The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1839-11-23
ORGANIZATION OF THE HOUSE.


ORGANIZATION OF THE HOUSE
AT the opening of the 25th Congress, Mr..
franklin, who was the Clerk of the House of
Representatives of the Congress preceding,
called the House to order, and called over a
list of names Of Members Of Congress, which
he had gathered from newspapers and verbal
reports.
Mr.. Gushing, Of Massachusetts, before an
swering to his name, protested agains. the re-
coguilion OF gentlemen as members Of the
House upon mere rumor and newspaper re-
ports and, Also against the organization Of
the House under the direction of an individual
not one Of its members but made no notion
Mr.. Rhett, OF South Carolina, moved that
the Oldest member Of the House, Mr. Will
lams, Of North Carolina, be appointed chair
man, until the House was organized. A de-
bate growing out Of it, the motion was laid
upon the table, and Mr.. Franklin was suffered
to proceed in his call, when, quorum having
answered to their names, they proceeded to
ed, in speech subsequently made in the
House, "they allowed the Clerk of the pre-
vious Congress TO do what it was our duty to
have done MISUNDERSTANDING in the first
instance, who were members of the 25th
Congress. The consequence was, not sin.
gle credenfial Of membership pas produced,
and all were sworn in as members Of Con-
gress whom this unauthorized individual had
placed upon list, made out from the news
papers of the day"
This course is manifestly wrong and often
involves the House in difficulties, and in pro-
longed and irritating debates. After Clai.
bourne and Gholson had sat through the ex-
ira session, and couple Of months in the
winter session succeeding, and after long
and harassing debate, the objection was raised
that the House had been ignorant of the Gre
dentials, by authority Of which they had pre-
sumed TO take their seats. Our readers will
remember that the House at last declared that
they were not entitled to their seats, and sent
them back to another election. 1t was the
opinion of many that, had the House been
properly organized and the credentials Of the
Mississippi members been produced at the
beginning, the country would have been saved
an angry debate, and vast waste of time and
money.
The Clerk of one Congress is not, for that
reason an officer of the next succeeding Con-
gress. The Clerk of the Oath Congress had
no right therefore to set himself up as Clerk
or Chairman of the 25th Congress, and de-
tcrmne who were its members. The Clerk
of the last Congress, Mr.. Garland is not an
officer Of the next Congress, and has no more
authority to prepare list of members and call
them off in the House than a stone mason at
work upon the Post Office. We are not pre-
pared to say that he would permit party bias
to control him in the selection Of names, but
he has not rghtfully any thing whatever to do
with the business Of body of which he is
neither member nor an officer.
The proper course to pursue is, in our OPT
Mon, to appoint chairman, pro TEN. who
should call the House to order, and to whom
the credentials Of election should be SENT
Upon being opened by him, and laid before
the members present, they should be able to
determine amongst themselves, by their own
judgment, from the face of the credentials,
who are prima facis members of the 26th
Congress. All undispu,ed seats would of
course be filled, and in case of double certf-
Gates, preference would be given to those
about which there can be no doubt, by reason
Of informality or otherwise upon their face,
and the members holding such would take
their seats condionally, until Congress being
regularly organized, the disputed cases would
he sent to a committee, for their investga-
ton and report.
We respectfully suggest that each member
bring his certificate of election in his pocket,
not trust the mail-and that the House deter
mine for itself who are its members for the
Goth Congress.
(sEN SCOTr sc A iurp - -