention
tactics disprove that construction OF
his words. His newspaper organs
and publicity bureaus didn't oppose
the plan on any ground of sound .
principle but instead abused Borah,
its advocate, and employed the
method of the demagogue, by split
ting hairs on the question as to
whether the dear people would
have a more potent voice in the Sc
lection through tn medium of the
convention or the legislature. ; in
sisted that their wishes would be
more apt to be considered by the
latter, and stopped to appeal to the
prejudices and passions of the mob
on this fake phase of the PROPOSE
ton.
: AS matter o. fact, few candi-
d ties for office would have the
nerve to oppose the nomination by
convention and the election of sem
ators by direct vote on the only
ground that il can be logically OPP
poscd-that which influenced the
fathers of the republic in fixing the
old and present plan for selecting
these representatives, to remove
them as far as possible from the in
fiucncc of ever changing popular
fads and fancics. In other words,
to protect them from the tcmpta-
ton to set their sails to catch the
variable popular breeze, with re-
election as the goal. For the same
purpose, their term of office was
made longer than that of even the
president; in fact, of any national
official. And both provisions were
founded on wisdom taught by the
experience of the ages.
But during recent years political
quacks have siezed upon this reme-
dy of curing all our national ills;
the dear people, foolishly thinking
that such system will give them
more power, are ciamoring for the
change, and the candidate for office
who makes an honest effort to head
off the stampede will be trampled
down by the unthinking herd. No
politician would dare to give public
utterance to these truths.
AS in all similar movements,
there is a cause for this demand
for a change in the method of
elccting United States senators.
The predatory corporations, here in
Idaho and throughout the west, the
railroads, have selected the senate
as their weapon with which to as
sault and rob the public, and have
filled it with their hirelings. In
case the constitution be so amend
ed that senators should be elected as
are congressman now, they would
turn their attention to buying state
conventions, instead of legislatures,
and would succeed quite as well.
The remedy for the evil, voters al
ready have; no amendment to the
organic law is necessary; Let them
elect competent, capable men to the
legislature, and .such representa-
tives would be more competent to
select good senatorial timber than
they are themselves. Even as 1t
is, with corporations bidding high
for senators who will betray the
people, can the direct vote advocates
dra " any consolation from COM
parison between the ability and
honesty of members of the upper
and lower houses of congress
So far as the plan of primary
nomination and direct election is
concerned, that is merely putting
the office up at auction to the high
est bidder, to the man who can
spend the most money in the way
of publicity to and promotion OF his
candidacy, as the recent disastrous
experience in Oregon demonstrates.