The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-03-27
FIRST BLOOD FOR
STEPHENSON
Vote Stood 20 to 27 in Favor
of the Wisconsin
Senator.

Washington. March Ex-senator
Stephenson OF Wisconsin. today won
the first round of the battle over the
validity of his seat in the senate when
by vote Of 20 to 81 the resolution by
Senator Jones Of Washington. declar-
ing the Wisconsin senator illegally
elected was rejected.
row when the Hepburn resolution. sus-
tanning the validity of the. election,
and indorsing the investigating COM
mittee's majority view. will be voted
upon.
Stephenson adherents led by Sena-
tor Sutherland of Utah. claimed to-
night thot a majority Of four votes
for Stephenson was likely tomorrow.
Stephenson's opponents. led by Sena-
tor Lea of Tennessee, claim that
Stephenson's strength tomorrow may
be even less than today. Many sena-
tors who have been absent will be
back tomorrow. The final vote may
not be reached before nightfall.
Seven or eight senators expect to
speak and besides the Hepburn resoIu-
tion there Is also, pending resolution
by Senator Works. of California. de-
claring the Stephenson election illegal.
though differing with the Jones reso-
luton in form. Each Of these will ne
cessitate a roll call.
A bare majority is necessary to de-
clare the senatorial election invalid.
Such a resolution would deprive the
senator Of hts seat just as effectively
as would a resolution of expulsion,
which requires AT two-thirds vote.
Throughout the debate today. both
larry under fire. were in the senate
chamber. While. Senator Root waa
speaking. StepheS son ~. just back OF
him. with LorinSs, directly in front
When the rote'-wlaS taken Stephenson
retired to the cloak room and occa
siOnally looked out to watch things.
Later he said he had no intention
Of resigning to the governor, as did
Senator Clark of Montana. dozen
years ago. when his election was at
tackled. In the Clark case the election
later was appointed to fill the vacancy
and afterward elected.
Following was the vote on the Jones
resolution:
For stephenson-Bradley. Brun-
degee. Briggs, Burnham, Burton.
Crane, Cullom. Curtis. Gamble, Hey
burn, Lippitt. Lodge, Lorimer, Nc
Lean, Nixon. Richardson, Root,
Smoot, Sutherland. Warren and Wet
more, republicans; Chiffon. Fletcher,
Foster. Johnston. Newlands, Pomer-
enc, Rayner and Watson, democrats.
Against Stephenson-Borah. Bourne,
Bristow, Brown, Clapp. Crawford.
Cummins. Gronna. Kenyon, Poindex-
ter. Townsend and Works. republi-
cans; Bryan, Chamberlain. Gardner,
Gore. Hitchcock, johnson, Kern. Lea.
MARITIME, Meyers. O'Gorman. Reed.
Simmons, Smith of Georgia. Smith of
South Carolina. democrats.
Root and Borah of Idaho, were the
only speakers today. Root contended
no evidence had been adduced to show
that members Of the Wisconsin legis-
lature had been corrupted to vote for
Stephenson. Root also contended that
to prove corrupt influence it would
have to be shown corruption extended
to the nine thousand voters who con-
stituted Stephenson's plurality.
With Larimer resting an arm on his
desk. Root explained to the senate
that the cases of Stephenson and Lori
mer were different and that he op-
posed the retention Of Lorimer in the
senate because of alleged corruption
among members Of the Illinois legis-
lature.
The work resolution declared Ste
phenson's furnishing os large sum
as 107,793 in his senatorial campaign
which "itself is an act of corruption
committed with the purpose and in
tent of securing his election