The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-11-07
A CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION.

II appears that we are on the verge
of having National constitutional
convention. Mr.. Henry LhichGcld West
has been looking up tho matter and
publishing the results in The Forum
Of October and November. The con
stitution may be amended on the APP
plication of the legislatures Of two
thirds Of the States, On such an ap'
plication it is made the duty of Con
gress to call convention for propos
ing amendments. Amendments whom
proposed by the convention and ratified
by tho legislatures Of thrcc-fourths Of
the States, or by conventions in three.
fourtbs thereof, Will become parts of
the constitution.
The States have taken up the question
of clecting senators by popular vote
in place Of by the legislatures, as now
provided. Thirty.onc States have ratl-
fed the application TO Congress to call
convention 20 propose this amend
mcnt. viz: Alabama, Arkansas, Cali
fornia, Colorado. Illinois, Indiana,
Idaho. Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky. Louis
lana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,
Montana. Nebraska. Nevada, Now Jcr-
sey. North Carolina, North Dakota,
Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania.
South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas. Utah,
Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
There are fortv.six States. Probably
it would be held that the application
of thirtv-two States is necessary IN or
der to require Congress, according to
the constitutional provision, 10 call
convention TO propose amendments. ~
that wcrcs sheld to be the case. the ap-
plcation of one moro State would be
necessary. II will bc easy 10 get That
state, because Florida, Mississippi. or
South Carolina. where the United States
Senators arc now practically chosen by
popular vote, would uuquestionably
agree in applying 70 Congress to have
thc national convention called to act
on this question.
There arc some questions involved.
however. in this matter, one Of them
being the length of time within which
an application might be presumed TO
be valid Some Of the States made this
application n good many years ago. The
question might come up also as 10 the
power Of succeeding legislatures TO
withdraw that application when made
by legislature that had gone before.
In the case of Wyoming il is under.
stood there was an informality which
will require correction, but there Will
probably be no difficulty about having
shat application made in due form. SO
far. no State has Withdrawn its appli-
cation. but there is still time for some
of them 10 do so, and such withdrawal
is possible,
However. granting that all Of the APP
plicatrous should stand as made, there
lis still some uncertainty about the con.
vcntion. The 'constitution being silent
as 10 tho composition of such 4 con
vcntion and the representation that
would compose it, large question
would here be opened, That is whether
the representation in such convention
should be by States only, each State
being allowed the same number Of dele
gates in this convention that il has in
the Senate. or whether the convention
should be made mp OF delegates proper
toned according TO population, or by a
mixture Of the two methods, Possibly
representation that would give TO
each State one delegate for every Sen
ator or Representative would be salts
factory. Congress VIII probably be re
Guircd TO settle this aud many other
points in connection with the conven.
ton.
Perhaps the most important question
of all. however. is whether, in case n
convention is called and meets, its ac-
tion could be confined TO the one point
upon which the States had made their
application. We believe the rule of the
constitutional convention is that there
is no limit to its activities or jurisdic-
tion once II is is assembled and organ
ized: and in case Of The calling of the
convention n great manc other subjects
than that OF the election of United
States Senators by the people would
lundoubtcdly bc proposed. Among these
NAV be assumed the income tax, about
which a proposition is now pending. An
other would be giving Congress more
power over corporations, and the power
10 require corporations doing business
in more than one State TO take out ma
tional articles Of incorporation. An
other would be 10 clearly define the
/ Jurisdiction of Congress over inter
state commerce Another, Congrcs-
sjonal control over trusts and combines.
Another. giving Congress jurisdiction
over marriage and divorce. And an
other highly important one, releasing
the country from the doctrine of IRE
vocablc charters as declared in the
Dartmouth college case There would
evidently be ample material for such
q convention TO busy itself with. and
business, too, OF the highest possible
importance.
1t is surprising indeed to see how the
constitution has been made TO meet the