The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1868-07-29

MI. Seymour repleQ tnaC the HOUSE nau
incautiously adopted the majority report,
and had thereby ignored law of the State,
as laid down in chapter So of the revised
code, on contested elections.
Mr.. Harris. of Wake, after farther remarks
in opposition to the motion to suspend the
rules for the purpose mentioned, moved to
lay the motion upon the table, and called
for the yeas and nays, which were ordered.
The house refused to table. Yeas "a, nays
The motion to suspend the rules then pre-
vailed.
MIR. Stevens moved to reconsider the vote
of yesterday adopting the majority report.
Mr.. Seymour said the question before the
House was not party one. 1t was for the
interest of the people of the State to act ac-
cording to law. 1t mattered little whether
the sitting or contesting member from Cam
den was entitled to the seat in question. Ii
Legislators violate the law in the act OF ma
king laws, what could be expected from the
peoples The sitting member from Camden
may have known for thirty days that his
seat would be contested. IF the two Houses
of the Legislature believed that sufficient
notice had been given, the difficulty could
be removed by repeating the statute as laid
down in chapter 30 of the Revised Code,
which prescribes that ''no person shall be al
lowed to contest the seat of any member of
the General Assembly, unless he shall have
given the member thirty days notice thereof
in writing, which must state the particular
grounds of such contest" &c. But while
the statute remains in force, though no hui
man power could punish Legislators for vio-
1ati ot nh q
would cite the words, not of lawyer. pent
up in the narrow limits of professional ideas,
but of the great master of human nature
himself In the Merchant OF Venice, when
Bassanio asked the Judge to violate law in
his decision:
"And eseech you
Wrest once the law to your authority,
To do great right, do a little wrong"
Hear the answer:
eft must not be: there is no power in Venice
Can alter decree established.
Twill be recorded for precedent,
And many an error by the same example
Will rush into the State: it cannot be"
Such, sir, is the spirit of that regard for
law which makes the common law of Eng
land and of her descendants, the noblest sys-
TEN of jurisprudence the world has ever
known.
The Constitution, article ", sec. ~, pro-
vides that all laws not inconsistent with the
Constitution of North Carolina, or that of
the United States, shall remain in force. 1t
had been correctly stated by the gentleman
from johnson, (Mr Pou) that there was
nothing in the Code just cited, repugnant
either to the Constitution of this State or of
the United States.
The gentleman from Wake, (Mr. Harris,)
who submitted the majority report, had adj
vanced three propositions, the first two of
which he could agree with, but would dis
sent from the third. Those propositions
were, list. The election was held under an
act of Congress; 2d. The laws governing
our decision must be the acts of Congress
and Sd. The mode of ascertaining who is
entitled TO seat as the result of the election.
must be regulated by acts of Congress. The
House sustaining the views advanced by the
gentleman, had overlooked disticfion very
familiar to lawyers, viz: between the right
and the remedy Whether the contestant is
entitled to the seat is the matter of right.
and must be controlled by the law existing
at the time of the election. If he is so emit,
tied, the mode of obtaining it is the remedy
He has right to the seat under the laws of
Congress being kept out of 1t is wrong,
which we are to remedy by the laws of North
Carolina To illustrate: B executes to A
note in New York, in which State the rate
of interest is per cent A sues in North
Carolina, where the interest is 6 per cent. B
defends on the ground of usury. A answers
! yes, but the contract was made in New York,
and the law of that State must determine ON
| the right between us in the contract. B says
| the note was due more than three years since,
and is barred by the statute of limitations.
Yes, A replies, but not more than six years,
which sthe limit in New York. All, B re-
| ples-and this time has the law with HIM
you are sueing in North Carolina, and this
| affects not the right but the remedy.
Mr.. Speaker, the parallel holds true in this
| contested election case. The contestant
must come in this court, under existing laws,
and when here the laws existing at the time
of the election will govern his case. MIR. S.
said he had tried to make the distinction
clear between right and remedy. He would
remind the House that the Legislature would
pass away but its acts would endure for all
time as precedents, and the responsibility
for those acts was not limited by time
| SPECIAL oRDER-ELEvEN O'CLOCK.
|
The special order was the bill by Mr. Nor
ris, preventing the sale of Intoxicating Ii
quors on election days
| The Judiciary Committee reported back
the bill with substitute for the first Sec
ton
On motion of Mr.. Stevens, the bill was
made the special order at II o'clock on
Tuesday next.
The joint resolution by Mr.. Downing to
fill vacancies in county offices in certain
cases was taken up. -....s....
Mr. Seymours substitute for the same was
read, the bill being entitled an act to pro-
vide for filling vacancies in county Offices"
The question on accepting the substitute
tor the original resolution was decided in
the affirmative.
On the second reading of the bill, amend
ments were offered by Messrs. Ingram and
Barnett, both of which were withdrawn.
On the third reading, Mr.. Sinclair moved
to amend the fourth section by striking out
after the word "act" in line 2, and insert,
sit shall be the duty of the Governor to
take the proper and constitutional steps to
have all such vacancies filed in the various
counties, by the voice of the people at the
ballot box, or otherwise as provided for in
the constitution"
Mr.. Sinclair urged the adoption of his
amendment. He thought the section as it
stood conferred too much power on the Ex-
ecutive. While he had as much confidence
in the Governor as any one, yet he was not
willing to contide such a wholesale control
over the county offices to any one indi-
vidual. 1t was a dangerous precedent, and
served to open the foodgates for the power