Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1859-10-18

Ages-Messre. Hlidretns 6uhsef, SohasonI Lane
Mickey. Minis, Mcclellan, McNeilly, Payne, Pc
ters. sioysll, Thompson, Trimble, Wood and Speak
or Newman-15.
Eoss-Messrs Allen, Bradford, Bumpsss, Horn.
Nash Richardson, Stanton. Stokes, and Stokely--9.
So the resolution Wss lsj1 upon the table.
THE cosTEs I'D ELEcrloN.
Mr. STOVALL. chairman of the special commit
4ea an the contested election from the Eighth Sena-
torisl District gave notice that the committee would
submit their report Ga Wednesday pOFning at ten
On motion of Mr. PAYNE, the Senate adjourned
to nine o'clock tomorrow morning.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,.
ra- MoSbAY, October II, 1859.
The SPEAKER called the House to order at 10
The session was opened with prayer by the Rev,
J.. P. CAMPBBL+.
The journal of yesterday was read and auihenti-
Gated.
Mr. WILLIAMS, Of Hickman, presented petit
ton praying for The creation Of civil district
in HICKMAN county, which he moved be referred to
the Committee on new counties a1d county lines
without reading.
The motion was agreed to.
LEAVE OF ABsEKcs.
lion motion, Mr. SENTFR obtained leave of alb
sence on account of sickness.
PUBLIC DOCUMENTS, PAPERS AND POSTAGE.
Mr. TREWHITT offered the following:
RssoIpeS, That one thousand copies Of the Gov
errors message bs printed for the use Of the mem
bers Of this House.
ResoIUsd, That the DoOrkeePer subscribe for Eve
copies, for each of the members Of this Houss, of
the Legislative Union and American, and as many
copies of the city daily papers in Nashville for each
member of this House as said member may desire,
not TO exceed I'VE.
RESOLVED faytler, That all public documents seat
abroad for distribution by the members, be trans
mittsd through the Doorkeeper to the Postotice aud
that he procure ell the necessary stamps TO pay the
postage on the same.
RESOLVED further, That ell the expenses incident
to said documents and papers and postage be daid
out Of the contingent fund Of the House.
The resolution les over one day under the rules
Mr. lICKNELL,mad an Intellectual motion TO sus-
pend the TEleg that the resolution may be consider
ed at once,
RIGHTS OF WIDOWS.
Mr.. Speaker WHITTHORNE (Mr. Ghied in the
Chair submitted the following:
ResolUed, That the Committee on the Judiciary be
instructed to enquire whether under existing laws,
widows of persons dying testate, are upon dissent
entitled to any share in the personal estate of such
Qec5denL, a0Q II not Jnat SAID C0Umlttee De and
they are hereby instructed to report bill giving
to such widow the rights she may have had in such
a contingency previous to the passage Of the Code.
The resolution lies over one day
RECESS.
On motion by Mr., CHEATHAM the House took q
recess for ten minutes, preparatory to NEE ing the
Senate in joint Committee for the purpose of pro-
ceeding with the counting of the votes cast az the
last Gueernatorisl election remaining not canvass
ed at the adjournment of the Committee on the -
inst.
After the expiration Of the time proposed,
The SPEAKER called the House to order, when
The Senate was announced at the bar ana invited
to seats within the Hail.
joint CONVECTION.
Tho SPEAKER of the Senate Hon. Tar. W. New
man called the convention to order.
The teliers appeared in their places except Mr.
Gillespie of the House whose place Mr.. Speaker
NEWMAN appointed Representative CHEATHAM
to FL.
Representative HARRIS stated that hs had procur-
ed from thu Secretary of States Office this morning
The returns which hsd not been counted and which
he held in his hand.
On motion of Representative CHEATHAM, they
were counted as though received through the Spea-
ker Of the Senate.
Upon finishing the comparison Of votes Mr.
Speaker NEWMAN announced thSt there was ques-
the new county of Sequatehie.
Representative MORRIS, moved that they be ex-
cuded from the for Governor, for this rea-
son The county was organized il pursuance Of the
Legislature and the constitution of the State pro-
vded that counties shall vote with the counties
from which they are taken until the next regular
apporionment after their organization. As there
had been no spportionment since the organic stion
of the county of Ssquafche, he therefore made the
motion.
Senator MINIS thought it ought to be counted
10; he had the best legal opinion in the State that
it was right.
Speaker WHITTHoRNE entertained precisely the
same view Of the Representative from Wayne, (Mr.
Morris Since the last spportionment the county
Of Sequatchie has been established, and the last
section of the tenth article of our State constitution
expressly provides that, "The citizens who may be
included in any new county, shall vote with the
county or COMMITTEES from which they msy have been
stricken off, for members Of Congress, for Governor
and for members of the General Assembly, until the
next app ortiopmeut of members to the General As
semby alter the establishment o. such new county"
Having voted as an Independent county, he could
not, with his views of the constitution, vote to
count the vote cent up here by the county of Sc
qustchie.
Representative HARRIS lives in the Senatorial
district in which this question has come up, and is
somewhat conversent with all the circumstances
o. the case out enould De c0mpeleQ 10 vote 10 eX-
clude the county of Sequatchie; if he to vote
Otherwise he considered be woEld be going contrary
to the constitution of the State Of Tennessee.
Senator STANTON drew 9 distinction between
this case and the contestant for seats in the
Senate. He should vote to count the votes sent up
by the county Of Sequstche-And why not? It
would not affect the election way or the other,
and by not doing so, gentlemen would disfranohise
certain citizens of the State. The votes cast by
the counties bordering have been counted, minu-
the number of votes cast by the county of Sequats
chic.
The returns from the counties of Hamilton and
Sequstchie were then read from the Clerks desk
Representative WISENER took it as very plain
that the citizens of Sequatcbie should vote with the
counties from which they have been stricken off
The certificate returning the vote is illegal accord
ug to the Constitution, and The Constitutional pro-
vision is imperative. He saw no other way than TO
vote to exclude the returns from this county.
Senator PAYNE thought this controversy was not
worth the candle. It does not follow, because the
Constitution says q county is to vote with the
old county, that therefore the Sheriff of the old
county must hold the election.
Senator STANTON said that clause of the Con-
siituton which had been read here was simply d.
rectery and not imperative. We must look at the
true spirit ard Intention of the trainers of the Con-
stitution when they drafting that section for
its meaning. What did they mean? Not that the
DeODle
any particular place, and thst it of such impor
tanes that if they did by soy accident informality
tbst they should be deprived of their sursEes; but
simply that they should vote with the
ties from which they are stricken of, until the
next apporiionmeut. Would Senators and Repre-
seotatiyes contend that upon mere matter of for
mality, portion of the people of the State of Ten
pesSee should be deprived of the elective franchise!
Represental,ve BICKNELL understood the consti-
intionsl provision referred be imperative. II
does not say they 'msy" but they ''sha vote" sc.
According 10 his understanding, there was no such
copntv. and could be no such county known as
Seouatehie until the next apportionmeut; and he
sonId net see how Senators and Representatives
copld vote to receive its returns under ttis provi
sion of the Constitution.
Representative TREKHITT conteDdsd that the
constitution did not prescribe the mode nor manner
in which the eleeton shall be held and it was 6oc-
trne worthy to be held sacred that no free cii-
zen shall be disfrsncbised account of any irregu-
lsritv of the officers Of election The only question
arising is whether the people assembled together
under the ordinary forms Of Law to cast their votes,
and if SO is it within the bounds of the Governors
election; and if So they cannot be excluded without
manifest injustice 10 the people He insisted that
the vote of the county of Sequstchie must be count
ed We should do no violence TO any part of the
country.
Representative EWING demanded the previous