Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1908-11-20
Where Do 1hss Stand


sas City Star would be against the
election Of United States Senators
by a popular vote Of the people,
because first, il supported Taft,
whose convention defeated a plank
calling for such ela .tio-l However,
now that the election is over, Il
comedies that lie pank is a good
one, as will De sen by the following
editorial:
The platform Of the defeated party
declared for the election Of United
States Sen~tors by the direct vote
OF the people, and the platform Of
the victorious party was silent On thai
subject. LU this loes not mean
that the issue is elmer unattractiye
or dead. For It is an issue and the
Democratic party has taken the right
stand on II. And II Il were possible
to put this question TO a vote Of
the country 1t would carry by an
overwhelming majority. Also, Y the
United States Senate were not con-
WINGED that this it true it would not
have refused repeatedly to submit
to the people a constitutional amend
ment making this provision.
Defenders Of the constitutional plan
Of electing Senators like to 60 into
the history Of the Senate to forti-
fly that plan. And it must be said
that the history Of the Senate is
replete with inspiring examples of
the greatness of that body, its
services at critical times, its effec-
tiveness in acting as a check on
national impulse.
But there is nothing in the his
tory Of the Senate to denote that
as good men might not have been
chosen by a different process. And
In recent years the history Of the
Senate has strongly suggested that
better men might have been chosen b
the dirct vote OF the people than by
indirect choice through state Legis
latures. t
A favorite argument against direct
selection is that IL Legislatures
elected by the people are untrust-
worthy, then the people themselves ar
mtrustworthy, for the people elect
the Legislature by direct vote. This
is either an insincere or an illcon-
sidered argument. The higher the
office to which the people elect can
didates the better the discrimina-
ton of the voters. The country ha
never elected a bad man to the Pres
idency. Not a single President has
dishonOred his office.
In a general way the same thing
may be said Of Governors. The vot-
ers have not always chosen the best
men available, but they have usually
made intelligent selections between
candidates, and the parties have us
ually exercised consistent care in
making their nominations for this
office. Bad men have been elected to
the National House of Representatives
but not many of them-not nearly so
many, relatively, as have been electe
to the Senate by Legislatures domi-
mated by special interests.
In short, many voters of a legisla-
tive district often know nothing at
all about the candidates for the Leg
islature in that district, but they
would know and care a great deal
about candidate for the United
States Senate if they were called
upon to vote him by name. 1t Is the
ignorance or the indifference Of vot.
ers in electing Legislatures that
makes the subsequent election Of
United States Senators by the Legis-
htures hazardous. There would be n
such degree of ignorance or indiffer-
ence as to a candidate for the Unit.
ed States Senate.