Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1856-01-25


party had rejected it. Did the gentleman, or any
member of Me House, suppose that if the Democrat
ic pary had adopted that resolution in caucus, and
then when it came before the House only some TWEEN
ty members of that party had voted for ii, and an
| overwhelming majority against it, such evidence
of bad faith would have passed by unnotced Could
thew believe that the country would have for mo.
ment sustained Mr. Stanton in his assertion that the
Democratic caucus had adopted the resolution; yet
when they came into the House three-ffths of them
| had recorded their votes against 1t
! MIR. EDhUNDSON, of Virginia. said that when
any gentleman asserted that the democratic party in
caucus then agreed to adopt the plurality rule, he
asserted that which was not true.
! Mr. ORR, of South Carolina, present at that
time, and such resolution that referred to by
the gentleman from Ohio adopted by the demo-
cratic caucus, either directly or indirectly.
! Mr. COBB of Georgia, merely wished to state that
! from the remarks of Mr.. Stanton it would be
that he intended say that the resolution had been
adopted in the whg caucus and had been reported
10 the democratic caucus by its committee appointed
to confer with similar committee OF the whig party,
but he intended to assert before the House.
did any member so understand him at that time, that
| the democratic party had adopted the resolution in
caucus.
Mr.. FULLER, Of Maine, of The few dem
ocratic members who voted at that time, fol the
solution and he did so knowing that it would elect
the gentleman from Georgia Mr.. CoBB1 Speaker
Those of the democratic party who voted for it did
so in direct opposition to the action of their caucus,
which rejected it.
Mr.. JONES, of Tennessee asked the gentleman
from Ohio to send 10 the Clerks table the book which
he had read the extract FROM and allow the whole of
it TO be read The record, read by the gentleman
from Ohio did not show that it was Mr.. Stanton who
said that the two parties had entered into agree
ment, but ii was the remarks of the reporter, that
" the House had now reached that contingency con-
templated in the proposition of Mr.. Stanton. 1t
had exhausted the three votngs therein provided for
without result, and had arrived at that point where,
IN fulhlment OF the agreement entered into between
the two parties, Speaker was to be elected by a
plurality vote ,; and Mr. Stanton, as the gentleman
from Ohio himself knew when he read it, had never
made such a statement He asked that the book
might be sent to the Clerks desk, that the Clerk
might read it.
MIR. LETCHER said that the plurality resolution
was adopted the 9th of December, 1849 and
five days afterwards the gentleman from Ohio Mr..
GIDDINGsl himself made speech in regard to the
plurality rule. He called the attention of the House
to what that gentleman said regarding the rule and
the party who adopted it, reading:
"He Mr.. GIDDINGsl desired to say to the House
and the country that the present occupant of the
Speakers chair held his Office the necessary result
of the plurality rule That rule had been forced up
on US by the wing party, aided by small por-
ton of the members from the other side of the House
| Great laughter.
! He (Mr. L } submitted that it did not become the
gentleman from Ohio to rise in his place and under
take to charge that the democratic party had adopted
that resolution, when he published and sent out to
the country, on that occasion, speech, revised and
published in pamphlet form, in which he purported
TO give facts.
He called the attention of the House to another
portion of the gentlemans speech, that gentle
mans speech, that gentleman now being in favor OF
the plurality rule, 1t read as follows:
" But the vote of plurality of this body would
the office of Speaker This was we'll understood by
the House The vote merely operated as nomina-
ton, while the election made by adopting the
resolution of the gentleman from North Carolina,
MIR. Stanley. That resolution as follows:
&c ReSolUed That the Hon. How ELL COBB, repre-
sentative from the State of Georgia, be, and he is
hereby declared duly elected Speaker of the House
for the 31st Congress-
This resolution gave him the Office, constituted
him the Speaker without it he would have had NO
claim to the Speakership."
ALI that be had to say in regard to the matter was
this he put it TO the gentleman from Ohio to say
whether, if he could adopt the plurality rule in this
body, he could ever elect MIR. BANKS Speaker ? Ac
codng to his principle he declared it indispensable
to constitute him such, and principles inlmuta
Bile and Interchangeable. If it was sound principle
e then-and the gentleman always for a strict ad
, herence to principle-what had opened his eye:
now : What had induced him 10 believe that wha
/ was wrong in 1849 right in 1856 If the gen
eman entertained the opinion now that he did then
could he complain of anybody in the House for op
8 posing the plurality rule Did he now believe tina
t majority upon this floor WILL between this and thu
sound of the last trump, agree that BANKS shall
+ be Speaker of this House
e Mr. GIDDfNGS was understood TO say that b.
believed that MIR. BANKS could not be elected by
S ajority vote.
d Mr.. LETCHER understood the gentleman to sa,
that Mr. BANKS could not be elected, and yet for tn
n purpose of carrying out the very design which hi
L, friend from Georgia [Mr. COBB had imputed to tn
other side, they insisted on BANKS and election, O.
t disorganizaton without an election They stood b,
d that gentleman, and insisted on forcing him upo1
: the House He desired TO know the reason of ii
s Was it because that gentleman had endorsed tn
# sentiment announced in the House the other day
IS social and political equality between the white an
the black races? Was it because they were desi
of seeing the problem worked out of practca
e amalgamation?
e Mr.. BANKS Do | understand the gentleman a
n saying tina: announced that sentiment
d Mr.. LETCH3R. ] say that the gentleman SAT-
there was problem to be worked out in which
J. was to be asCerained which race would absorb tn
other.
= Mr.. BANKS had made no such declaration. H
had expressed opinion upon any question that tn
= gentleman had pronounced upon. He had declares
that he would wait before he gave a declvlv
Vt answer upon the question; and, according to hi
e understanding of language, the sentiments whic
t. the gentleman had attributed to him not to
|, drawn from any just Interpretation of what he ha
n said. He knew perfectly WELL and every man knew
e that there inequality in the condition and in tn
present capacity of the two races, and he had neve
J. said that they equal AS regarded the senmen
imputed to him by the gentleman from N. Carolln
Mr.. CL1NGMAN the other day, he had disclamed
ID on the instant it presented, and he had TO sa
that he never entertained or contemplated in hi
y mind any such proposition idea as that; but, S
1t far as he enabled to gather his idea from tn
Or Language he had used, the theory of the amalgama