Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1853-09-08
SEPTEMBER 8, 1853.
From the Evening Fost.
A Chapter from
Colonel Benton's History.
.abom to be published.
tANNo 1926. JAMES MoNRoE. PREsIpEyr
Presidential Election in the House az
Representatives.

|
| Representatives.
1t has already been shown that the tLeorv n,
the constIt'on, and its practical working was en-.
tlrely different in the election of President and
Vice President-that by the theory, the people
were only to choose electors, TO whose superior
intelligence the choice of fit persons for these
high stations was entirely commtted-and that,
IN practice, this theory had entirely failed from
the beginning. From the very first election the
electors were made subordin ate to the people.
having no choice Of their own, and pledged to
deliver their votes for particular person, accor-
ding tothesssill of those who elected them. Thus
the theory had failed In its application to the
electoral college; but there might be second or
contingent election, and has been and here the
theory OF the constitution has failed again. In
the event of no choice being made by the elec-
tors, either for want of majority Of electoral votes
being given to any one, or an account of an
equal majority for lwo,' the House of Represen
tatives an electoral college for the occasion, lin
tied to choice out of the five highest, (before
the constitution was amended.) or the wohghest
having an equal majority. The President and
Vice President were not then voted for separate
ly, or with any designation of their Office. All
appeared upon the record as presidential nomi.
nees--the highest on the list having Il majority,
to be President, the mex, highest, also having a
| maioritu IN ho Vioo proc;dont. but ho na,,Io
from the beginning, had Disseminated between
the persons for these respective places, always
meaning one on their ticket for President, The
other for Vice President. But, BY he theory of
the constitution and its words, those intended
Vice-Presidenis might be elected President in
the House of Representatives, either by being
among the five highest when there was no ma
jority, or being one Of two in an equal majority.
This theory failed in the House of Representa-
tives from the first election, the demos kraieo
principle the people to govcrn-prevailing there,
as in the electoral colleges, and over-rung The
constitutional design in each.
The first election in the House of Represent
atives was that of Mr.. Jefferson and Mr. Burr
in the session of ls0O-l60l. These gentlemen
had each majority of the whole number of
electoral votes, and an equal majorlty-73 each
-Mf. BURR being intended for Vice President.
One Of the contingencies had then occurred in
which the election went to the House of Rep
resentatives. The fedcralists had acted more
wisely, one Of their state electoral colleges,
(,hat Of Rhode Island,) having '"i,hhyeld vote
from the intended Vice-President on their sidc
Mr. Charles Cotesworlh Pinckney, Of South
Caoina and so prevented an equality Of votes
between him and Mr. John Adams. 1t would
have been entirely constitutional in the House
of Representatives to have elected Mr.. Burr
President, but at the same time, gross vocation
Of the democratic principle, which requires the
will of the majority to be complied with. The
federal states undertook to elect Mr.. Burr, and
kept up struggle of seven days and nights and
until the thirty sixth ballot There were six
teen states, and it required the concurrence of
nine to effect an election Until The thirty sixth
Mr.. Jefferson had eight, Mr.. Burr six, and two
we're divided. On the thirty-sixth ballot Mr..
Jefferson had ten states, and was elected. Gen.
Hamilton, though not then in public life, took
decided part in this election, rising above all
personal and all party considera tons, and urg-
ing the fedcraists from the beginning to vote
for Mr.. Jefferson. Thus the democra tic princi-
Pile prevailed The choice Of the people was
elected BY the House of Representatives and
the struggle was fatal to those who had opposed
that principle. The federal party was broken
down, and at the ensuing Congress election, was
left in small minority. Its candidate at the
Presidential election received but fourteen votes
out OF one hundred and sevenly-six. Burr, in
whose favor, aud with whose connivance the
struggle had been made, was ruined-fell under
the ban of the republican party, disappeared
from public life, and was only seen afterwards in
criminal enterprises. and ending his life in want
and misery. The constitution itself, in that par
ucular, (the mode of elec,on,) was broken down,
and had to be amended so as to separate the
Presidential from the Vice-Presidenta ticket,
giving each separate vote ; and in the event of
no election by ihe electoral colleges, sending
each to separate Houses-the three highest on
the Presidential lists to the House of Represen-
tatives, the two highest on the Vce-Presiden-
|ta, to the Senate. And thus ended the first
struggle in the House Of representatives, lin re.
aton to the election of President,) between the
theory of the constitution and the democratic
nciple--triumph to the principle, ruin TO Its
opposers, and destruction to the clause io the
constitution which permitted such struggle.
The second Presidential election in the House
OF Representatives was after the lapse OF guar
Ter of century, and under the amended consti'
tuition, which carried the three highest on the
list to the House when no one had majority Of
the electoral votes. General Jackson, Mr.. John
Quincy Adams, and Mr.. William H. Crawford,
were the three, their respective votes being W,
"a, Al and in this case a second struggle took
place between the theory of the constitution and
the democratic principle and with eventual de.
feat to the opposers of that:'principle, though
temporarily successful. Mr.. Adams was elected,
though Gen. Jackson was the shoice OF the peo-
pie, having the greatest number of votes, and
being undoubtedly the secondsShoice oi several
states whose votes had been given to Mr. Craw-
ford and Mr.. Clay lat the general election') The
representatives from some Of these states gave
the vote of the state to Mr. Adams, upon the ar
gument ,ha, he was best qualified for the station,
and that ii was dangerous to our institutions to
elect military chiefsin-an agreement which
assumed guardianship over the people, and
implied the necessity Of superior intelligence
to guide them for their own good. The election
Of Mr.. Adams was perfectly constitutional, and