Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-01-07

governor has already set June 80, 1926
as the date of a special election to fill
the Ladd vacancy. 1t is the present
expectation of congressional leaders
70 complete the present session before
that date
A minority report filed by Senator
Stepnens of Mississippi, Democrat.
holds that Mr. Nye is entitled to be
seated. Senators Smith of South
carolina and Nicely of West Virginia,
also Democrats, concur in the con-
clusion reached by Senator Stephens,
but not for the same reasons given by
the last named in his report
The supporters of Mr.. Nye insist
that the right of a State to full rep
resentauon in the Senate, under the
constitution, should be a controlling
factor. They insist also that the con-
stitution Of the State of North Da-
kota. a statute enacted in 1917 au-
thorizing the Governor to fill va
cancles in State and district officers,
and the custom of North Dakota to
nave the Governor fill vacancies by
appointment indicate clearly the in.
tention and desire of the people of the
State
The question as to whether a Sen
ator Is a State officer or an officer of
the United States. which might be
raised in constituting the North Da-
kota law OF 1917 authorizing the fill.
ing vacancies in state and district
offlces,' is avoided as far as possible
IN the arguments presented by both
majority and minority members of
the committee.
Legislatures Obvious Aim.
The majority contend that clearly
the Legislature had no intention of
including Senators in the law enact
ed In 1917. The supporters of Mr. Nye,
on the other hand, contend that it was
not necessary for the Legislature in
granting the governor power to
make temporary appointment to refer
IN any way to the seventeenth
amendment to the Constitution of
the United States. nor was it neces-
Sary for the Legislature in re-enacting
the statute governing appointments
10 Ill vacancies to make use of words
dlHerent from those used in the orig
NAL act, If the language originally
used would include a Senator.
To this opponents of the seating of
Mr.. Nye point out that the Consti-
tuition of the United States itself spe-
officially authorized the executive
power of the States to fill vacancies
In the Senate until filled by election
by the Legislatures, prior to the
adoption of the seventeenth amend
ment
The majority report opposing the
seating OF Mr.. Nye called attention
to the case of Frank P. Glass, a Demo-
crat, appointed to fill a vacancy
caused by the death of Senator John
son of Alabama after the adoption
or the seventeenth amendment 1t
said:
The Sixty-third Congress denied to
Frank P. Glass seat in the Senate
of the United States as a Senator
from the State of Alabama The Gov.
ernor of Alabama, acting under a
statute of that State passed in 1909,
appointed Mr.. Glass to a vacancy oc-
curing in the representation of that
State, due to the death of Senator
Joseph NJ. Johnston. The term for
which Senator Johnson was elected
commenced prior to the adoption of
the seventeenth amendment The
United States Senate there adopted
the view that affirmative legislation
was necessary under the seventeenth
amendment to the United States Con-
stitution to enable the executive of
any State to make a temporary ap-
pointment Of a United States Senator
The Alabama statute then under con-
sideration was substantially the same
as the North Dakota statute now
under consideration. A comparison
of these statutes shows that the only
real difference was that the North
Dakota statute was re-enacted after
the adoption of the seventeenth
amendment while the Alabama
statute antedated the amendment.