Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-02-26
Coarrarrn ELEcrloNs.


The shameless manner in which con
tested election cases are decided by Con-
gress, is very forcibly illustrated in that
of Covode against Foster from Pennsyl-
yania, and Van Wyck against Greene
from New York. The official returns
showed that Foster had majority of Al,
yet this majority was disregarded by
Congress and the seat was given to CO.
yode. In justifying this action of Con-
gress, the Cincinnati Chronicle claims
that the votes given for Auditor General
on the same day and for President three
weeks later, constitute "proof of fraudu-
lent voting to such an extent as TO give
the majority to Mr.. Covode when the
illegal votes were thrown out of the
count" The total vote of the district for
Congressman was 27,57S, for Auditor
General %, 565, and for President 81, III.
This shows that there were 500 less votes
cast for President than for Congressman.
But this proves nothing as to fraudulent
votes At the time the congressional
election was held, an Auditor General
was also elected, and that presents as fair
test as to illegal votes being cast as
could be desired. 1t will be seen that
there was only difference Of eight in
the two elections. Hartranft, the Radical
candidate for Auditor General, being
popular man, ran 156 votes ahead of
Covode, who is personally very unpop-
ular man. 1t was probably Coyode's
unpopularity that elected Foster, the
Democratic candidate This simple reci-
tai shows how little justice is to be ex-
pected from Congress where Radical
contests the seat of Democrat.
In the case of Van Wyck against
Greene, from the eleventh district d New
York, the official vote showed that Greene
had received IL, $40 and Van Wyck H.
29S, giving Greene majority of 322.
Van Wyck contested and the Radical
House of Representatives gave him the
seat on the ground that a large number
Of illegal votes had been cast in two of
the election districts in one of
the counties 1t appears that the total
vote of the district for Congressman was
%, 91S, while the vote for President on
the same day was %, 964, being 46 more
than was cast in the congressional cleo
ton. This dissipates the charge of fraudu-
lent voting. But the large majority for
Greene was no barrier to this unscrupu-
lous Congress. Referring to this case,
the Syracuse On. Y. Standard (RadicaD
says: 1--WE have not had an opportunity
of examining the testimony in the case,
but from the vote as given it would seem
to be another of those cases decided en-
tirely by party discipline, rather than by
strict judicial investigation" OF course
it is made party question. and that too
without care or reason. And it is the
less justifable, even in = partizan sense,
because the majority were strong enough
before-in no case was there necessity
for straining a point to add TO their
members on the floor. The result in
these two cases of contested elections
justifes the truth of an assertion made by
I
Hon. Henry L. Dawes, many years chair
man of the Committee on Privileges and
Elections. In a paper read before the
American Social Science Association, Oc-
tober 20, 1869, subject: 'Mode of Pro-
cedure in Cases of Contested Elections"
Mr.. Dawes said:
''The Committee of Elections has late
ly obtained leave of the House to go out
into the districts of contests, forgetting
that they should be judges only. and to
do the work which the law requires should
be done by the parties themselves in ad-
vance. The result is that each case is
coming to be mere partisan struggle.
The Committee dare not resist the exac-
tions of party, and their action is in con-
sequence worthy only of cOntemptr