The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-08-23
ANTS EXPLAIN WHY
THEY BROKE QUORUM

DECATUR, Ala, Aug. 2S.-Members
OF the Tennessee house of representa-
tives here today issued formal state
ment addressed to the. people of Ten
nessee, setting forth their reasons for
breaking, quorum in the house and
leaving the state. The statement bears
the signatures of 81 members of the
house, of whom u are Democrats and
10 Republicans. The statement fol-
ITO the People of Tennessee:
I'VE, the undersigned members of
the lower house of the legislature of
Tennessee Democrats and Republicans,
submit the following reasons for our
action in breaking a quorum in order
to prevent the passage of the resolution
ratifying the suffrage amendment to
the constitution of the United States:
IL. We and each of US were abso-
lutely convinced that any action by
us ratlfying said amendment would be
in violation of the constitution of the
state of Tennessee and would make
each of us guilty of failure to live
up to the oath which we had taken as
members of the legislature, and being
of this opinion we could not honorably
cast our vote to override the constitu-
ton of the state and were unwilling
by our presence to permit 1t to be
done.
40 We are convinced that the meth
DDS which were adopted to secure the
passage of the resolution were improper
and not justified.
the people of Tennessee do not favor
the ratification of said amendment.
"a. We felt to have ratified said
amendment would have been to surren-
der the sovereign rights of the state
on the question OF suffrage, which Is
one of the most important and sacred
rights conferred, and the only defense
that the people of Tennessee had at
this juncture rested in our hands, and
the only way that we could serve was
to take the course that we have taken.
We fully understand that our action
could only be justified by the tremen-
dous issues involved which, in our
judgment, went to the very foundation
of our government; that the ratification
of said amendment would be destructive
of the sovereignty Of the state and
negation of the dual form of govern
ment created by its founders. 1t has
never been our purpose, and is not now
our purpose to prevent action ultimately
by the legislature, and If 1t be the will
and judgment of the people of Tennes-
see that the said amendment should be
ratified, after having had time to con-
slider 1t and to act thereon, then We
can but enter our opposition by record
ing our vote In the negative and sub
hitting to the will of the majority. But
il seemed to us, and we feel convinced
existing at Nashville, under the pres
sure of lobby and the demands inn
properly made by agencies which should
not have been employed, the only proper
course for us to take was to absent
ourselves from the state for a period
of time sufficient for the people OF
Tennessee to express themselves in
such manner as might be adopted by
them to the end that the governor OF
the state, who actively lent himself to
the adoption OF the amendment, and
the members of the legislature. who
seem to favor its adoption, might be
advised Of the wishes Of the people OF
Tennessee and be superinduced by such
expressions to abandon for the time be-
ing the prosecution Of the endeavor to
now ratify said amendment. The next
legislature convenes within five months.
Under the constitution Of Tennessee
without question 1t will have the right
10 ratify said amendment II in the judg-
ment OF the representatives and their
constituents 1t seems proper so TO do
Tennessee has already conferred the
right OF suffrage upon Its women TO