The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1917-03-05
SENATE REFUSED
TO GRANT ARMED
NEUTRALITY
Presidents Request Denied By
fiIihusteriag PacifiSts
VOTE BLOCKED IN LONG DEBATE
Successful Fight Against Adoption of
Measure Led by LaFolette
and Stone.

future fraught with dire possibilities
for the nation, President Wilson to-
night rested on his own authority,
without congressional aid or support.
AS the sixty-fourth congress passed
dramatically into history at noon to-
day, the solemn request OF the Presi-
dent for a congressional affirmation
OF his aytority to arm American mer-
chant ships, and protect American
risnls against the German submarine
campaign. was refused.
A determined filibuster. led by Sen
ator, La Toilette and Senator Stone
and supported by ten other senators,
prevented the enactment of the ad-
ministration bill designed to place
congress squarely behind the chief
executive in his plans for placing the
United States on a basis of armed
neutrality and not all the efforts of
an ovehelming majority of the senate
could sway the little group of OBJ
structionists, who by parliamentary
trick and device filibustered the mea-
sure to death in what will be remem-
bered as one of the most bitter ses-
sions the senate of the United States
has ever known.
Unyielding throughout twenty-six
hours of continuous session to appeals
that their defiance of the President
would be humiliating to the country;
uncompromising in a crisis described
to them as the most serious to the
nation since the civil war, LaFollette
and his small group of supporters re-
fused a majority of their colleagues an
opportunity to vote on the armed
neutrality bill To fix responsibility
before the country, seventysix sena-
ators, thirty Republicans and forty
six Democrats, signed a manifesto pro-
claiming to the world that they favor
ed passage of the measure.
This declaration, embodied in the
record of the senate, referred to the
fact that the house, Thursday night.
had passed a similar bill by vote
Of 403 to thirteen and also recited that
the senate rule permitting unlimited
debate gave a small minority oppor-
tunity to throttle the will of the ma
jority.
The text of the manifesto is as fol-
lows:
THE majority of United States SEN
ators favored the passage of the SEN
ate bill authorizing the president of
the United States to arm American
merchant vessels a similar bill al
ready passed the house by vote of
40S to thirteen.
Under the rules of the senate al
lowing unlimited debate, 1t appears
to be impossible to obtain vote pre-
vious to noon March 4, 1917, when
this session Of congress expires. We
desire the statement entered on the
record to establish the fact that the
senate favored the legislation and
would pass it if a vote could be OBJ
tanned"
Phirteen senators declined to sign
the declaration. but one of them, Sen
ator Penrose, Republican, of Pennsyl-
vanie. announced that he would have
voted for the bill had opportunity been
afforded him. The twelve who went
on record with the thirteen members
of the house against granting to Presi-
dent Wilson the authority he asked
from congress in the crisis were:
RepubEcans-Clapp, Minnesota;
Cummins. Iowa; Granna, North Dako-
ia; Kenyon, Iowa; LaFollette, Wis
consin; Norris, Nebraska; Works,
California-Seven.
Democrats-Kirby. Arkansas; Lane,
Oregon; O'Gorman. New York; Stone,
Missouri; Vardaman. Mississippi
Five.