The New York herald., 1876-11-22


President showing tho state Of the vote. which liss
was read TO the two Louses wLsrvupon The wee rres
And this may be SAID 20 have been substantially the
method ever since pursued. On some occasions the
rssords are fuller aud more 1a ssn'nens' ynss V,ss
President John Adams. sad:-.By The re-
port which has been made 10 me by the selcrs
appointed by the two houses to examine the votes,
there seventy ono votes for John Adams" &c,
stating tho result, and then he proceeded I'm obed-
the constitution and law OF the United States
and to the command OF both houses OF Congress ex-
pressed IN their resolutions passed IN the present SEES
sion declare Johu Adams elected" &c.
In 1917, when. In the OF Indiana, tho objection
drst made 10 receiving vote. tho Vice President
houses al once Withdrew TO consider t.
In 1921 the houses directed how tho votes OF Mis-
souri, should be announced and they we're announced
accordingly.
In 1851 on suggestion that tho whole Of tho csrtin
Gates need not be the Vice President said that
under tho rulo OF The houses appointing telcrs he
considered that tho counting OF the vote devolved
upon the ellcrs and the decision Of shat should be
In 1865 tho Vice President refused 10 open the
turns he had received from Louisiana and Tennessee
because 90 directed by the houses
In 1869 he refused consider objections tho
Of Louisiana and Georga, because directed by the
houses
In 1872 he opened the returns and accepted without
remark the decisions OF the House. by which The votes
from Georgia, Arkansas and Louisiana were rejected
and the votes OF Mississippi and Texas counted against
objection.
And any one who viii The debate In the Senate
February 1865. the adoption OF tho joint rule
In regard counting the electoral vote will how
generally tho that tho Vice President bad
IN tho absence Of legislation by Congress ,as Judge
Kent thought). any power the count, repu-
a,a,ed by senators Of both parties
ROTH HOUSES uusT CONCUR
But II tho counting y: tho BY the constitu-
on vested in the two houses Of Congress-. follows
uravoidaby that they must both concur In tho count
II 10 necessary and elementary principle
thai whom . power Is gwen TO two 10 DO
exercised by them conlonty both mus:
feature OF our system OF government that both
houses must concur in every act OF legislation Every
such by house without the concurrence OF tho
other Is OF no validity. 70 then give house tho
vital power Of determining, alono and without thc
concurrence o other tho electoral vote. would bct
against the whole spirit CT our system.
Indeed, when this article OF the constitution
ported 70 the Convention BY .hc Committee OF Eeyen
OF tho Senate, TO be opened In the presence Of tho
Senate alone, and then and therc. counted"
and II there was no election tho Senate was
TO choose tho President This. tho vOtC
OF ten States to lDclaware, was altered
election In that contingency by tho House Of Repre-
sentaves voting by Stsscs and opening the votes
tho presence OF the houses then 10 be- counted
neither ought TO reject lawful votes
the act OF receiving, counting una reckoning
Is Affirmative act, and untl received and counted
house should say that the vote ought TO be counted
the other that il ought not tho vote would be lost
altogether
And the houses have always acted upon this assump
No electoral vote has ever becn counted, or
house. Uniformly, the houses have agreed upon some
joint rule In respect 10 counting. The joint rule
II course add nothing to Inc constisu,ionsl power
of the houses. In effect IL only expressed what
haq % IN on. OF 10 s
regulating the orderly proceedings OF tho bodies under
existing law, and was practical construction by
tho houses Of their constitutional power In this
respect Necessarily, any joint rule that vote, OBJ
jected 70 by either house. should be counted must
suit eithr from the recognized wnnt Of IN
Eouse to alone receive count electoral
votes against tho other; or else II must
result from the Willingness OF each house,
votes alone, 10 voluntarily abncgatc that most
portans Junction and 70 agree IN advance 10 concur
without hesitation In any objection tho other house
might rals-an alternative 50 utterly opposed 10 she
rights and duty Of legislative body and OF the oaths
oil It's members as 10 be inadnissibe
l,r then, neither house Las constitutional power 10
and count Tho electoral votes against the OBJ
lection OF the other, II DC Of no mpor tance
that question whether the JOINT rule DO now repealed
not.
to vote IRON either house. tho houses have al
separated TO pass, each by ana Tor tsc upon the OBJ
Jcction shows their opinion oi tho o. con-
counting electoral votes; aud that without such
concurrence, neither house Of i'scli, nor the
the vote objected TO- II, as has been thought
by some, tho joint convention coud act distinct
body and decide upon the votcs 70 be counted then 10
February psxt Tho result WI; depend on the acon Of
thc democrats, thdr majofty IN tie present House
much exceeds the republican majority In the Senate.
But how can y vote, be received and counted by
two, bc counted unless they ngretY TO be
could always take the lowest count But. 10 tina. OK
tent, they do agree; beyond THAT and far they
no. agree, there can be no count
And 90 II must result enhcr that electoral votes
cannot be received counted without tho Of
both houses o Congress- or that the Vice President
count President In arbitrarily, aud IN defiance OF
Congress; else that either hOuAe alone direct
that shall be received, which, IN tho OF
double might nccess,ate the nbsurdty OF
ing both returns aud the vote o tee state b0tn ways
submit alternatives absurd leave us with no
other conclusion than that electoral votes be re-
ana counted only with the concurrence per-
mission OF both houses OF Congress.
Undoubtedly the duty OF receiving and counting tho
electoral vote Is high constitutional duty, which the
mcmbcrs Of Congress must exercise upon their con-
sciences and oaihs OF Office but OF that duty they
the Judges aud for It's discharge the constitution has
not made them responsible TO any power on earth.
How FRAUDULENT RETURNING RoARp MAY IN DEALT
Assuming then that the Returning Board OF Louisi
will reverse the popular verdict Of that state Will
II be conclusive upon tho houses OF Congress- or Is
there any iact beyond the lace OF the returns, Of
which the houses can take no,,ces For instance
IL Is certainly known that Massachusetts
has chosen Hayes electors They viii pres
that by some Ut OF insanity, the pcrvcrsion OF
memory, which Mr. White calls ..hetcrcp phcmy," the
Tilden" instead Of Hayes" and thar tins should 10
overlooked while the certificates were signed and until
opened before Congress- would the houses be concluded
by that mistake might they notice OF the hts
t0rica act and Ut least reject the for TIdcn II
they could not count them ior Hayesf
Al any ratio the houses have done similar Ihinga
In 1857 they took notice that the meeting Of electors
OF Wisconsin had been prevented by storm The day
required by law and directed the vote be separately
counted. In 1872, on the objection Of Mr. George
Hoar, that Mr. Greeley was dead and had
died before the Electoral College OF Georgia
met, sand not person within
the meaning Of the constitution, this being historic
fact or which The two houses may properly take
notice the votes OF Georgia cast Tor Greeley, wcro
rejected At the same time the Senate refused 10
cciye or consider an amendment declaring .that tho
junction OF the Two houses was ministerial merely
and Independent Of tho question Of the effect OF the
vote.'
But whether the houses might properly take notice
OF this arbitrary VI Tho Returning BUard whether
having permitted tho President TO sOt up y military
government without authority Of law in louisiana the
federal Congress are now poweress " 60
behind any false return OF tho electoral vote
which that government, though kept up only
by military torcc, may make and ascertain the truo
result OF tho popular VOTE would not the Congress Al
least have power tako oil the public fact that
the returned by the Kellogg electors the
lawful o the State OF Louisiana, and decline 10
receive and count ity