Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1809-05-24

taG- -
and advertisement of opinion a subiec,
yield to none beside. Though none Of
those matters Of importance. may re-
cur, yet if the house employ themselves
three Or four hours, as they have done
to-day, on a motion which should be decid.
ed in an instant, how long they may cont.
nue an almanac maker Il calculate such
consumption of time, resembles and is a.
insipid as the punishment they have il
houses of correction, making the patien
knock one block against another block pure
ly for the purpose Of Knocking.
TIL house formed session at 10, and til,
journal of the preceding dav being read
M /. Edaaolbh. It is " al some degree o
surprise that lreadin the journal astatemen
of our proceedings know it has been thu
fashion TOR the journals to 60 under a trans
mutation in the clerks office, and wisl
to know whether the volume of trash we
have before us shalt supe rcede a clear
and plain statement of facts shall we have
to recur to the Nation ~Intelligencer or
other paper for q journal of proceedings
when-we should have a legitimate organ
within ourselves !; an important fact ha.
been totally neglected in the Journal of yes.
terday ali important fact, because we have
been in love SO much with precedent, the
neglect Of aballot made in the first instance
yesterday, for altho' it might appearclea
to ONE that there was All election by a le-
gal majority !; yet to other some that it was
an election by a minority. therefore move
That the clerk be instructed to make the,
Journal of yesterday a clear and correct re-
cord.
Which being seconded, it was withdrawn.
and the following substituted (after the word
ballot insert on the journaD the tellers re-
ported that the whole number of votes were
100, OF which Mr.. Varnum had 60, Ma
con 56, Pitkin c, Nelson 1, Goldsbsrough
1, and 2 blank votes:
On motion of Mr.. Randolph the house
proceeded to a second ballot, and it appear
ed that Mr.. Varnum had IS votes, being q
majority Of the whole number, Macon As
Pitkin 6,KoWard Nelson :, GoIdsborough
I, &c.
.> Mr.. ,Tackson had no objection to the mo-
ton CT the gentleman from Virginia, because
it stated a fact, and facts should always BIZ
inserted on tha---L- the result II
vt.vPrcsIdential election quoted by the gen
tleman was not an authofr from which
could be deduced the inference of an ille-
gality in the first ballot.
Mr.. RaudoLbh. 1t is well to understand
this question: did not cite the presiden-
tial election as an authority but to shew
that it was no authority to sanction the first
ballot | leave it TO your candor, sir, wha,
cher you would sit as easy and as honorable
in that chair were you advanced to it by {
minority, as wher you was sitting under 8
clear and undisPuted majority--a majority
who would elevate you to the chair undel
the first ballot may be friends in sentiments
bur nol in r~eality--a minority is both | AN
nst ff FAVOR of doing wrong because coed
may arise out of it.
Mr.. AAston had no objection to the mo-
ton, because it did not say whether or no,
the first ballot was illegal, altho' that it was
a legal, just and correct election Of Speaker,
| can never doubt, except / admit that &C
were not a majority of 118 votes never con
senting to a precedent establishing blank
votes as legal.
A good neal of interlocutory discussion
arose out of the motion, when it was moved
that 1t be postponed.
A message from the president of the y.
States being announced.
The message and documents accompany.
ing it presidents proclamation, and Smith
and Erskine's correspondence being read
it was moved that they be referred to a com
mittee Of the whole house, and 5000 copies
! ordered to be printed.