The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1870-06-02
RAvENNA, O. THURSDAY JUNE 2, 1870

or Indiana?3 Not bit of it. Con-
test it before the tribunal pro-
vided by the constitution of Ohio
or Indiana TO try that question,
the Senate of the State? Not bit
of that !; but he goes to some little
United States district judge aud sues
out an appropriate remedyp What
appropriate remedy" forsooth, is it !?
A quo qcdrTdntO? Then under the quo
,DaYTdeto you undertake to canvass
all the votes of the State of Ohio, the
State of Indiana, or the State of New
York. When will you get done P
Will you do it before or after that
mans term of Office has expired? And
how will you do it if there is a contest
under the State Constitution and laws,
and the body entitled to try it by that
constitution and those laws shall de-
eide the contest one way and your lit
tie district judge of the United States
shall decide it the other way? Sup
pose the Senate of the great state of
New Y ork should decide in favor of
the incumbent, and your little bit of q
one-horse judge-I beg pardon for US
ing such slang expression-you lit
tile district judge of the United States
should decide it the other way p
Would not that be Almost harmonious
administration of constitutional law
in the United States? Would it not
make our institutions the envy of
mankind? Would not all the thrones
of Europe crumble into dust in admi-
ration of this most excellent and har-
monious mode we have of providing
for the election of officers, and pro-
viding for the settlement of contests
and seating the successful candidates
in their chairs No, Mr.. President, it
will not do.
say, with the most entire respect
for my friends of the Judiciary Com
mittee who have reported this bill
and it is no afectation when say it,
that am lost in amazement that such
a crude piece of work ever came from
! their hands. l know that committee
wsll; / have sat with them too often,
nave discussed with them in the
committee-room and in the Senate too
often, not to know their learning, not
not to know their ability, and must
confess that can hardly conceive how
it was possible that such a bill as this
ever came from the hands of as able a
committee as that.
But that is not all. This applies to
every officer of the states; nay, more,
to every officer of the United States.
Now, 1 want to put it to the commit
tee; here is an election for President
of the United States, and Mr.. A. B.
receives a majority of the electoral
vote, it is said; and Mr.. c. d., who is
defeated, says that in the State of New
| 7 ork there were so many men not al
lowed to vote who were entitled to
vote under the fifteenth amendment,
and if their votes had been cast for
him, he would have had the electoral
vote of the State of New York, and
would have been elected President of
the United States. Now, Senators,
how do you suppose that question is
is to be tried? Before a district Judge
of the United States-the question
who is elected President of the United
States! That is it, if your bill is to be
taken according to its reading That is
| it, If it is to be taken according to its
f'pllin language, that fhe title to the Of
flee of President of the United States,
or the title, Mr.. President, by which
you sit in the chair, is to be tried be-
fore a district judge of the United
States!
1 think 1 have said enough about
the fifth section. hope that the SEN
ate, by its nsdnddnaus, will strike that
out. Now let US come to the sixth
section:
| That the district courts of the United States,
within their respective districts, shall have ex-
clusiyely of the courts of the several States cog
nizalce Of all crimes and pffenses committed
against the provisions of this act, and also con-
| currently with the circuit courts of the United
States, of all causes, civil and criminal arising
under this act, except as is otherwise provided
| in the fifth section hereof. 3sl3lf 2 t 81 % =
The district courts of the United
States are to have exclusive jurisdic-
ton of crimes and offenses provided
for by this act. The first thing to
which ask the attention of the SEN
ate is this; that there is not one single
| crime or offense provided for by this
act, that ought to be in it at all, that is
not already provided for by the laws of
the states. lido not know one that is not
provided for by the laws of the. States.
If man is improperly. refused his
vote by judge of election, who acts
willfully and 9corruptly in so doing,
not simply committing an error OF
] judgment, but acting willfully, (and if
he does not act willfully and corruptly
he ought not to be punished, J in every
State of this Union with whose laws
I am acquainted, that judge is liable to
punishment; and in the same way
men who hinder or prevent persons
from exercising their franchise are al
so, under State laws, liable to punish
ment in the State courts by indict-
ment or such prosecution as the State
laws afford.
| Now, sir, what is here meant? You
have provided for precisely the same
class of offenses that the State laws
provide against, and then you propose
! to take away from the State courts the
right to punish offenses and vest that
power solely in the district courts OF
the United States. I ask you, as a
practical matter, which system Is most
likely to enforce the laws, that of in
dictments in the State courts, courts
sitting in every county in every State,
with grand juries in every county fa.
miliar with the facts, or this system oil
punishment in the district courts ol
the United States, when i'll most OF
the. States there is but one district
court sitting in ane place, aud in only
one af them are three. and in the
other States there are but two. IL.
Does not every one sec that when you
want to enforce this 10th amEndmcnt
your safest way is to leave it to State
law? pp you not see that for one in.
dictment that would be found under
this bill in the United States district
court, there would be likely to be
twenty in the State courts? DO YOU
not see that in the district court of the
United States there would scarcely
ever be an indictment, unless it were
to crafty some malice, or to extort
black mail from the party who was
praseopteda That is the effect of 1t
Your law will give rise to persecu.
. tion; it will give rise to the levy Of
black mail it will subject officers o.
election to the most intolerable perse,
cHtipp. An that II will do. 1t will
tend to drive decent, respectable and
responsible men from accepting the
Office of judge of election. Ali thai
|, it will do; but so fur as enforcing thu