The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-12

l Washington, June n.-(Special)- )-To-
 morrow the United States Senate will
 cast it's final vote on the constitutional
 amendment providing for the election Of United States senators by popular vote. In accordance with an agreement reached
 on May 20.
 Two resolutions providing for this change will come before that body, and from a poll of the members 1t is safe to assume that one or the other will undoubtedly pass
 The Bristow resolution. which provides simply that the constitution shall bA amended to permit the election of sen ators by direct vote of the people, in the manner in which members of the House are now elected. will he disposed of first IL similar measure that suffered de- feat in the closing days of the last Con gress, despite the fact that a majority of the senators were in favor of the prin- cple which 1t embodied. The enemies of the measure, however, succeeded in alien itating the support of the southern mem
 hers by pointing out that the resolutions
 would practically deprive the states of l their control over such elections, and l place this power in the hands cf the na-
 tional government. This caused the des' feat of the measure
 The other resolution. providing for this
 amendment. is fathered by Senator Bo-
 rah. and stipulates that the respective
 states shall have full control over the elections at which senators shall be chosen
 One or Other Will Pass
 It Is almost certainty that one or the other of these measures will get the necessary two-thirds vote to insure its passage. Many of the most bitter op- ponents of the measure failed of re-elec- ton, and their places have been filled for the greater part by men pledged to
 it's support.
 If this measure is passed tomorrow 1t will mark the end of fight that has been waged almost since the birth of the constitution.
 Over two thousand attempts have been made on the part of members of Con- gress for the individual states to bring about the desired reform. Many times
 has resolution providing for this change
 been passed by the House of Represent
 tatives. but it always struck a snag in the Senate.
 A brief history of this fight brings to light that MT. Wilson of Pennsylvania. 1 in 17S7, advocated this reform, but was
 voted down. Again, in 1926 resolution
 was introduced in Congress looking to- ward a change in the method of elect | ing senators and since that time the | subject has been discussed at almost
 every session of Congress, but without | avail. l Of late years, however, the increasing 1 freouencv of scandals incident to the
 electing of United States senators has
 brought this measure more to the front | than ever before.
 | It was in 1894 that the House passed the popular election measure and placed it before the Senate, where 1t was promptly defeated. Since that time the fight has been carried on vigorously. on May II, 1898, another resolution passed the House, only to meet with defeat at the hands of the Senate. Two more at- tempts were made, one on April 13, 1900. the other on February 13, 1s7e. Tn each case. however, the measure met the Sem ate ax.
 The supporters of this measure have been very active, and have resorted to pressure of Congress through popular demand for this measure by having the legislatures of the various states vote petitions to this effect. And at the pres
 ent time % states in the union have pe-
 titioned congress to bring about this amendne,t and only two more are neces- sary to insure action. should the Senate pass the measure tomorrow, however. the fight will be won.