The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1868-01-07
wbo is Governor Of virginia !?

81. who is Governor Of Virginia /
For the last week or two we have haa
sy;np about the city rumors of various
kinds in regard to the question wh'ch
stands at the head Of this article. ohe
,,ay Report would cut off Governor FER
rorNT's head. The next day she would
& install a successor IN his vacant chair.
/ The next. transfer General ScHoFfELD, or
:. some Of his staff, to our White House. We
have no authority to speak for General
ScHor1ELp; but we think We. can safely
saw that whatever the Constitution and
laws OF Virginia lay down as his rule of
action in this matter, that will be do. We
propose, therefore, to state the law of the
csse. And in doing so we shall leave out
Of view altogether the persons to be af-
fected. Wherever the law leads us, there
will we 90; and when it ceases to lead us,
we will halt, and call upon General ScKo-
FIELD. 49,
According to the Constitution and laws
of Virginia, governor and a lieutenant
governor should have been elected last
wear, and by the first day Of January
should have been installed in Office, dis
placing the old incumbents. But in the
process of reconstruction military inter
yention prevented elections and relieved
the Legislature of duty. Under these
circumstances, what is the status OF 60
vernon PEIRPolNT
Unless the vis major is interposed, and
the question is solved, not de jure, but dc
facto, il must be determined by the Con-
sfitution. The case is covered by the gene
raj provision of the Constitution found in
the 23d section of the 9th article; which
we copy: r...<,-
"Judges and all other officers, whether
elected or appointed, shall continue to
discharge the duties of their respective
Offices, after their terms Of service have
expired, until their successors are ap-
pointed" a
This provision, the dictate of experience
and forecast, prevents vacancies and oo-
viates difficulty in cases OF succession
which might otherwise result from con-
tested elections, failure to hold elections,
or failure to qualify for the succession.
We have heard no objection to this view,
except one so strained that it can hardly
find supporters outside of those who may
be predisposed to object. This is, that as
the governor has no successor now quail
fed. the secretary Of the Commonwealth
should succeed, under the law of the Code,
page III. But this applies only when
the office of governor devolves On the
Acknowledgement, and he fails to act.
Now, as the governor continues to serve
under the constitutional provision which
we have quoted, the office does not de-
yolye on the lieutenant. governor, and SO
the lieutenant governor does not fail to
act. Besides this, the law, whenever ap-
plicable at all, requires the secretary OF
the Commonwealth to order an election OF
governor, and to convene the Legislature
to decide who may be elected. This is
the object, the requirement of the law, as
can be seen in the Code, page IS. OF
course General SCHoFIELD will not permit
such contempt of his prohibitions.
But the notion that the governor can be
displaced in this way cannot be correct,
unless it can be maintained that the Con-
stitution, when it says one thing, means
another by construction. That is too hard
proposition, even for these times of re-
construction. lis .s,a
1t seems, then, that Governor EIRPoINT
continues in office by the Constitution, be-
cause there is no successor qualified. But
how long? Until a successor is qualified
or, until reconstruction supersedes him
or, until cone having authority" shall IN
terpose. At present, at least, the go
vernon continues in Office, and we know OF
no probable change. The late reconstruc-
tion act requires the generals command ing
in the southern States to remove such OH
cers az labor to obstrnct or Illustrate the
acts of reconstruction but our "loyai =
governor has never been suspected OF this is
conduct, though not as radical as some OF
the Younger disciples. And it is not to be
exnected that General ScHoFIELD Will
make changes = certainly unnecessary
changes-that may even suggest an appre'
hension of exchanging "the ills we nave ave l 10
others that we know not OF. s,...s. s
3 =.