The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1913-09-17
The River Press
PNblished sve,y Wednesday, Morning
By the River Press Publish
ing Company.
AFFECTING STATE SENATORS

4uO SIOTy TcCcuIly C1TCuldC0U ny n
Helena newspaper, to the effect that
seventeen counties have no legal
right to representation in the state
senate, is ridiculed by the Muscular
as the biggest political joke of the
season. In an extended review
the situation is explained as follows:
The basis for all this loose CONVEX
sation seems to be founded upon the
provision in Paragraph 4, Article V.
Of the State Constitution, which reads
as follows: ut shall be the duty of
the first legislative assembly to d.
vide the state into senatorial and rep
resentative districts, but there shall
be no more than one senator from
each county"
These constitutional doctrinaires
argue, that because the state legisla-
ture has in the past overlooked pass
ing a separate bill every time some
new county has been created, declar-
ing that special county a separate
senatorial district, that each and ev-
cry n of these counties created since
the constitution was adopted, have no
right to representation in the state
senate.
These interpreters of the state con-
stitution evidently failed to read Par
agraph 4 of Article W., which e
pressly says: whenever new coun-
ties are created, each of said counties
shall be entitled to n senator, but
in no case shall a senatorial district
consist of more than m county"
AS the state constitution itself spec
tally provided m senator from each
of said counties in existence at the
time the constitution vas adopted,
mentioning each county by name and
designating each county al a separate
senatorial district and in this section
Immediately preceding, says explicit
ly, whenever new counties are Gre
ated, each of said counties shall be
entitled to one senator, but in no case
shall a senatorial district consist OF
more than one county," we confess
that we cannot g anything in the ar
gument advanced.
Under the same Interpretation OF
the same provision of the same con.
stitution, Montana would have no le-
gal representatives in the present
lower house of congress. Under the
same rule of Interpretation, there was
not a single legally elected member
of the lower house of the Montana
legislature from 1895 to 1912.
Paragraph / of the same Article vi.
also says: zone representative in the
congress of the United States shall be
elected from the state at large. the
first Tuesday in October, 1889, and
thereafter at such times and places,
and in such manner as may be pre-
scribed by law. When a new appor
tionment shall be made by congress
the legislative assembly shall divide
the state into congressional districts
accordingly"
This provision of the state consti-
tuition the legislative assembly did
not carry out. The census of 1910
gave Montana two members of the
House of Representatives. The con
stitution expressly says that In the
event Montana is apportioned more
than one representative in congress
that the legislature shall divide the
state into congressional districts. The
last two legislatures deliberatel,
failed, neglected and refused to do so
If the failure of these legislature:
to carry out the provisions of thu
state constitution in these matters
did not vitiate any Of these various
elections, affecting at least two con
gressmen and probably four state sen
ators from the counties which hav
been created since the adoption o
the constitution, when that instru
ment expressly says. whenever new
counties are created, each of sal
counties shall be entitled to n ser
ator, but in no Ease shall a senatorial
district consist of more than on
county,