Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-09-06
THE CONVENIENCE on THE FRAN.
CHTSE LAW.

THE CONVENIENCE OF THE FRAN
CHTsE LAW.
The Knoxville Wing, Of which Gov
Brownlow is the senior editor contains
the following in its issue Of the 4th inst
There is quite an excitement in Judg'
| Buffers circuit as to who shall succeed hin
in Office There are four or five loyal lneI
who are candidates for the position, and W.
are within bounds when we say the Gov
ernor has received, from first to last, hal
a bushel of letters and petitions favOrinl
! the appointment Of one or another OF the
| candidates. The franchise law requires thai
after the registration is completed, and SO
reported. vacancies of this kind occurring
shall be filled by an election of the people.
| The presumption il, that the registration Is
complete, and 80 reported, and If SO, an
election will be ordered. But the Governor
/ is urged to order the election at once. His
reply is, that there is no vacancy and that
it viii be time enough to order the election
when Judge Butler resigns"
= The Governor seems to have just dis
covered thatthe franchise law provides that
vacancies Of this kind shall be filed by
election, but he is still utterly oblivious
TO the fact that the constitution requires
thatthe Judicial officers ofthe State shallbt
illedby an election by the qualified voters
The reason for this discovery is disclosed
in the fact that four or five loyal men
are put forward by their friends for the
position, and the claims of each one for
appointment are so strongly urged that
the Governor is afraid to offend the
friends Of the others by comforting the
appointment upon one Of the four or five
and hence he says he will order an cleo
ton, especially as the franchise law SC
requires.
But the Governor is not sure that the
registration has been completed in the
counties composing the first judicial cir
cult The eleventh section of the fran
chise law provides
That it shall be the duty of each Com
missioner of Registration to report to the
Governor, when he shall have completed
the registration of his county; and when
said reports are all in from any county,
district, or circuit, or from the entire State
it shall be the duty Of the Governor TO issue
his proclamation and writ of election, an
nouncing the completion of such registra.
ton, and ordering elections to fill all the
vacant Offices of the State, counties, cir
cults or districts"
A very important election was held
last month, and now the Governor says
" the presumption is that the registration
is completed in the counties composing
the first Judicial circuit Did any State
eyer present so singular a construction Of
laws as is now practiced in Tennessee
When an election is to be held if it suits
the within Of the Governor to permit it, he
so CONSTITUTES the franchise law; but if il
is his within that the election be not held
he construes the law as forbidding such
election, and forthwith proceeds to make
an appointment to fill the existing vacan-
cy, Notwithstanding such action is in di.
rect contravention Of the constitution
and laws Of the State If he should APP
point and commission Rebel to Of
fee, and his Radical supporters who re-
gard the Offices as belonging to them
should make fuss about this appoint
ment, and he should order an election
and that Rebel should be elected
by the qualified voters, he constructs the
franchise law as authorizing him to with
hold the commission of the gentleman
thus elected, Notwithstanding he had con
sidered him worthy and capable to
appoint and commission him to the
self,same Office only few weeks pre-
vious This franchise law is an emf
nently convenient and elastic piece
Of legislative workmanship 1t author
ICES the Governor to make appointments
where there is a doubt Of the success
Of the Radical candidates before the
people, and it authorizes him to order
elections where all doubt upon this score
is removed. 1t authorizes him to 90 be-
hind the returns of the officers holding
elections and determine what portion of
the vote is legal and what not, so as
to make certain the election of only loyal
men Such a law is certainly a very
convenient affair But now that the
qualified voters have been thoroughly
purged Of all the disloyal % portion, or
at least all that could endanger the sue
cess Of the Radical candidates in any
single handed contest, we presume that
this very convenient law will be found to
have lost much of its elastic properties,
and that more liberal construction of
its powers and meaning viii prevail
The first evidence Of this feeling Of
safety is to be found in the confession Of
the Governor that the franchise law re
quires the filing of vacancies in the
Offices made elective by the constitution
" by an election by the people