St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1912-04-24
Lorimer-stephenson.

We are in receipt or copy OF
speech delivered by Sen. Sutherland
of Utah in defence of Sen. Stephen
son when his election was being in
vestigated by the senate. 1t was
sent us by Senator w. P. Dillingham;
of Vermont and is presumed to be
the expression of the attitude of the
senate subcommittee which con-
Quoted the investigation. 1t is a
skillful defense Of the senator who
paid in excess of $107, 900 to secure
a denomination in the Wisconsin
primaries. The speech cannot be
reproduced in full but states that
the resolution confined the investi-
cation to whether there were used
or employed corrupt methods or
practices in the election of Isaac
Stephenson. He then argues that
because the sum of 100000 was
spent it cannot be conclusively as
sumed that it was corruptly spent.
That the good repute of the men
proven to have expended consider
able sums of money is proof that it
could not have been spent for cor
rupt purposes. In some cases as
large sums as $4,000 were given to
one man and he could not give an
account of what he did with the
money but the mans standing was
such that it was wrong to assume
there was any corruption connected
with the transaction. Senator
Sutherland has skillfully selected
those parts of the testimony that
sustain his argument and concludes
his speech as follows: Through no
vote of mine will the venerable SEN
ator from Wisconsin be driven from
his seat in this Chamber with the
great burden of his more than four
score years increased beyond endur-
ance by the crushing weight of
dreadful and overwhelming shame"
Early in his speech Sen. Suther>
land declared that the committee
had no authority to consider the
ethics in the case and his speech
gave no. evidence that they had been
given any consideration whatever
either in the election or investigation
Of it. The testimony tended to show
that Stephenson had asked his
agents Ito keep within the law and
that the investigating committee al
lowed the accused every protection
the law could possibly give him.
There is every indication the same
course will be followed in the case
against Senator Lorimer of Illinois
and that he will retain his seat
within the law" Legal technical
tiles have saved many a criminal
from a just penalty but this fact does
not prove their justice, and these
technical generations of Stephenson
and Lorimer are not satisfactory to
the general public. The members
of the United States senate may ig-
more public sentiment in such mat
tiers bat just as far as they do so
they are driving their party to de-
feat. We shall not attempt to JUS
tify public sentiment, we simply
recognize its existence and its force
and would appeal to the Vermont
members Of the senate to recognize
it when the Lorimer case is decided
In closing this article we would
change the wording of Senator Suth.
erland's closing phrase somewhat
and say;-Through no vote or act
of ours would we retain as members
OF the United States senate men
with the political records of Lor-
inner and Stephenson and further
reduce the respect and confidence
such a body should enjoy or add to
the great burden our political party
already bends under and hasten it
on to inevitable defeat.