Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1839-12-07

shown that neither by the law o! View Jtfsey ~
the Constitution cf the United States. have clerks
,n.,,us any authority II inrrct ~ til" TRANSMISSION "
,l ya,rs oil tn. ,llo box 10 Tho Governor, ana ti'''"S'
him t. Congress, tint the WI - '' 'i"I"i'' ~
b., carried out ia the chn 81 Kspr'>rn'R' ''e-"''
Aar" they authority - jaig' % ~, ''e' - ~ II
WL,f clerks of Cumberland and hiGdtrscN c"uh-
t,. IN New JERSEY usrrpcd the r:ght Of i"h9i's 90
~, ,,nc.;nus ,n,i returns Of members Of Congress
IN ,hc- rcsocc,tyc counties. In Cumberland IN"
clark set ASIDE the return Ci the township al AilViii",
,h Oh cave ono hundred and sN Democratic majority,
although awful return VAS made by township ON
GERS and delivered him in due tine because, as ne
alleged, il not under seal. nor scaled up IL mas
been shown that the law OF New Jersey does not pre-
scribe any form Of such return, that IT should Dc
sealed but only that the envelope should he sealed up
Tins defect of orn wcu not BE- reg cdhr Inc House
Of Assembly OF New Jersey, i already shown; ana
the House OF Representa- yes {" the ntcd states, Va
Contested Elections so declared IL IL hr mere matter
nj form and that al! intornatrs Of returning officers
ouoht to he overlooked. The clerk OF Cumberland,
therefor mol o.s constituted himself Judge IN ihis
mailer in DESPITE o: the ConSt lnt'"n OF thc Ih'.a
states and without authority from u" law ~ y.
Jersey but, usurping that character, reversed bo'h
,b Decisions of the House Of Assembly Of New Jersey
and The House of Representatives OF the United Stacs
md nnliicd and suppressed the votes of tue people Oh
that township The clerk OF M:ddesrN. finding tiiat
tbs alarming usurpaun OF authority by the CLERK ~
tha county of Cuiubcrllnd would only defeat two OF
,h REPRESENTATIVES. chosen by the people OF New Jcr-
sew and that three Democrats would sii nave mao
rty after h. had vrw of The whole ground ana nad
,,,n to make accur,ic calculations, al the very las' mo-
ment that he could legally make out cert med lsl a
,crmnrd 10 suppress the returns OF the township 81
South Amhoy, which had gwen y! Democratic ma
iorty ana accordingly ryTulgrd IN" votes = MAJ 10" n
sim which he had previously pn! on has list ana mace
return TO the Governor, emitting that township.
These mu, lated Isl returned IN the Governor
a., ,br clerks of cu.nh.ran and hU'drscN. and by
- ~. PR he tlIIS
made y the clerk of MIddcs"x was thai INC r"rthcat
of amendment Of one Of the inspectors OF the sonh
Amhov election not Transmitted TO nm "itin te
time prescribed by law although WAS made ou' IN que
form Of Law and rendered to Inn afterwards, but he re-
fused 10 do his duty By Slug it. The House OF As
Schly of New Jersey, October. I'm, III the case OF
Pearson and Read already referred TO- had declared That
# such certificate had neither been framed or ti!cd,
did not vitae an election; and the House Ut k"P.a-
s,nta,vcs Of tie United States IN Contested Elections
10--9) held the same prnctle
u hen these nu'la"d return" were prosecute" 10 ,,c
Governor and Council ronended that 1t w;'S Inc
duty of the Governor 10 cons der them as no returns
and to send express and procure ui ana perfect re-
turns as directed By the law of ic State: tha suci
INITIATED returns were such returns a. contemplated
by law and thu, they could not execute their duly
which was precise and definite to cast up the "ho'c
number of votes from the several counties, and 10 de-
ter,niae IRE sir persons who have the grrat'S nHmb OF
votes from the tchos State for Representatives IN Con-
arr
IN, having the whole returns before them. There
was no dispute ahuu, the facts and III, only qucs-
ton was, whether the Governor mad ~ S"'h case
aowcr II send an express to tue drlin1ucnt clerks
and Obtain full returns: and SECOND. WHEELER 'hcy
rould net mon any thing but these nu,lacd returns.
The Governor and Council determined ini they could
MOI i'm such cast look beyond the mn;laicd returns
which the clerks Of MiGd'csrS and Cumberland had
chosen IL send t. them We have ccrticd and proven
COPIES of Tn" returns Of Aillv,l!c and Scnih hnG"y,
which were lad before 1hr Governor and Council but
they were d.srcnarl,d because the Governor and
Council determined that they could mol look beyond
the returns of the county clerk. Gov. Pennington,
however, in his opinion, delivered 10 the irry t"un-
Gil page ], says
Bat il will he asked, with force ans p-opricty, is a
candidate lose his scat in Congress because county
clerk does not make return o: the votes, Certainly
not II through madvcrt,Scc. or BY design iy-yotca
have not bcen returned by The clc!ksc', Is IN POW
or of the House OF Representatives III their diacrei!o
II allow those votes. and give the seals TO the pcrs"
Who with those votes ma; be elected Al rcprcscn-
tatvc assemblies possess. and continually exercise the
riGht Of deciding who is entitled 20 scat IN them ~
give the certificates to the persons WI" may appear. BY
casting up the clerk returns I" have The greatest mum
Der of votes We obliged b. aw To DO So but the
House 81 Representatives 20 further. and inquire
whether anv Of the have not been returned and
counted: and, If suc hc TIE case, may allow them, IN
their discretion Onr laws evidently contemplate such
state OF things, for they require the township officers
Ia duplicate certificate OF >uCh citction ana
to file tc same VIII! The clerk III br used
sion may REQUIRE. Ii would be Ia most paau
reflection wcr,. 10 believe that tn" restraints under
which We are placed by the law "i not cong beyond
the certificate OF the county clerk. would deprive any
candidate Of his ultimate rights declare here my
rarpn,t wish that before the proper and constitutional
tribunal for deciding the matter, such candidate may
have the full benefit of every legal vote IL may haze
received at the election
hmasa Armstrong, Esq. the only member Of the
Privy Council who delivered written opinion, Is equal
" explicit In page he says 'iThcrc is another tr
una possessing the most unquestonabe right and the
most ample power, TO correct all mistakes or nlIscon-
duct of township officers of election, of the county
clerks or Of hiSLodV The House OF Representatives,
as the constitutional Judges of the election Of their
own members could examine the whole matter, in all
lis starcs and rcctv all that wrong whether from
accident, negligence, or design "Not only has Con-
nress tn power but il most clearly exclusive
power.
II will thus clearly appear that the Governor and
Come Of New Jersey, III grating the commissions 10
the persons who hold item, aud now claim their seats
by virtue Of such commissions not only dad not grant
them to them receiving the greatest number OF votes
of the people uf New Jersey but because Of the fraud
ulcn usurpaton of powers by the clerks of Cumberland
and Mddlrscx respectively in suppressing the votes
of The townships ot Nl!v.llc and South Amhoy; and
moreover declared, that he had right to 6ecrmi"r
which s:x persons had the greatest number OF votes III
the whole State, and that they werr restrained from so
doing, or from c"GSnG me said clerks 10 perfect lciF
returns both BY the law Of New Jersey and III" Costi
tuition of the United States and that Congress had the
exclusive power correct the nadvcrtcncc design of
those clerks. The Governor and Prlvy Council. BY
this sclfdcnvin@ decision. have cast the whole matter
upon Congress.
Thus, il plainly appears. that Peter ID. Nrnnm, VIM.
r. Cooper. Philemon Dick"rson, Dan!ci b. Ryall, aud
Joseph kc, were five Of the 81 persons who had the
greatest number of votes from the whole State for Re
representatives. in the Twenty sixth Congress: and yet
commissions have been gwen TO John b Aycrigg, john
r. B. Maxwell William l1asted, Charles {. Stratt"n.
and Thomas Jones Yorkc who confsscdy received less
votes at the polls than the other candidates This
suit effected by the acton of the clerks of Middle
and Cumberland in illegally undertaking TO Judge
Of the returns of thu townships Of Melville and South
Atnhoy, and arbitrarily supprcssing them, and the re-
usal Of the Governor to compel them, he lawfully
might, 10 transmit those returns 10 him. Had those
returns been transmitted To the Governor and Council,
by law they ought 10 have been they could not have