The Vinton record. [volume] (M'arthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1866-1891, 1868-03-12
Senate Contested Election
NH Case, ~ (, A

4
!, "The Senate Committee on
Privileges aud Elections has
reported in favor Of the right
Of Henry NJ. |Onderdonk to a
fseat in The General Assembly
from the Eighth Senatorial
District, thereby depriving Of
his seat, if this report is adop.
ted, Homer @. Jones, the sit.
ting member. The only means
by which the Committee found
it. possible to oast Senator
Jones from his seat, was to rec.
ommend a clear, positive
and palpable violation Of The
Constitution Of Ohio, as will
appear from the following ex.
tract from the Committees Re.
port; ;" ... a.t
1.-The question Is one of ilnpor-
lance, and one mich the Senate should
decide tcithoUt rdgard 70 the decisions
Of any other Department NJ the Cor
srnment on tie same subject. {.
By the Constitution the Sem
ate Is made the judge Of the election
returns and qualifications of It's mem
bers, a1d no power Is any whcIe con-
ferred In that instrument upon any
other Department Of the Government
to supervise or direct Its action, and
no appeal lies fromits decision. Hence
no decision or opinion Of Court, or Of
any other department of the Gorrn-
ment. has any authority orer The Senate
in its decision Of this question: '.
"This whole case turns upon
the meaning of the word
white in the Conrtititution.-
The Committee conclude that
unmixed white blood is meant,
and that no man is entitled to
vote in whose veins courses
One drop OF African or Indian
blood. They therefore find that
there were forty votes cast for
Mr. Jones by citizens whose
blood was defled by a slight
admixtui Of that belonging to
a adarker.sk skinned race, although
the Committee do not deny
that there was that preponder-
ance of white blood required
by the Constitution and the
Supreme Court. oo s.,
"These gentlemen, therefore,
arrive at the extraordinary con.
clusion, that a Senator elected,
as they admit, in accordance
with the laws and the Consti.
tuition, as interpreted by the
highest judicial authority, is il.
legally elected. ! 05cin- Other
words, that voters who have
been acknowledged legal vo.
ters for half a century, and
have been declared legal 70.
tiers again and again by the
Supreme Court Of Ohio, are in
point Of fact illegal voters, and
that as a consequence OF this,
conclusion, both Democratic
and Republican judges of the
Supreme Court, and all judges
of elections throughout the
State, have been violating the
Constitution of Ohio for the
last fifty yearsl ....., ......
"When Senators took the oath
to support the Constitution Of
the State of Ohio, did they
swear to support the ConStitu.
tion as judicially interpreted
by the only tribunal authorized
10 interpret the meaning of
that instrument, or did they
not9 Are not Senators as well
as all citizens bound by the
decision of the Supreme Court9
Is it the province of the Legis.
lative or Judicial Department
to interpret and explain the
provisions os the Constitutions
If it is not within the consti.
tutional power of the legisla.
ture to do away with the de-
cision Of the Supreme Court
which declares that a prepond-
erance of white blood consti-
tutes a citizen a legal voter,
how can it accomplish the
same result by the adoption Of
a resolution9
"Can the Senate rightfully re.
fusea Senator a seat who has
been elected by a majority Of