New-York tribune., 1920-01-15

investigation Of their fitness. LOYALTY
ana ana Americanism, and especially OF
lheir ability truthfully to take the con.
st'tutional oath of office, which goes to
the very roots of their qualifications
and eligibility. N''' - % ~ .
NO sound principle of constitutional
government compels the Assembly to
ADMIT or permit to legislate these five
svo"ed and defiant Socialists pending
such hearing and investigation.
wrong and Unsound"
NOW we are asked, as I view it, to
lnoorse the proposition that the power
OF our Legislature in this respect is
constitutionally limited to questions Of
personal ntness or morality, and we are
urged to stand tefore the public for
the proposition that it is wholly imma-
terial that member whose qlalifica-
tons are challenged is affiliated with a
revolutionary organization that seeks
ana Is pledged to overthrow the Ameri-
can constitutional system!
We are asked as American lawyers,
familiar with American constitutional
history and its sources, to proclaim to
the public as fixed or fundamental
princlpfe of our constitutional govern
ment that the power of the Legislature
Is so limited and circumscribed that it
can only investigate the personal char
acter or personal behavior of elected
members, and must admit them to
membership and to participation in
Legislation, no matter how revolution
ary, unpatriotic and dangerous may be
the platform upon which they were
elected and no matter how patiently
false would be their oaths to support
the state and national constitutions
they were pledged to seek to destroy.
II protest against the association
committing itself to any such view be-
cause / profoundly believe that it is
both wrong and unsound.
There remains the contention that
the Assembly, in any event, did not
have constitutional power to suspend
pending hearing of charges, but that
it should have admitted these members
and allowed them to participate in all
Legislative functions until the Judi
ciary Committee could report.
"That seems to me to be equally
untenable. had supposed that under
our Constitution either house of the
Legislature, if it saw fit and believed
the emergency so required, could re-
fuse to seat member sr expel him
without any hearing whatever.
"Of course, such a procedure would
be arbitrary and most unlikely to be
pursued. But the power to do so was
vested in the Legislature and inten-
tionally So"
Socialists Send Letter
Through Mr.. Hillquit, the suspended
Socialists last night sent the following
letter to the Bar Association Commit
tee.
y have been asked by the FIVE
excluded Socialist members of the
Assembly and their counsel to con-
vey to you the assurance of their
deep appreciation of the action of
the Association of the Bar of the
City Of New York in designating you
as special committee in behalf of
the Bar Association to protect the
principles of representative govern
ment which are involved in the pro-
ceedings to unseat ;ne five Socialist
members of the Assembly.
We have the utmost confidence in
the high public spirit and great. pro-
fessional ability of the gentlemen
composing the committee and shall
be glad to extend to you all facilities
at our command to enable you to
carry out the object for which you
nave Decn appOIuteu.
Resolution Amended
1t was largely because of Mr.
Guthrie's argument that the original
Hughes resolution was amended AS
finally adopted, Mr.. Guthrie said, the
resolution could not properly be said
to challenge the attitude of the As
sembly or to have urged the seating
of the Socialists.
Souafor Miles Poin1oyfov :.
following letter yesterday to Speaker
Sweet:
81 hope you will pardon me for
taking the liberty Of writing to ex-
press my hearty appreciation of your
action and that of the New York AS
sembly in suspending for further in
quiry and examination the seating of
certain members elect to the Assembly,
who, as / am informed, had subscribed
to the Socialist party declaration in
New York in August. 1919, declaring
"its solidarity with the revolutionary
forces of Soviet Russia.
"The action of the Assembly, under
your leadership, was judicious in that
these men were not finally excluded,
but notice was taken, as the Assembly
claimed views on governmental mat
ters, and further inquiry and investi-
CATION, as l understand the situation,
was ordered by the Assembly before
they should be permitted to sit as
members of the Legislature of New
York
"Of course, it is true in this country
that a man is free to join one political
party or another so long as that po-
litical party is law-abiding organiza-
tion. Every man has right to advo-