Arizona republican., 1913-04-09
Connecticut Ratifics Con StitutionaI Amendment, Being Thn.ty-SiNth to Fall in Line Making Nee cSSarv Thrce-Fourths
PROBLEM FACES
 MANY LEGISLATURES
Some Have Adjourned and
 Can Only Provide Neces- saly Election Law by
 Calling for Special Ses- sions at an Early Date
IAsSOCIATED PRESS DESPATCH

ASSOCIATED PRESS DIsPATCHl WASHINGTON, April S.-The direct election of United States senators by the people was authorized and made compulsory today when the Connecticut legislature ratified the constitutional amendment submitted by congress less than one wear ago: A situation results throughout the country where many l legislatures have adjourned until 1915 such as leaves confusion ill the minds of the members of the senate. how early steps toward direct election Of senators can be carried out.
 While the lamation of the sec 1 retary of state announcing the final l ratification of the amendment by thr- tNsiX states is required by law, Sen ators BristOw and Borah, leaders of the direct election fight in congress eX- pressed the opinion today that the amendment for all practical purposes is now a part of the constitution. Any man elected to the senate here after must be elected directly said Borah
 The new amendment gives to the state legislatures. however. the right
 
 the senators Many legislatures have adjourned and will not re- convene un- til early in 1915. A few weeks before 1 the terms of over thirty senators ex- i pire. It is expected in many states the 1 legislatures will adopt plans authorized i by the new amendment of direct gov 1 ernment and appoint senators mpo- 1 rarily until the people elect m-r at i regularly called elections.
 1 Special sessions of legislatures will l be urged in many states A choice of a senator from Maryland, for the place now held by Senator Jackson would ] have been made by the legislature next year. under the old system A special l session of the Maryland legislature will 1 be necessary to provide the laws by which the popular election may occur
 next year.
 1 The opinion of members of the senate l is that no successor can be appointed l by the governor under the new pro | vision when Jacksons term expires. the legislature shall have especially di- 1 rected such action
 1 The new amendment to the con- 1 stitution. for the popular election of l |
 teenth to be adopted. It reads.
 The senate of the United States l shall be composed of two senators from each state, elected by the peo- pie thereof. for six years: and each senator shall have one vote The
 electors in each state shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the 1 state legislatures.
 When vacancies happen in the rep l resentation of any~ state in the sen :
 ate, the executive authority of such ! state shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. provided that the
 legislature Of any state may empower the executive thereof to make tenn
 porary appointmnts until the people
 fill the vacancies hy election as the
 legislature may direct"
 The amendment primarily trans
 fers the power of electing cenators
 from the state legislatures to the
 people at the polls. To effect this
 change it was necessary to alter the
 machinery for the filling of vacan-
 cies in the senate
 For more than sixty years pro-
 posals have been made to change the constitution so as to provide for the direct election of senators. II was not. however. until June "A 1911, that the senate was induced for the first time in it's history to give it's consent to the change. On that
 day it voted to submit to the states the proposed amendment. The reso- ! lution to submit had already passed the house in a somewhat different form. Before adjournment of the
 session. both houses agreed to the language to be employed, and the resolution was deposited with tthe , secretary of state May 16, 1912 for distribution among the states , The original theory in establish r ing the choice of senators was that they represented the states. whereas the members of the house represent , ted the people of then districts. II
 was because of this theory of he ] state as unit that all states large
 and small. were given equal repre- $ sentaition in the senate, Rhode Islant f having the same number as New I York or Pennsylvania Tn the theory i, of the constitution framers this entity of the state was thus made I more distinct under the federal sys- f tenn, and the state legislature wa. Y regarded as the suitable mdium fo
 expressing this state entity Later i
 was contended that state entit, ] (Continued on Page Three)