The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1873-01-25

GOuStu, "a AoOss AAoSVASAV "~oss
refused to entertain any objection,
or to entertain epY motion What
ever; but simply, Of his own will,
declared the vote, and announced
the election Of J .mcs buchanan
and John c. Breckinridgc. OF
course n trouble or controversy
could have sn;,e ye.l.d in that In
STANCE wla,evss Mr.. Msson may
haye done, for the election of
Mr.. Buchanan w.s overwhelming;
but had the resul. ,!elnnde,i on the
vote OF Wisconsin, i. will ut once
be seen what Il dangerous power is
welded by Que man. and that man
NJ, unt.eq.ently deeply interes' ed
IN tie result. Six ines in the his
tory Of the Government the Presi-
.lsni OF The Senate has declared
votes cast for himself. In 1897
John Adams declared the votes
olec,ing h!msel President. In 1901
Jefferson declared the vote-whtch
VAS q tie-5etween himself and
Aaron BUR. II so close a vote
should again occur, how many men
would scruple to use this omnipo
tent authority 10 elect themselves.
In 1921 Vice President Tompkins
decla.. d tie votes FIR himself as a
candidate for reelection; 1887 NJ.
Van Bn, en-. as Vice President, de-
clared h 8 own election tn the Presi-
dency; Il 1o4l Richard NJ. John
son dec.a, ed the votes cast for his
own reelection against John Tyler;
and in 1861 Mr.. Breckinridge de-
clared the votes cast for himself
FOR President in that four sided
contest.
The possible wrong that may be
committed under tue provision Of
the clause providing for the cleo
ton by the House Of Representa-
tivts, in case of failure to elect by
the Electoral College, is strongly
developed. In an election by the
House each S ate has one vote. to
be determined by msjority of the
DELEGATE n from such State. hlr.
Morton showed how. as the States
are at present constituted, turty-
VIC members from nineteen OF the
smaller States could,~eontrol the
election against the 247 remaining
members, while the .opportunit,
for a venal member in a closely
balanced d legation to sell the vote
Of his Safe is frightful to contem-
plate in the present ebb-tide OF
political honor. We have more
than once. in articles suggested by
the action OF the Greeley electors.
shown how the Electoral College
has, in practice, failed to carry out
the theory Of its founders, and have
proven that its constitution abso
iu.ely prohibits the exercise of such
function as those who advocate
the system claim for it. The 81 :
surdities and possible dangers OF
the system, as shown by Mr.. Nor
ton. cumuia.e the arguments Tor a
change beyond any reasonable re.
huttal.
The only debatahle question is
How shall it be changed The
President should be a national eff
Ger, representing the people in the
largest sense The Senate repre-
ssn.s the States; the House Of
Representatives the people divided
into Congressional Districts; the
President should. therefore. be
the representative of the Nation
This is not new idea, Mr.. Dickin-
son, OF New Jersey, fifty years ago
declared in the Senate the same
proposition. But Mr.. Morton re-
cosnizes the inevitable, as Re
terms it: That the smaller State.
would not consent to constItu
tional amendment shcaring then
of the political power inhering t.
them by reason Of the eiectors
system. His plan is to hav, tn,
people vo for President ant
Vice President directly, but BY
Congressional districts, each dis
trict TO have one vote. to be cas-
as majority Of the people With,
that district determines. Tn,
State proper shall have two votes
corresponding to the Senatorial
representation, TO be cast in &C
CO.. dance with the majority ia eacl
particular State. TIE plan i
simple Ell ough in it's details, az,
in effect would make the Presi'en
,ial election a substantial reflex o
the vote for Congressman undo
ordinary circumstances. In Hi
Lois, for instance instead OF tn
twenty Lone votes being given t
Grant and Wilson, the divisio
would have been: Grant, Is
Greeley, 6. The other plan sug
gested is, that the people of tn
States vote directly for Presiden
and Vice President, and shat tn
votes be returned to the Secretar
OF State "a now, but that the vot
of each S,a'e. az determined by til
majori,y oi its people, shall b
conm,e,. for the one candidate {
the o'he. according to it's Congress
sional representation. This pls
{ would leave the vote exactly .
r now, deiprr Away with the Intern,
, diary electors, preventing any pc
sible trouble or danger from tn,
usele ard cumbersome piece {
e s.itu:ional machinery, and {
) the seine time preserve tue con
3 promise between the States, whicl
e as it seems TO us, is the only valu
4 if value i; j., of the Electoral Co
n lege.
1 Some change will be made. tt