Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1872-12-23
From the Boston Daily Globe.
THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE.


President by direct popular vote. This
would be decided innovation in the
history of our government, and it is one
that will not be likely to. be made with
out much greater discussion than either
of the recent amendments to the Consti-
tuition excited. The unexpected position
in which the Greeley electors were plac-
ed by the sudden death of the candidate
in whose behalf they were chosen, has
much attention to this subject,
and seems to have prompted the proposed
at the present time. In ia
vor of dispensing with the electoral col
leges it is urged that if the successful
candidate should die before the electors
have voted, sumo man might be chosen
by them who would be entirely unsatis-
factory to the people and even to a ma
jority of the party to which he belonged
1t would seem, however, that there could
be very little danger from this cause, for
The members of the electoral college are
almost invariably selected from the best
and most honorable men in their respec-
tive communities, and, furthermore, the
person selected for President by them
must have majority of all the electoral
votes of the whole Union. There would
therefore, be scarcely possibility that
a majority of all the electors should
unite to place an unknown or improper
person in the Presidential chair, if, by
reason of the death of their expected
candidate, they were left to make new
selection.
If in this event the votes of a major
ity of the electors did not harmonic up
on one man, then it would devolve upon
the House of Representatives to elect a
President from the candidates having the
largest electoral vote, not exceeding
three, each State having one vote in the
House, and majority of the States be-
ing necessary to a choice. Here the Sc
curity against an improper choice is even
greater than it is in the action of electo-
raj colleges, small even as the danger
would be there. 1t is very evident that
in these careful provisions of the Con-
stitution, the trainers had in view the
possible death of the expected candidate
in whose favor the electors mi ght be
chosen, as we'll as other contingencies.
The question of allowing the President
to be chosen by direct popular vote was
considered and discussed in the conven-
ton which framed the Constitution, and
it was rejected by a decided vote, the
delegates of two States only voting in
favor, while those of eight voted against
it. The prevailing theory in the con-
vention was, that both the popular ele-
ment and the State should be combined
in the selection of President, as proper
counterpoise to the modes by which the
Senate and the House were to be chosen.
1t was for this reason that the number
of electors allowed to each State was
made greater than its representative
strength by adding two for its Senate
rial representation and the accepted
and desired effect of this arrangement
was avowed to be, the restraint which il
imposed upon the arbitrary action of 9
popular national majority, and the pro,
lection which it afforded to the similar
States against being overwhelmed by the
larger.
The practical evils likely to result
from popular election to the Presidency
are, the choice by few of the larger
States against the wishes of a great ma
! jority of the States and the selection O
a purely sectional president. BY tn,
contemplated change the smaller state
would be deprived of a large proportion
of their relative strength in the choic'
of President, and their influence would
be virtually blotted out. On the othe
hand, the larger and more populou
States would enjoy a greater preponder
ance than they now do, and under posi-
BILE circumstances a few of them Nigh
combine together and put their favorit
in power for the express purpose of oh
taing some sectional advantage over tn
rest of the Union. Take. for instance
the six large, central States of NeN
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio
Indiana and Illinois, all forming contie
uous territory, and harmonizing in ma
terial interests and population, and lie
it be supposed that the people of thos
States for some common and sectiona
purpose desire to place particular ma
in the Presidential char. In popula
election these six States could throw owe
three millions of votes for their favorit
candidate. and thus easily secure m;
jority of the popular vote of the nation
as against the other thirty-one States {
the Union. Under the present elector;
system the difficulties of any such SUI
cessful combination are greatly increase
even if they are not insurmountable,
The proposed change would moreov'
be one of the greatest strides TOWARD
Capitalization which has ever been pr
posed, for it would work a complete o.
liberation of State lines, and render q