Evening star., 1926-01-23

The seating Of Senator Gerald 3.
Nye, a North Dakota newspaper man,
by the United States Senate after a
contest involving the right of the
State governor to make the appoint
ment. has been followed by public
discussion of the legal point and OF
the influences which affected the Sen
ate's decision.
THE question OF seating Senator
Nye. appointee of Gov. Sorlie OF North
Dakota, differed from most contests
for seats in that It hinged entirely on
a question Of law" explains the Hart
ford Daily Times independent Demo
cratic). Explaining the legal points
involved, the Grand Rapids Herald
independent Republican, also finds
in the contest purely question in
constitutional law. The seventeenth
amendment to the Constitution" the
Grand Rapids paper says, intends to
commit the election Of Senators to the
people The only point at which this
purpose is allowed detection is in the
emergency when a senatorial vacancy
occurs between elections. In such cir
cumstances, the amendment permits
State Legislatures to direct, by statute,
the method of filling temporary va
cancies. But the North Dakota Legis-
lature left the question in doubt"
X =
THE issue was far more non-par-
tisan than has generally been re
Day Republican), as it was 'an issue
between the rights of the State and
the rights of the Federal Govern
ment" BY its decision in favor of
Nye, 1.-The Senate confirms, as far as
IL goes, the novel contention Of Gov.
Sorlie of North Dakota that United
States Senate seat is a State office,
says the Knoxville Seminal Gndepend-
ent Democratic), though ''the more
authoritative constitutional opinion in
the Senate dissented from this novel
claim" The Evansville Courier lin
dependent) believes the vote sets q
precedent as to the status Of a United
States Senator. ''It is this" the Cour-
Ter adds: that a Senator is not solely
a State officer nor solely an officer
of the United States but is both"
"The Senate acted wisely and well
in seating Mr.. Nye," the Lexington
Leader (Republican) afflrms. "The
legal questions were not of a nature
to be determined with any degree of
finality and on grounds that were
solid and enduring" Concurring In
this opinion, the Springfield Illinois
State Journal (Republican) says:
"The argument for refusing him a
seat was rather technical and not at
ell convincing. On the whole. the
Senate, it seems. did the right thing
in seating Mr.. Nye."
'Tt is quite apparent that Nye is
in harmony with the majority polit-
ical sentiment in North Dakota, and
from that standpoint no injustice has
heen created" claims the Sioux City
Tribune independently. further stat
ing that, "for the benefit of the Mid
die West In general. that state needs
full representation in the Senate at
this time-"a contention with which
the Asheville Times Qndependent
Democratic), the Saginaw News
Courier independently and numerous
other papers agree.
Analyzing the Senate vote. the
Hollywood Daily Citizen (Republi-
CAM says: THE conservative Repub-
licans, not wanting d Farmer-Labor
representative in the Senate. assist
ed by Democrats, voted against
the seating. The Democrats, pre-
ferring a Farmer-Labor representa-
tive to conservative Republican,
assisted by II Progressive Republi-
cans, voted in favor of the seating"
saws the New York World unde.
pendent Democratic): Somewhere in
the vicinity Of the Senate chamber.
but not voting, were more Re-
publican regulars. They could easily
have turned the decision by voting
against Mr.. Nye," and. pondering their
aloofness. the World further notes
that some OF these come from aSri