Show SENATR MANTLES CASE J i Majority Report Submitted from the Committee on Elections IT FAVORS HIS ADMISSION I Cases of BeckTfith and Allen Also Involved In-volved in the Report tho Minority of tho Committee by Senator Sena-tor Vance Wall Submit a Report Today Against Admitting tho Gentlemen Named WASHINGTON March 27The report of the majority on the contested election elec-tion case of Lea Mantle senator appointed by the governor of Montana was made to the Senate today Mr Hoar submitting the report of the majority in favor of seating Mantle There are two other cases those of Beckwith appointed ap-pointed > by the governor of Wyoming Wy-oming and Allen appointed by the governor of Washington Inasmuch Inas-much a the facts are the same the test will be made in the case of the senator upon wbose credentials the report is lade as it is not unlikely that as this is decided so will be the others The report I re-port was rather lengthy and quoted voluminously from early decisions of the question Senate upon cases dealing with the same The majority state they began their inquiry with the primal and controlling mandate of the constitution resting upon them that the Senate should be kept full and separate representation therein of I each state was the most important unchangeable un-changeable single obligation which the instrument creates The constitution provided that no state should ever > > e deprived de-prived of an equal vote in the Senate ez cept by its own consent to a change in the constitution itself and this consideration considera-tion was held to be of infinitely more importance im-portance than the question whether the appointment should be made by the legislative or executive legislatve In discussing the subject of vacancies the the committee reproduces part of famous debate between Webster and Calhoun Cal-houn and reaffirms the doctrine laid down at that time by Webster when he took the stand against state sovereignty Upon this line and in reply to the assertion asser-tion of failure by a legislature to elect a senator is a refusal by the state to be represented rep-resented the majority make twofold answer First That the constitution of the United States did not mean to permit the state to be unrepresented and that this constitutional purp se has been carried ISGo out as far a possibl0 by the statute of ISGoSecond Second Inability of a state legislature where there i more than one candidate I to agree upon for senator i by no means one equivalent t a refusal of the state to elect oneThe majority set out in their argument T7ith the clecr unquestionable purpose of the constitution to keep the Senate full and the fact that every other purpose of the constitution relating to such matters is accomplished by holding that power in question resides in the governor The language of the constitution says the majority is quite 8 well suited to confer I the of appointing power upon governor appointng to a vacancy occurring at the beginning of l term or to a vacancy which began to exist when the legislature was actually in I session and contin ed after the adjournment adjourn-ment of the legislature as any language likely to be used After quoting various i definitions of the word vacancy the majority come to the conclusion that the i te words of the constitution convey to an ordinary j or-dinary apprehension the simple meaning 1 that if there be a vacancy by resignation 1 or otherwise the executive may make temporary appointments etc In the language of the constitution 2 4 says the majority it seems to us that it was carefully designed to apply t the q case of not a single Vacancy which might occur only in a single recess of the legislature legis-lature but t every case where the legislature legis-lature having adjourned without action n second or third vacancy should occur whichunder the language of the constitution consti-tution may be provided for by temporary appointment This position is supported by numerous decisions quoted hereafter of which the majority says We have then first a clear controlling constitutional constitu-tional purpose that every state shall be at all times represented in the Senate by two senators Second A declaration by the consti tution that the purpose is to be accomplished accom-plished by the authority of the executive of the state when the legislature has failed to elect a senator ThirdUse of the language in the constitution which according to good and established usage is uufficient in its ordinary manner t confer this power on the executive in case of a vacancy existing exist-ing for any cause whatever and at anytime any-time whatever while the legislature is not sitting whether contingent or otherwise Fourth Where like phraseoloey occurs oc-curs in the constitution in regard to other I offices i has been uniformly held to have the meaning we attribute t it here I Fifth The construction given by the very able supreme court of Indiana 1 in language substantially identical Sixth Tho Senate has for many years past invariably recognized the control ing obligation of this purpose of the constitution con-stitution even where the language is doubtful or where a literal construction would lead t another result After quoting in extenso from the Bell casa New Hampshire the majority conclude con-clude their report a follows It was shown by an unbroken line of decisions with one possible but forcible exception that the Senate has maintained the au t 1 ihority of the executive to appoint to a vacancy which occurs at the beginning of a term by reason of failure t elect We do not think it necessary to insist upon the importance of adherence by this high court to precedents in judicial matters mat-ters such as the title t its seats The only alternative i in the judgment ot the Senate whether the rights of the states are to hi dependent de-pendent on the changing political majorities ties of this chamber It seems quite as important that the construction given byte by-te Senate t the constitution in proceedings proceed-ings of a judicial nature should inflexibly inflexi-bly adhered to except in cases of clear error in spite of the grave and serious attempt which must beset this tribunal beyond I tempt V UllfU AUUDU Wt3CH bAAAO tibunal yond all others t depart from them in times of high political excitement |