Daily Kennebec journal., 1875-01-22
Congressional Proceedings.
SENATE.
Thursday. .January 21.


Thursday, January q.
The unfinished business being a resolution
from the committee on privileges and elections,
proposing An amendment to the constitution in
regard to the election Of President and Vice
President, was called upon.
Mr.. Morton said that this was a question that
was entirely above party considerations. Men OF
all parties could address themselves to it, inde-
pendently Of the excitement which now pervades
the country.
The proposition was to amend the constitution
so as to bring the election home to the people as
possible, and at the same time avoid the dangers
threatened by the present mode.
When he looked back over the history Of the
country it was matter of surprise to him that
there has not been trouble resulting from the in-
perfection Of our system.
There was no power in Congress, or in in the
States to settle contested cases Of electors. The
election Of electors might be attended with fraud,
violence and tumult. and there was no power to
correct the evil.
He pointed out at some length the imperfections
OF the present system, and said that under it too
much power was vested on the hands of the Pres
dent or Vice-President of the Senate, to whom
electoral votes must be sent under seal six times.
1t had happened that the Vice-President had
counted the votes where he himself was q candi-
date.
John Adams counted the votes and declared
himself elected in 1897.
Jefferson counted the vote in 1901 when there
was tie. Suppose there had been two sets of
electors there from any one State, one set making
tic vote and the other eecting Jefferson, there
was no power to prevent him from counting the
vote which wouly have elected him.
Again in 1921, Thompkins, who was a cand-
date, counted the vote. In 1927 Van Buren did
the same thing and declared himself elected. In
lS4l johnson counted the vote and in 1861 Breck-
eniidge did so. Although the count had been
honest in all these cases, an instance might rise
when dishonesty on the part of the Vice President
would elect. 1t did not seem to him to have oc-
CURED to the trainers Of the constitution that there
might be two sets of deegstes or fraud in the
election.
The Speaker stated that the bill went to the
committee of the whole, as an entirely new bill
subject to amendment.
Mr.. Dawes presented a letter from Charles A.
Wetmore, the witness yesterday committed for
contempt and intimated that the apology therein
contained, was satisfactory. He therefore moved
his discharge.
Mr.. Smith of New York, from the committee on
elections made report in the case of the delegate
from Utah, with resolution to exclude him from
his seat, ON the ground OF polygamy
Ordered printed.
Mr. Maynard of Tennessee presented q report
of the conference committee on the little tariff bill
H proceeded to explain the report and the modif-
cation it proposes in the existing custom duties.
Mr.. Beck Of kentucky said that as member of
the conference committee, he had declined to sign
the report because the House had given up to the
Senate everything Of value in the original bill and
occupied from the Senate things that ought not to
have been given. He did not know of an amend
ment it made to the existing law that was bene-
fetal, if there was it was of such slight value
that the House ought not to adopt the report. The
only material difereIce between the conference
report and the one which the House voted down
the last session by I36 to 40, was that this report
increased the duty on hops from five cents to eight
cents per pound, and this report was just that
much more than the last one.
That the increase of the tariff was an injury to
the country, the few changes which it made was
all in the interest Of protection, none of them in
the interest of the or of the country. The
proposition to increase from SO to 60 per cent the
duties on MIXED silk goods Of which 25 per cent.
is cotton be characterized "little bit of q
steal got up for the benefit principally of three
manufacturers in New jersey" He believed that
the provision would result in law of two mil
lions revenue. He declared that there was not a
mertorious feature in the bill.
Bill agreed to-, yeas l36, nays SO.
Motion to reconsider made and laid on the table.
The bill goes to the President for his signature.
The House at :25 adjourned.