The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-02-26

Some queer opinions nave been ex- pressed by those who favored the ex- pulsion of Senator Shoot. For exam pie, The Richmond es-Dispatch closes a lengthy editorial this way. But whether strictly authorized by the letter of the Constitution or not, there is little doubt that the Senate could have expelled MT. Shoot If it had wanted to. and that the excluded Senator could have taken no appeal. The fact that q majority of the Sena- tors voted to retain him was not due to uncertainty about its constitutional right, but simply to the fact that they deemed him properly quallhed 10 De United States Senator.
 Our valued contemporary reasoning is somewhat mixed, but we agree with its assertion that the Senate could have expelled Shoot if 1t had wanted to do so It can expel any member of the body on any pretext, if two thirds of the Senators are willing to vote that way, and so far as we are informed the expelled member would have no re- course. The Constitution of the Uni ted States declares that each House shall be the judge Of the election. re- turns and qualifications of its mem- bers" In the same section it is pro vided that each house may, with the concurrence of two-thirds, eXpel member.
 That is all plain and no one can mis- understand 1t. The Senate is made the | judge of the qualifications of it's mem- ! hcrs. If Shoot Is a practical polyga- i mist he Is disqualified to hold his seat 1 Tho Senate by It's action holds that he { fig not a violator of the law and hence he Is qualincd to be q Senator There . was plainly no uncertainty about his constitutional rights; or, to put 1t neg atively there was no evidence to show that h. was not qualified under the ] Constitution to hold his position as Senator from Utah If two thirds of the Senators had believed him constl- tutionally disqualifed they would have etected him. and that's all there is to it. We believe the Senators are bet ter judges of what Is constitutional
 than the newspapers are.
 r. Then The York (Pa.) Dispatch goes
 atit in thIs way.
 Few senators have under a charge
 stood I'D holder than Shoot in their
 own defense. Few have been more Ve- lcment.- more confident. more defiant of
 tho uttcrances of enemies. Would 1t
 not be more becoming in man. a Nor
 u.aV who is under a cloud of criticism ! from all plrts of the country, to have
 played the humber part
 , Tn plain words, Tho Dispatch evi- dently thinks 1t would have been better ,1,,
 ard and. like a whipped eur. hang his
 head while all manner of abuse and
 calumnr was poured out on him by his
 oucmics' WclL that Is not the true American spirit We are happy 10 say Mr Smoot had been under fire for years Many of those who were SD bitter
 against him Were so through ignorance
 and many others war" probably no bet
 ter Tn practice than they tried to mak, him ont, Whfl" lt is Juuht-ss true thA many good people really believed hin
 a vIolator of the laws Of God and mal
 and looked on his position in the Sen ate as great wrong Iii spite of al @ this, however. there W4s no evidence n that Mir Snoot is not living strictly u : to the laws of the country as flithfulI
 as any of his colleagues
 Tnder all inc clrcums'aI.es It woul,
 nuve hoen cowardly for him to hay
 .outinuel 10 remain G"i'f 4uder th tatuts and iocreatto"- that wore heap
 cd upon him ha' tr fine $ rotc an
 outside lt. Wh,u iue proper tim - came he defended himself as any self .. rospcctinz American would and sh"n) - do. And tp sum Hr. w" in
 sisl that there was no legal constltu