The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1874-01-23

seated unless the SENATE SnOulu 0h10 "
90 behind the official returns and 1ec are
the election void for fraud. Insisting as
do and shall insist that when the senate
Committee found and reported, as matter
of fact, that the body which elected nay
was not the Legislature OF the otate eject
ed bv the people, and that the body which
eIaetad McMillen was the Legislature shown
~ have been elected by the official returns,
It was the plain duty Of the Senate to give
tbe McEnerv Government such recognition
az Il was legally entitled to, and as would
have resulted from the seating of McMillen
T nropose to inquire upon what proof the
Senate Committee reached the conclusion
that the State election was void for fraud. |
The adjournment of the Senate prevented
: final action on the report Of the Committee,
and the expiration of the term for which
: McMillen and Ray respectively claimed to
have been elected, terminated that contest.
} But the same body which elected Ray to
I'LL the unexpired term of Kellogg, elected
IPinchback for the term beginning March
4. 1878; the same body which elected Nc
Millen for the unexpired term OF Kellogg
also elected him for the term beginning
March 4, 1878, and their respective creden-
! tails are now before the Senate.
i AS to the seating ofPinchback, that can
t not be DONE unless the Senate shall choose
Y to close its eyes to the proofs, and to ignore
d the facts which every Senator knows or
ought to kpow-that is: That Pinchback
c was chosen by body which was not elect
d ed by the people, and which could not,
= therefore, have been the Legislature OF the
: State and that he comes accredited by
It nerson who was neither eligible nor elected
n bv the people, and who could not, there
l. fore. have been the Governor of the State;
= and that McMillen was chosen by body
3, claiming to be the Legislature, and comes
ID accredited by person claiming to be Gov
D. ernor, who were elected as such by the peo-
ple. as shown by the official returns OF the
At election and the counting of the votes cast,
v, as proved and exhibited to the Senate Com
is mittee last winter. This Senate report
I'd and the accompanying testimony have been
Of published and widely circulated; and they
t have become part OF the permanent records
o. of the Senate, and of the public history OF
re the country which the Senate cannot lg'
lg more, and which that body is bound to take
or notice and cognizance of officially, Plnck
e. back does not present pTln'd tdc1e case
OF, because the Senate, sole Judge of the elec
OF tions, qualifications and returns Gifts mem
"a bers knows that he was not chosen by thu
IL Legislature of the State; and McNlillel
o. does present a prind .fdcie case, because
" the Senate knows that he was elected b,
e. the body which was the Legislature of tn,
tie State, duly elected as such according t.
er the official returns Precedent, law, ant
cir Justice require that McMillen should b.
tie seated, upon the title which he exhibits
ny leaving it to Pinchback to contest and de
he feat this plain, clear, prinaa face right ant
re- title, if he can do so.
he Returning now to the question of fraud
1t was proved before the Senate Commit
I'd tee that the Judge Of the United State
MI MI Circuit Count, as required by the act o
is Congress, appointed two supervisors Q
md election at every poll, one from each polit
,hi ical party and that the United State
tall Marshal, who was chairman of the Reput
a sbc hcan State Executive Committee appoint
Fad ed deputy marshals in every parish, a
our many as 600 in the city of New Orean
ave- ave- alone, all of them, no doubt, of the Re
the publican party, whose business it was
,ay be present at the polls during the election
sue There could have been no such frauds q
ties would have Initiated the election or hav
changed materially the result, without th
'es knowledge of these hundreds of Unite
70 States officers, supervisors Of election an
lhe deputy marshals; and the facts would hay
been promptly reported to the Marsha
GU the chief of his party in the State, al
RI would have been proved by these officia
nst themselves before the Committee. I'll
the Marshal Packard, testified before tt
ent Committee in reference to the electiC
Tor that, I'm a majority of the parishes
Is should say it was fair, or as nearly so as "
eel might expect La. investigation, p. 90
Is and on page 9l3 he repeats Il say, in
the majority OF the parishes, in my judgmer
the the election was as fair'as you usually ha
nay II in any state election" It was prov,
out bv other testimony, and by cotemporan
the ors statements in thn Penubyjcou the nj
'eil' cial journal and organ of the party, tn
the election was one OF the most quiet,
his derlv, and peaceful ever held in the Stat
over that the difficulties Whl"h arose after
election were simply official, and were l
ogg alleged to have sprung from any force
aud fraud Of the people; that the c5ntrJyeI
tary which grew up alter the election dad l
hat relate t. the casting of the vote, but to t
re- counting Of the vote, rival returning boar
eyes claiming the right to canvass aud comp
lore the official returns and to prOmulgate I
Jon result; that the vote cast exceeded
mere more than 10000 that cast at any pre-
1t of GUS election and that, but for the int
and ference of the Federal authorities, civil a
tate military, the McEnery government VOL
been have been in the undisturbed exercise
and its official duties and functions.
.itu Several thousand affidayits, however p
the porting to have been made by persons v
sons had been deprived of the right to regis
Iov- and to vote were relied on to prove trauC
ana Continued on thirdpage.)