Democracy Downed

No. 1 plank of Publisher Robert Rutherford McCormick's Chicago Tribune Program for America is: "Restore Constitutional Government to Rhode Island." To Democrats in this tiniest of States the plank is decidedly distasteful. For many years they have unsuccessfully bucked: 1) the Rhode Island constitution; 2) the stout-muscled Republican machine of wealthy textile mill-owners. By the constitution, Providence, with nearly half the State's 687,000 citizens, can elect only four of its 42 Senators. 25 of its 100 House members. Other cities have representation far below their relative voting strength. The rural communities, stoutly Republican, have kept a strangle hold on the Senate, thwarted every Democratic Governor, permitted him to name only his own secretary and the State inspector of barber shops.

Local elections in 1934 swept Democrats into control of the House, left Republicans with a two-vote margin in the Senate. On New Year's Day 1935 the Democratic Lieutenant Governor, Robert Emmett Quinn, took matters in his own hands. As the Senate's presiding officer, he declared the election of two Republicans null & void, installed two Democrats in their places. To form a quorum he had State troopers force three other Republicans to remain in the chamber. Thus equipped with a Democratic majority, in 14 1/2 minutes he whipped through a series of astounding reforms intended to break the Republicans' hold. At midnight, after a twelve-hour postponement, Governor Theodore Francis Green delivered his inaugural address.

For shrewd Revolutionist Quinn this was just the beginning. Two months ago he demanded a constitutional convention to remove, once & for all, the "rotten borough" system. On the day the bill came up for vote, two Republicans were sick abed, three Democrats opposed it. Not to be caught napping a second time, Republicans dragged 69-year-old Senator Frank E. Payne from bed, stuck him on a couch in the Senate lounge, had a nurse prime his weak heart so that he could vote. Before Republicans or Democrats could charge each other with the old man's "murder," anxious relatives trundled him back to bed. Meanwhile ten hours of wrangling convinced one opposition Democrat to change sides, provided small towns be permitted their same numerical representation. The roll call stood at 20-to-20. Revolutionist Quinn cast the deciding vote for the Democrats. Governor Green, descendant of Revolutionary War heroes, promptly ordered a State referendum on the question of reapportioning Rhode Island's representation to match more fairly its population.

Last week to the amazement of Democrats and the joy of arch-Republican Publisher McCormick, Rhode Islanders squashed the possibility of a convention by a vote of 98,383-to-87,034. More amazing still were returns showing that, had the convention been held. Democrats would have controlled it by four votes.

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