Evening star., 1924-06-20
Line Is Drawn Taut.

tonS 10 their children. And those
children are fighting hard to keep
the faith.
Line Is Drawn Taut.
The newercomers make up the back
bone of the Democratic party.
These are the city dwellers, includ-
ing the thousands of mill and factory
workers that inhabit the larger COM
munities and between the two ele-
ments, the lines are drawn with taut
bitterness.
The Democrats, at the last general
election in 1922, succeeded in electing
a governor, lieutenant governor, a
treasurer and an attorney general.
This was by far the greatest victory
they had ever achieved They had
in years gone by elected a Democratic
governor or two, but never so nearly
an entire slate.
But, they lost the senate and the
house. The reason. they argued, was
to be found in Rhode Islands VEN
cradle constitution, which provides
for representation in the Legislature
on anything but a proportional basis
The senate. for instance, is composed
nine cities and towns in the state
Under that provision Providence,
which boasts some $500 population,
has one senator-and so has West
Greenwich, with it's 150-odd souls
Casting their eyes down the popu-
in their favor, and then taking a
legislature, the Democrats decided
that there was but one thing to do
change the constitution so that
their votes would mean as much in
the legislature as they did in the
gubernatorial chair
Accordingly, Senator Robert E.
Quinn drafted a bill providing for
popular referendum next November
on the calling of d constitutional con-
vention. The Republican house with
Republican speaker, smiled broad
ly at thought of what it would do to
that bill when it came to them-if IL
ever did.
But the Democrats, though out
numbered, had the laugh in the Sem
ate.
Democrat in Chair.
Under the constitution, the lieuten-
ant governor presides over the SEN
ate. And Lieut. Gov. Felix A. Taupin,
of French-Canadian stock-was a
Democrat With him in the chair, a
flibuster was easy. So the DEM
ocrats sent the Republicans word
that until a constitutional conven-
tion bill was adopted. there would be
tion-particularly there would be
no appropriation bill to meet state
expenses.
And there has not-not since the
session started on January /. Sum-
moning all their parliamentary skill.
thing the Republicans tried to do,
and the session. which normally
should have ended in sixty days,
dragged on and on. The fight gath
cred venom with each succeeding
day.
Each Accuses Other,
This week there has been a small
sized riot on the chamber floor, a fist
fight between Democratic senator
and Republican party worker, the
singing of enough mud to blacken
everybody's reputation for miles
around if half of it were believed
and finally the gassing incident.
Each camp accuses the other of
having set the gas bomb. Each ac-
cuses the other Of having employed
the professional gangsters and gun
men who have been identified in CO.
pious quantities in the spectators
gallery of the senate chamber.
The Republicans are talking about
foreigners" and radical elements"
in the Democratic camp. And the
Democrats are countering with talk
about the Ku Klux Klan.
Both sides agree that a real riot
is an imminent possibility unless the
impasse is ended in some way. Dem
ocratic police and Republican deputy
sheriffs already have been called into
play to handle the situation, and
Gov. Flynn may yet be compelled to
make good on his threat to call out
the militia.