The Irish standard., 1913-04-12
LONG. BATTLE ENDS.
DIRECT ELECTION OF U. 8. sEN.,
AToRe HAS NOW BEEN RATl.
FED ~ 50 0TArEs.
CONNECTICUT LAST ON LIST
No Further Liquidation Now Needed
- to Adopt Seventeenth Amendment
to constitution-House Member
Will Be Named by People.

ton Of the seventeenth amendment to
the constitution Of the United States
that Of giving the people the right to
direct election Of senators-was COM
pleted through the action Of the legis-
lature Of Connecticut, TIE thirty.stxth
state. The nutmeg states senate was
unanimous for the measure. The
house passed it by $50 to u.
The amendment reads:
"The senate Of the United States
shall be composed Of twu senators
from each state, elected by the people
thereof, for six years; and each senar
tor shall have one vote. fhe electors
in each state shall have the qualifca-
lions requisite for electors Of the most
numerous branch of the state leg
lslure.
When vacancies happen in the rep
resentation of any state in the senate.
the executive authority Of such state
shall issue writs of election to fiji
such vacancies. provided that the leg
slature Of any state may empower
the executive thereof to make tempo
rary appointments until the people I'LL
the vacancies by election as the legis-
lature may direct"
The amendments primarily trans.
ters the power Of electing senator's
from the legislatures to the people at
The polls. To effect this change, it
was necessary to alter the machin-
cry for the filling of vacancies in the
senate.
Battle Has Lasted co Years.
For more than GO years proposals
had been made to change the constitu-
ton SO AS to provide for the direct
election Of senators. 1t was not. how.
ever. until June "a, 1911, that the SEN
ate was induced for the first time In
its history to give its consent to the
change. On that day it voted to sub.
nit to the states the proposed amend.
ment. The resolution to submit had
passed the house In a somewhat diff.
ferent form. Before adjournment OF
the session both houses agreed to
the language to be employed, and the
resolution vas deposited with the sec
rotary of state May is, 1912. for dis.
tr1bution among the states.
First Action In 1895.
IL 1926 the FIRST action was taken in
congress looking to q change. In that
year Representative Storrs Of New
senators elective by the people.
The subject was revived in 1873.
1876, 1885 and 1888, but without sue.
cess. In 1893 the house agreed to the
proposition. as it did in the succeed.
ing congress-, and still again in 1898,
1900 and 1902. The proposed change
on none OF these occasions won a fav.
orable report from committees in the
senate.
1ristow Resolution Of 1909.
With the house thus arrayed year
after year in favor Of the change. the
senate became the battle-ground. Sen.
ator Bristow of Kansas took the lead
in advocacy of amending The constitu.
tion along this line. In December,
1909, he introduced his first resolu.
tion. A year later he obtained a re.
port from the committee, but fea-
ture had been tackled on to his pro.
posal which brought on fight in the
senate, threatened to kill the entire
proposition. This interposed feature
was to amend other provisions OF the
constitution SO as to deprive the fed
eral government Of power to supervise
d the state regulations as to the time
and manner of election.
Friends Of the Resolution Win.
Senator Bristow reintroduced the
resolution in the special session I'M
mediately following. The fight of the
proceeding session was refought, but
this time the friends of the resolution
won by a vote Of "a to 25, or five more
than the required two-thirds.
The house had passed resolution
which made it clear the federal gov.
eminent was not to interfere with sen.
atorial elections in the states. For
weeks the measure was in conference.
Finally the house conferees receded
and the house agreed to the senate
measure by vote of 237 to 80.