Our Government: Local, State, and National: Idaho Edition Part 6

When a vacancy occurs in the representation from any State on account of death, expulsion, or for other cause, it is made the duty of the governor of the State in which the vacancy exists to call for a special election in that district to choose a representative for the remainder of the term.

Officers.--Section 2, Clause 5. _The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other officers, and shall have the sole power of impeachment_.

The speaker, who is the presiding officer, has always been a member of the House, but the Const.i.tution does not say that he _shall_ be. The other officers are the clerk, sergeant-at-arms, doorkeeper, postmaster, and chaplain, none of whom is a member of the House.

Number and Term of Office of Senators.--Section 3, Clause 1. _The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislature_.

As we have seen, the provision that there should be two senators from each State was the result of a compromise. Consequently, New York and Pennsylvania have the same number as Delaware and Nevada.[17] The term of six years for senators was likewise a compromise measure. There were members of the convention who favored three years; others wanted nine years, and Hamilton desired that the term should be during good behavior. Many States have practically lengthened the prescribed term by the wise policy of returning acceptable senators for more than one term.

[Footnote 17: The Senate now contains 96 members; the English House of Lords, 560; and the French Senate, 300.]

Prior to April 8, 1913, when the Seventeenth Amendment became a part of the Const.i.tution, through ratification by the requisite votes of three-fourths of the State legislatures, senators were chosen by the State legislatures. For years the demand for such an amendment was insistent. More than two-thirds of the State legislatures had gone on record in favor of such a reform. The House of Representatives had pa.s.sed such a resolution a number of times, but the requisite two-thirds vote could not be secured in the Senate. The leading reasons for the amendment were: the frequent deadlocks in the legislatures, thus interrupting the course of regular legislation, and the use of bribery.

Cla.s.ses of Senators and Vacancies.--Section 3, Clause 2.

_Immediately after they shall be a.s.sembled in consequence of the first election, they shall be divided, as equally as may be, into three cla.s.ses. The seats of the senators of the first cla.s.s shall be vacated at the expiration of the second year; of the second cla.s.s, at the expiration of the fourth year; and of the third cla.s.s, at the expiration of the sixth year; so that one-third may be chosen every second year.

When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. Provided, that the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct_.

_This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or term of any senator chosen before it becomes valid as part of the Const.i.tution_.

This provision makes the Senate a permanent body, since only one-third of the members go out of office every two years. In the first session of the first Congress, the senators were divided into three cla.s.ses. It has been the custom to place the senators from new States in different cla.s.ses. This is done in order to preserve, so far as possible, the equality of numbers in each cla.s.s. Besides, a State is thus enabled to keep one man of experience in the Senate. When a new State is admitted, the senators from that State determine by lot, drawn in the presence of the Senate, which cla.s.ses they are to enter.

Qualifications of Senators.--Section 3, Clause 3. _No person shall be a senator who shall not hove attained to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State from which he shall be chosen_.

The reasons for requiring different qualifications in senators from those of representatives is expressed in "The Federalist" as follows: "The propriety of these distinctions is explained by the nature of the senatorial trust, which, requiring greater extent of information and stability of character, requires at the same time that the senator should have reached a period of life most likely to supply these advantages." The att.i.tude of Americans toward the Senate to-day differs from that manifest during the first quarter century of our history. Has the Senate degenerated is a question frequently asked. The presence in that body of numerous millionaires has also excited unfavorable comment.

There have been two instances only in which senators have been disqualified because of inadequate citizenship.

Times and Places for Electing Senators and Representatives.--Section 4, Clause 1. _The times, places, and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives shall be prescribed in each State by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time, by law, make or alter such regulations, except as to the place of choosing senators_.

It is desirable that Congress should have the _final_ authority in providing for the election of its own members, because the very existence of the Union might otherwise be left, at times, to the whims of the State legislatures.

President of the Senate.--Section 3, Clause 4. _The Vice-President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote unless they be equally divided_.

Other Officers.--Section 3, Clause 5. _The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, or when he shall exercise the office of President of the United States_.

The Vice-President of the United States is the presiding officer of the Senate. He cannot take part in debates, and has no vote unless there be a tie. In marked contrast with the power of the speaker, he cannot name the committees, and has no direct authority in legislation. Indeed, the office is regarded as one of so little influence that it is sometimes difficult to secure, as candidates for it, men of recognized prominence.

The other officers of the Senate are secretary, chief clerk, sergeant-at-arms, chaplain, postmaster, librarian, and doorkeeper, none of whom is a member of the Senate. It is desirable, in the absence of the Vice-President, that the Senate should have a presiding officer. At the opening of the session, therefore, that body chooses from its own members a president _pro tempore_. He may vote on any question, but cannot cast the deciding vote in case of a tie.

When Congress Meets.--Section 4, Clause 2. _The Congress shall a.s.semble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by law appoint a different day_.

As we have already seen, representatives are elected for a term of two years. This period defines the length of a Congress. Representatives, as we know, are chosen on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Now the term of office of a representative begins legally on the fourth of March succeeding the time of his election.[18] The first regular session of the Congress to which he was elected does not begin until the first Monday of the following December, or thirteen months after the election. It would seem desirable that the members should be given an earlier opportunity to express themselves on the issues upon which they have been chosen.

[Footnote 18: The limits of the 63d Congress will be March 4, 1913, to March 4, 1915.]

Sessions of Congress.--Each Congress has two regular sessions. The first is called the "long session," for its length is not determined by a definite date of adjournment. It usually lasts until midsummer and may not extend beyond the first Monday in December, the time fixed for the beginning of the next session. The second, or "short session," cannot extend beyond 12 M. of March 4, the time set for a new Congress to begin. The President may convene Congress in special session.

Organization of Congress.--The first Monday in December of each second year is a notable day in Washington, for the formal opening of a new Congress is regarded as an important event. The House of Representatives must go through the entire process of organization. To the clerk of the preceding House are intrusted the credentials of the members, and from these he makes out a list of those who are shown to be regularly elected. At the hour of a.s.sembly he calls the roll from this list, announces whether or not a quorum is present, and states that the first business is to elect a speaker. After his election the speaker takes the oath of office, which is administered by the member who has had the longest service in the House. The speaker then administers the oath to the members by States. The election of the chief clerk and the other officers follows, after which the House is said to be organized.

The Senate is a "continuing body," and no formal organization is necessary. At the opening of a new Congress the Vice-President calls the Senate to order and the other officers resume their duties. After the president _pro tempore_ has been chosen, the newly elected members are escorted to the desk in groups of four, and the oath is administered by the president of the Senate. Each house, when organized, notifies the other of the fact, and a joint committee of the houses is appointed to wait upon the President and inform him that quorums are present and are ready to receive any communication he may desire to send.

The House of Representatives occupies a large hall in the south wing of the capitol. The desks of the members are arranged in a semicircle about that of the speaker, with the Republicans on his left and the Democrats on his right. When a member gains the floor, he speaks from his own desk or from the s.p.a.ce in front of the speaker's desk. Unless the question is one of importance, but little attention is paid to the course of debate. Consequently a visitor can hear only with great effort because of the constant din produced by the shuffling of papers, clapping of hands for pages, etc. The real work of Congress, as we shall see, is done in committees. The Senate occupies a hall at the opposite end of the capitol. It is, of course, much smaller than that occupied by the House, but is similarly arranged. In general, the proceedings on the floor of the Senate are conducted in a much more orderly manner than is usual in the House.

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTIONS AND REFERENCES.

1. What is the number of the present Congress? Give the dates for the beginning and end of each session.

2. In the States which have woman suffrage, may women vote for representatives?

3. It is not required by law that a representative shall reside in the district that he represents, but it is an established custom. What are its advantages and disadvantages? Compare with the English practice.

Bryce, American Commonwealth, I, Chapter 19.

4. Are the States which allow women the right to vote justified in the enactment of their suffrage laws?

5. Ought Section 2, Amendment XIV, to be enforced? Rev. of R's, 22:273-275, 653, 654; 24:649-651; Forum, 31:225-230; 32:460-465; N. Am.

Rev., 168:285-296; 170:785-801; 175:534-543; Outlook, 69:751.

6. State the points of likeness and of difference between the House of Representatives and the House of Commons. N. Am. Rev., 170:78-86.

7. Give the number of representatives to which your State is ent.i.tled.

Was the number increased in the last apportionment? How large is your Congressional district? Population?

8. Compare the area of your district with that of other districts in your State; also with the population of other districts. Compare the number of votes cast for representative in your district with the number cast in districts of other States in different sections of the country.

How do you account for the variation? See New York World Almanac.

9. Some interesting facts connected with the apportionment of 1901 are given in the Forum, 30:568-577.

10. For the Reapportionment Law of 1901, see Outlook, 67:136.

11. For accounts of the methods by which a census is taken, see American Census Methods, Forum, 30:109-119. Census of 1910, Rev. of R's, 41:589-596; 404, 405.

12. Who are some of the best-known representatives and senators? For what reasons are they noted?

13. Who are the senators from your State? When was each elected?

14. Give the names of the speaker and of the president _pro tempore_.

15. Would you have voted for the Seventeenth Amendment? See Outlook, 67:559-604; 73:277-285; 386-392. For other references, see James and Sanford, Government in State and Nation, p. 137.

CHAPTER VIII.