The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-02-19
Say Minority of Committee
Which Heard Stephenson Case
PRACTICES ARE DENOUNCED
Extravagant Sums for Entertainment,
Declare the Members, and They Think
They Have Right to Assume That
Corruption Was Used.

! Washington, ID. c., Feb. l9.--United
| States Senator Isaac Stephenson OF Wis
ccnsin is not entitled to his seat, in
| the opinion of five members of the SEN
ate committee on privileges and cleo
tions, who filed a minority report with
the Senate to-day The majority re-
port on the investigation Of Senator
Stephenson's campaign expenditures was
that the charges of corruption in the pri-
mary of 1908 were not proven.
The minority report is signed by Sem
ators Kenyon, Clapp and Jones, Republi-
cans, Lea and Kern, Democrats. 1t con-
tends that enough evidence was adduced
by the inquiry to warrant the Senate
in declaring Senator Stephenson's seat
vacant.
Referring to the fact that the senator
through his lieutenants, spent Sl07 ,793
in his campaign and that candidates for
the state legislature spent proportion
ately large sums, the report quotes from
the majority report: "Such expenditures
were in violation of the fundamental
principles underlying our system of gov
ernment, which contemplated the selec-
ton of candidates by the electors and
not the selection of electors by the can
didate."
The minority report then proceeds:
"We concur in this statement and it
justiiies us in opposing the conclusion
of the majority. How a seat in the
Senate can be secured i'm violation of
the fundamental principles underlying
our system OF government with the evil
a., .b.1 Ia
sum of money, and not be tainted by
corrupt methods and practices we are
unable to comprehend.
"The question now squarely before the
Senate is whether or not methods and
practices in violation of the fundament-
al principles underlying our system of
government shall be denounced by our
words and approved by our votes"
Quoting again from the majority re-
port which after summarizing the meth
ods of Senator Stephenson's election, de-
clared that if they had been used by
candidate for state Office in Wiscon-
sin lit would be very difficult to iusti-
fly such conduct under the laws of the
state" the minority repert continues:
This statement we endorse. 1t war
rants our opposition to the conclusion
of the majority. If it would be diff
cult to Justify campaign like this by
candidate for state Office, why is
it not equally difficult to Justify it on
the part of Senator Stephenson lie
was not compelled to go into the pri-
mary. He elected to do so and he should
be held to the same degree of account
ability as any other candidate in that
primary.
"If he used methods-and the ma ior-
ity says he did-that it would be diff
cult to Justify in behalf of state can
didate, then it is equally difficult for
the Senate to justify such conduct on
the part of candidate for a seat in
this body and preserve its integrity and
honor. In our Judgment it can not do
it,"
The report sets forth that the evil
dence showed conclusively that voters
were paid to be at the polls, that ex-
sums for entertainment"
records and papers concern
ing the campaign were shifted from
one place to another and original rec
ords were destroyed.
"All this is admitted" says the re-
port, "and we feel we have a right to
assume from these admitted facts and
actions that corrupt methods and prac-
tees were used in connection with said
primary election. To hold otherwise is
to establish a precedent that would au-
thorize an expenditure of hundreds of
thousands of dollars to debauch the cleo
torate in order to insure a seat in this
body. To do this is to notify the world
that we are careless as to whether or
not seats in this body are to be bought
and sold as so much merchandise to |
the man with the largest purse"