The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1873-02-28
Counting the Electoral Vote.

4 Washington letter of the 18th saws To-
day being the time fixed by law for counting
the electoral vote for President and Vice
President both houses spent most of their
sessions in joint convention in the Hall Of
Representatives. The day was stormy. but the
attendance of spectators Very large, many
being attracted by the rumor that the extraor-
binary scene of four years ago over the cleo
toral vote of Georgia would be repeated to-day
III the contest over that of Louisiana. While
the session. however. Was prOtractcd. and full
of technical objections to the returns from
several Southern States, and while each house
war obliged several times to return to Its own
session to vote on disputed points. the occa-
sion passed off without unusual incident. The
Senate came at l o'clock. and were assigned
seats on the Democratic side, the entire House
remaining standing till the Senators were
seated Vice-President Colfax occupied the
Speakers chair. and presided over the joint
session. When the joint convention came
to order it appeared that Senators were
present from every State but Massa-
chusetts. both Senators Sumner and
Wilson being absent. The reading of the
certificate then proceeded without any particu-
lar interest or excitement until Delaware was
reached, when the members and Senators
seemed 10 think il very amusing that Della
ware should vote for Republican. The an
nouncement of the Maryland vote for Hen
bricks and Brown also caught a slight ripple.
ton to Grant, aud when Georgia war reached
and the vote was announced, points of order
were made that ~ IL was a historic fact that
Greeley was dead, the vote for him could not
be counted. Each body voted without debate.
the Senate deciding, by AZ 70 Is, that il could
be counted, and the House, by 90 to 1922 that
it could not be counted. So under the rule
where division like this existed, the vote of
Georgia was thrown out. subsequently the
point WAS made too late that Georgin had
partly voted for a President and Vice PIesi-
dent Of that State i'll violation Of that clause of
the Constitution which prohibits both candi-
dates from being citizens Of the same
State. Technical objections in the case of
Mississippi and Texas were made and
overruled, and when Arkansas and Louisiana
were reached, objections were made and the
electoral votes of both were thrown ont. The
Senate and House concurred III throwing out
the vote of louisiana but only the House
voted to throw out Arkansas, which had the
same effect al if the Senate had concurred
Finally, at o'clock tonight the vote was an
nounced that Grant had received $40 votes. 1S4
being necessary to a choice. Georgia having
been thrown out, none were counted for Gree
lev, but Hendricks footed up A. The others
were scattering. When one vote was an
nounced for Gen. Banks for Nice-President
there WAS good deal of meiriment, and he
turned crimson at the glance of the vast crowd
The numerous technical objections made to-
day to the incompleteness of some Of the re-
turns TO the fact that under the joint rules no
laws were allowed to be read bearing on any
case ; that no debate was permitted, and that as
a consequence the votes of entire States were
lost because one house voted one way and the
another house another.-all contributed 10
form the general opinion that the present cleo
toral system Is very defective, 80 defective
that in a close contest one man has it almost
in his power TO defeat the popular choice of
the people for President.