Des Moines courier. ([Ottumwa] Iowa) 1848-1854, 1850-07-12

Miller and Thompson.
i A House Of Representatives largely
Locofoco, has declared that Mr.. Thomp-
SON was not entitled to the seat he occu-
pied in the House by virtue of certifi-
cate of election given TO him by the Lo-
cofoco Secretary of State in Iowa. II
is clear that one of the two was elected:
and as they declare that Thompson is
not the man, as a matter of course Mr..
Miller was duly elected and entitled to
the seat. But in the face of all this, we
see that some of the locofoco organs in
the State have the effrontery to insult the
good sense of the people. by holding
.'that the Pottawatamie vote was illegal,
and ought not to be counted" Now,
we ask all such quibblers why, if the
Kanesville vote was illegal, did not the
Locofoco party retain Thompson in the
seat! If the vote was illegal as conten-
ded, Thompson was most assuredly
elected, and why did they Gust him!-
The act of Congress is conclusive evil
dence that they regarded the vote as ie-
gal.
But the Jeffersonian says: "We Qhey)
are able to prove that the vote was ille-'
gall" No one could doubt for a mo-
ment that the editor of that paper knows
more than the members of the House of
Representatives! And surely Congress
and the people of Iowa, ought to feel un-
der many obligations TO this able erpoun-
der of iaw, for they have been many
months, with The little of legal ability
they possess, trying to determine this
matter, and we are modestly told that
they could not do it; but 10 and behold
our Iowa editor takes up the matter and
dispatches il in few moments, and tells
MS once for all, that the Kanesyille vote
was not only illegal, but that he can
prove it. Now, this settles the question,
and we and the people have only to re-
greet that he did not vouchsafe decision,
before the two hundred and odd members
OF the House in their laundering declar-
ed the vote to be legal. But says the
editor, "when Congress being unable to
determine this question, that was deter
mined by the Clerk, send back the cleo
tion to the people"
Now, this is about as cool as any one
could wish. The eminent legal talent
in Congress, with the law and all the
facts in the case before them, we are
: told are not able to determine question
of law, while a county Commissioners
Clerk of one of the back counties, who
probably never saw law book in his
liie-settled the question, and rejected
the vote. But the Editor is very tender
; about the Locofoco party bearing the
; blame of this outrage upon the elective
franchise, and while he would make a
few of the leaders in the transaction bear
the brunt of it, he begs 10 have the party
excused,
Now, we never have and we do moi
now charge that the masses of the party
had any hand in this nefarious transac-
lion, but we do say and it is the truth
that the leaders of the Locoloco party;
with Dodge at their head, (who called fol
nine cheers for the said clerk of Monroe
Barber, of poll book notoriety;) have
endorsed the high handed act, and
justified it as the act of the LoccfocG
party. Thompson's political friends in
Congress, consid ering him as identified
with this base and corrupt affair to dis.
franchise, and swindle several hundred
legal voters Of Iowa put the seal of con
; domination on his conduct and on that o
the Locofoco leaders and presses of 10
; wa, and have virtually said TO the world
and to the Locofocos of Iowa "we wasl
our hands of this foul deed" be it OF
your own head; and long harangues may
be delivered, and coaxing and threaten
ings used to bring democrats up to you
support, but hundreds Of the honest 0
, your own party will condemn you; ant
this base affair, over which you chucklet
for time, will yet be mighty mill stone
! about the neck of Locofocoism, to drag
it down to the earth, and bid it rise ne
more in Iowa to rule and destroy.
Public Speaking.
We learn from the Sentinel that the