St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-03-29
Election of U. S. Senators.

E1CGGAOA u Os % OCudSOESs
Considerable comment has been
made in the Vermont papers regard
ing the action of the two senators
from Vermont in voting against the
proposition to amend the federal
constitution and allow the election
of United States senators by popular
vote. 1t has been generally claimed
that the senators did not reflect the
sentiment of the voters of the state.
Probably that is true. This however
does not prove that Senators Dilling-
ham and Page were false to their
trust. AS the representatives of the
whole nation it was their duty to
vote for what they believed to be best
for the nation and not as popular
sentiment at home might happen to
temporarily desire. While the pop
ular mind undoubtedly is in favor of
such a change we still maintain that
the change should not be made.
Defects of Present System.-The
evils which the people desire correct
ed are: The avoidance of long dead
locks in the election of United States
senators by the state legislatures,
prevention of the possibility of sena
legislators, the election of body of
men less responsive to the alleged
influence of "the interests" and a
body more responsive to the popular
will. With the possibility of the last,
and this one to at least a reasonable
degree, all these results are desir-
able Acknowledgment of this leaves
only the method of attaining these
results in dispute.
Constitutional Change Unneces-
sary-No constitutional change is
necessary to avoid the long deadlocks
in the election of senators. The
statutes might be changed to provide
that in case of deadlock a plurality
should elect after certain number
of ballots. This would take care of
dead-locks. 1t would not be more like
ly to lead to plurality elections than
a popular vote because in close states
with more than two candidates it
would be as difficult to secure ma
jority vote as in state legislatures. In
fact unless more than one ballot is
provided for plurality choices would
become the rule of the popular vote
in place of majority vote under
the present system. So deadlocks
can be stopped just as effectively
and safely without the constitution
al change as with it.
People Have The Power Now
The charge is made that some mem
bers are to be found in legislature
whose vote can be purchased or in
fuenced so elections can be secured
by fraudulent means. This will not
be denied but these men are elected
by their townsmen and neighbors,
the people most familiar with their
weaknesses and who should be the
quickest to refuse them places of
public trust and honor. Because
they fail to elect honest men to rep
resent them in the legislature they
ask that the legislators right to vote
for them be taken away and they be
given the right to vote direct for
men with whom they are less &C
quainted, and from whom they are
farther removed. If they cannot elect
honorable men to the state legisla-
ture the body that is to makethe laws
under which they must live, there is
no assurance they are more capable
of electing honorable men to the
United States senate. Unless the
people are enough interested to
make the best possible choice of
members to the state legislature
they have no right to deprive a leg
islature of part of it's work or at
tempt to perform such work them
selves. If the people would assert
themselves at the polls more forciDly
against dishonest and incompetent
men we would get body of men
in our legislatures that could not be
bought or unduly Influenced by sena-
torial candidates.
Would Destroy a Safeguard-To
elect United States senators by popu-
lar vote would make them as suscept-
ible to popular will and movements
as the members of the house are. 1t
would simply make the senate a
second house. It's only effect on
legislation would be to pass again