The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-14
POPULAR ELECTION BILL PASSES HOUSE Democrats Rush Through
 Their First Bill IN SOLID PHALANX First of Democratic Programme Measures Goes. Through and
 Direct Election Is Again
 Up to Senate

washington, April 1s.-The House or Representatives, by a vote of zso 10 io' passed early this evening the RucKer resolution proposing constitutlonai amendment for the direct election or Tinted states senators. This is the nrst of the democratic programme measures na ssod by the House. Backed by sond democratic phalanx it went through With ont modification and with a speed that brought protests from the republicans.
 The resolution as the House approved if is in the form of the Borah resolution renorted out of the Senate judiciary com mittee in the closing days Of the last Congress Republican opposition to the Rucber resolution in the House today was based on the fact that 1t did not con- tain the changes afterward made in the fight in the Senate, which assured to son gress control over elections in the states.
 After six hours of debate, in which many demands were made for tnis change. all but 15 of the republicans voted for the measure. The majority of them had stated during the debate that they would support the resolution anyway be- cause they were convinced the public wa,,tad sucb A constitutional amendment submitted quickly
 Those who opposed the resolution on the final vote were:
 epublicans-Cannon. Mann. Illin- ois; Danforth, Dwight. Malby, New York; Dodds, Fordney, McMorran. Michigan; Harris, Lawrence, Mccall, Wilder, Massachusetts; Hinds. Maine; sulolway. New Hampshire; Utter, Rhode Island.
 Democrats-McDermo Illinois.
 Former Speaker Cannon, Republican Leader Mann aud others of the repub . licans who voted against the measure, declared its form was such as to threat : en the government with the loss of the control over senatorial elections in the states given to safeguard the integ- rity of these elections. They insisted, as did other republicans who ultimate ly voted for the resolution, that the direct election amendment sh ould he offered without any language attached that might be dangerous to the future congressional supervision of senatorial elections.
 Democratic leaders declared the Fucker resolution was open to no such construc- ton and that it offered the most nearly perfect constitutional amendment that could be devised. An amendment of fered by Representative Young of Mich igan, adding language that resemble'l that of the Sutherland amendment, adopt ed in the Senate two months ago, was defeated by party vote of 121 to 190.
 Republican insurgents, led by Repre- sentatives Lenroot and Cooper of Wis or1 op n passage of the resolution. The House was overwhelmingly in favor of the meas- ure when Speaker Clark called for tn viva voce vote; but the insurgents de- manded roll call. in order to put the house on record on the subject. The democrats quickly seconded this demand. It was day of lively debate. Practi- cally every man who spoke favored the direct election amendment. The differ ences arose mainly over the form of the resolution and the constitutional argu- ment of whether the powers of the fed eral government were in any way threat ened.
 Representative Tribble of Georgia and ntfer new members figured in the de- bate.
 Representatives Norris of Nebraska and other leading republican insurgents de clared everybody favored the general idea but the democrats did wrong to couple 1t with language that might create doub in the minds of voters as to the powers actually surrendered by the government Chairman Fucker, with the approval o' his democratic colleagues, argued that the House defeat any amendments The Canadian reciprocity bill intro duced into tho House yesterday was reported to the House today by the new ways and means committed. The committee also passed favorably on tho free list tariff measure, but will not tcoNTINuED ON PAGE sl