The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1907-02-19

in the house of representatives Feb.
8, the house as committee of the whole
having under consideration H. B. No.
2, providing for the election of United
States senators by the people:
Mr.. Chairman: have read over
House Bill No. 2, introduced by my
democratic friend, Mr.. Casey of Walsh
county, and while there are many OBJ
jections in the details of the bill, yet
| find one that predominates over all
others; you will find it in lines ~, 10,
and IA, on page of the bill, which
requires candidate for the legislat-
ure to first sign pledge, to-wit: 81
will always vote for that candidate
for United States senator in congress
who has received the highest number
of the peoples votes" etc.
Now, Mr.. Speaker, am a republic
can and have belonged to that party
for more than forty years. 1 have
been elected member of the North
Dakota legislature for three success
sive terms, and if this bill should be-
come a law, requiring candidate to
pledge that he would vote for the
man who had received the highest
number of votes for United States SEN
ator, certainly would never be
candidate again; and 1 cannot imagine
how any other conscientious repub-
lican could sign such a pledge, which
might result in requiring him to vote
In the legislature for a democrat for
United States senator. l therefore offer
the amendment that 1 now send to
the clerks desk, and ask to be read;
which amendment strikes out the two
words, to-wit: peoples vote," in line
IA, page 3, of the printed bill, and in
sert in lieu thereof votes of my
party" so as to make the sentence
read that the candidate pledges him
self to vote for the man "who has
received the highest number of the
votes of my party"
Mr.. Speaker, am glad to see that
our able, fair and worthy speaker, the
gentleman from Cass county, Mr..
Twitchell, has seconded my motion to
amend said bill, indicating his inten-
ton to adhere to the republican party.
OF course, every member must know
and realize that, in all parties, we
have differences of opinion, based
more or less upon desire for office, or
in our preferences for candidates;
and sometimes there occurs "craze"
In all parties, and especially some
thing like the one we had last fall in
this state, when large faction of the
republican party bolted the regular
ticket and supported two democrats
nominated upon the democratic ticket,
resulting in filling two of the highest
offices In the state, to-wit, governor
and supreme court judge with demo-
Gratis; consequently, If you pass this
bill as it now reads, without my
amendment, and either Governor
Burke or Judge Fisk should be the
democratic candidate before the pri-
maries for United States senator. and
receive the solid democratic vote,
without even the so-called insurgent
element cooperating with them; and
the republican party, which has two
thirds of the votes of the state to their
credit, should be divided between some
five candidates whom l have in mind
at present. to-wit, Hansbrough, Hanna,
Little, Marshall, Johnson and perhaps
several others, why, you can readily
see that the republican vote would be
divided up between these aspirants
and the democratic vote concentrated
upon their one single candidate, thus
leaving him, in all probability, more
votes than any one of the republican
candidates.
Now imagine that the election to
be held about two years from now re-
suits in electing legislature with a
large republican majority, all of whom
have signed pledge to vote for the
candidate for the United States sena-
tor who had received the largest num-
Der of votes, which of course, would
result in republican legislature per-
haps three-quarters of the general as
sembly would be republican, electing
democrat to the United States sem
ate. Now, Mr.. Speaker, this takes
me back to few years ago when an
element, gang or combination, or per-
haps had better term it faction of
the republican party-no, l shouldn't
say party, but faction of republican
members of the Generally Assembly of
North Dakota who voted democrat
(Mr. Roach, electing him to the
United States senate. But few of the
members now present realize the con-
sequence of that treachery to the re-
publican party, and therefore will
take the liberty to call their attention
to it now. That one democratic vote
in the United States senate was the
balance of power between the two
great contending parties in the senate.
remember distinctly the status or
division of the two great parties in
the United States senate at that time.
After the North Dakota democrat had
taken his place in the senate, the
parties were SO equally divided that
the two populistic" or middle of the
ACau oCAdloAo' ]ACA VI A>oOAdShea anu
Kyle of South Dakota had the absolute
control of the senate with Roach
lined up with the democrats. That
is to say, with Kyle and Allen voting
with the democrats, which they did,
gave that party control of the senate
But to the credit Of the brave demo-
Gratis, German of Maryland and Smith
of New Jersey, some modification or
compromise was made by which the
nation was not saddled with an abso-