The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-03-13
CURRENT COMMENT
Which Represented the People,

The vote the enabling act In the lower
house of the Virginia Legislature was g. TO So,
a majority for the act OF more than two to one.
The majority of the members of the House
from twenty senatorial districts of the state
voted for the adoption of the enabling act.
The majority OF the members of the House
from seven senatorial districts, counting Rich
mond city as two senatorial districts. voted
against the act. The members of the House
from six senatorial districts divided evenly on
the act
From twenty-six senatorial districts the mem
bers of the House voted tor the enabling act
From thirteen senatorial districts the members
of the House either divided evenly on the act
the majority of them were against TX. Yet
the Senate defeated the enabling act by vote
of 70 to l5. with two senators paired
In four cases where the members of the House
from senatorial district voted unanimously for
the enabling act, the senator from that district
voted against 1t. II these four senators had
stood with the solid House delegation from
their respective districts and supported the ems
abling act, tho vote the act in the senate
would have been tic. and Lieutenant Gov
ernor Ellyson would have cast the deciding vote
And II all the senator's had stood with the ma
jority OF the House members firm their dis
tricts, the enabling act. which passed the House
10y overwh Ginning majority. would have pass
ed the Senate by the decisive majority of thir-
teen.
Which have represented tho people of Viz
ginia in this important matter-tne members OF
the House the gentlemen who compose the
Senate? Some of the wet newspapers Of Vlr-
ginia have been prating glbly Of representative
government" What ts representative govern
ment in Virginia or elsewhere, If II is not
government In which the representatives OF
the people. respect the rights and wishes Of
the people and undertake ta execute the pen-
pies will? If 1T Is not, In fact government OF.
by and for the people And II admit that
this Is representative government. and sound
democratic doctrine. shall spurn 1t or de-
part from It, even when the whiskey tratfic liz
concerned"
If the majority of the members Of the House
from each of twenty-six senatorial districts who
voted for the enabling act represented the peo-
pie. 1t would be interesting to know whom the
senator's from those districts who voted against
the act represented Some of them voted con-
scientousiy no doubt. and would not have done
differently II the Senate had not been elected
last year for four years. But whether all of
them were actuated by conscientious conviction
and sincere desire to voice the sentiment OF
their respective constituencies will be doubted
by many.
And this suggests another question: Does rep
resentative government in Virginia. any other
State. mean government by Legislature with
which special interest the friends of
special interest may at any time exercise a.
more powerful Influence than the people who
created the Legislature and clothed 1t with au-
thority to make the laws they want"
The people of the senatorial district COM
posed OF Bristol city and Washington and Smyth
counties were largely in favor OF the enabling
act. II Is some consolation to them to know
that the senator and the members OF the House
from this dstricted voted for the act.--Bristol
Herald Courier.