The Tupelo journal., 1910-04-22
SENATE FAILS TO EXPEL HIM.
ONE VOTE SAVED HIM.
Bilbo's Counsel Offered Resolution Clear
ing Senator Percy of Any
Charge of Fraud.

senator Leroy fercy OF the charge unaI
his office was secured by fraud and cor
ruption, and announcing to the people of
Mississippi that each of the senatorial
candidates conducted his campaign in a
proper manner was unanimously adopted.
The vote to expel Bilbo was taken at
6:35 pm. T~wenty-eight members, con-
shutting within one of the required
majority of two-thirds of those present,
declared that their colleague should be
expelled from the body.
The vote taken on the Leftwich reso-
luton declaring that Bilbo should be
expelled because he is unworthy of be-
lief, was as follows:
Y~eas-Adams, Anderson, Baird, Banks,
Burrus, Cunningham, Darden, Dean,
East, Engle, Parish, Franklin of the
Twenty-fifth, Franklin of the Thirty.
first, Gibbs, Harrell, Hibbler, Leftwich,
Logan, Mahon, Mcdonald, Mcdowell,
McGehee, McLaurin, Mcmillan, Pierce,
Price, Thigpen and West. Total, %.
Nays-Bailey, Breland, Bush, Harper,
Hebron, Owen, Pollard, Potter, Rowan,
Sanders, Seawright, Simmons, Simpson,
Tucker and Vance. Total, Is.
Messrs. Anderson and Leftwich pre-
scented the following resolution:
Resolved, That Theo. G. Bilbo claims
to have played the role of decoy, bribe-
taker and informer by Encouragement
with prominent friends of ex-Gov. Var
daman, and claims in this role to have
secured complete evidence of bribery
weeks before the senatorial nomination,
but admits that he failed to disclose the
information he is alleged to have OBJ
tanned to ex-Gov. Vardaman, or to any
of the Vardaman leaders, until weeks
after the nomination had been made and
a senator had been elected. This con-
duct on his part is utterly unexplained.
Resolved, That in view of the unex-
planned inconsistencies and inherent i'm
probabilities in the testimony of Sena-
tor Theo. G. BiIbo, his established bad
character and lack of credibility, and his
failure to ~corroborate his statement on
any material point, by any of the repu-
table witnesses introduced by him, that
the senate of Mississippi does hereby
condemn his entire bribery charge and
his statement of the roles played by
himself as detective and decoy as a
trumped-up falsehood, utterly unworthy
of belief.
Resolved further, That as the result
of the conduct of Theodore G. Bilbo in
this matter and the testimony intro
duced in this investigation, the senate
of Mississippi %pronounces the said Bilbo
as unfit to sit with honest, upright men
in a respectable legislative body, and
he is hereby asked to resign"
Senator Vance offered as a substitute:
Whereas. it is the sense and opinion
of the senate that the action of Senator
Theo. G. Bilbo as adopted and used in
the senatorial contest during this ses-
sion was marked by conduct unbecom-
ing to a member of the senate, and cal
culated to bring reproach and lower the
standing of the membership of this body,
Therefore, be it
Resolved, That censure and repri-
mand be visited upon Senator Bilbo for
conduct in violation of good order and
morals of this body"
The substitute was voted down % to
IA, and the vote was then taken on the
original Anderson-Leftwich resolution
demanding Bilbo's resignation, which
was adopted by rs yeas to / nay, Bill
bo's supporters, with the exception OF
Senator Breland, declining to vote.
Senator Mcdonald, who had acted as
counsel for Bilbo throughout the inves-
tigation, then offered the following:
.sIn view of the scandalous rumors
which have been circulated touching the
recent senatorial contest, the senate OF
Mississippi takes pleasure in saying to
the people of Mississippi that we are
convinced that the conduct of every cam
didate in the senatorial contest was dig
nifed, honorable and upright, and that
no vote in the caucus nomination was
procured by any improper means or cor
rupt influence, and that the election OF
Senator Percy is free from any fraud or
corruption, and, regardless OF whether
we nave supported Senator Percy IN the
recent contest or will support him IN the
approaching primary, we record with
pleasure our confidence in his chivalrous
honor and personal and political integ-
rity, and our desire to hold up his hands
in the performance of the high duties,
as a representative of this great COM
monwealth in the senate of the United
States"
This resolution was unanimously
adopted, yeas 2s, nays Q, all OF the
Vardaman-Bilbo members being absent
from the chamber.