The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1876-12-09
THE CRISIS.
views Of Hon. John A. MeClsrnand of
Illinois.

To the Editor Of the St. Louis Republican,
/ have read with much interest your ar
ticle Of the 9th ult.,upon the power Of the
president of the senate over the electoral
returns. In that article you limit his power
10 the simple office ofopening the returns.
concur with you that his power has no
greater extent. When no has produced
the returns OF certificates before the two
houses in joint session they pass wholly
under the control Of the joint body. But
while this is 80, an incidental question
may arise, in q certain contingency, OF
very considerable practical importance. l
allude TO the possible secession of the
president Of the senate with majority of
that body from the joint meeting. In
that event who becomes the proper
custodian Of the returns2
The constitution, after prescribing the
manner in which the electoral lists shall be
made out, provides that they shall be
transmitted Ito the seat Of the govern
ment, directed to the president of the
senate" who shall, in the presence of the
senate and house, open all the certificates,
and the vote shall then be counted"
These provisions, fairly construed,
make the president of the senate simply
the repository or custodian of the returns
from the time they come into his hands
until he has officially produced them be-
fore the joint meeting-savng, however,
that there is cast upon him the function.
and alone the function OF open
ing them. Under these provisions
he holds them only as a custodian and in
trust to produce and open them. At the
same time, the joint body may determine
the hour, order, etc., Of opening them.
Hence, in the event that either he or the
majority of the senate should secede from
the joint meeting, the returns must re-
main where, in obedience to the consti-
tuition, they have been officially produced
for the purpose of count, and neither
the president of the senate nor the senate
itself could lawfully withdraw them. Any
such attempt would be extra constitutional
and unauthorized.
In the event mentioned, another very
important and serious question might
arise. We haYe already seen that the
presidents extra-of6cial commissioners,
attending the Louisiana returning board,
have assumed, contrary to the reasoning
of your article and of this communi.
cation, that the president of the
senate, and he alone, may count the cleo
toral votes and declare the result of the
count. This assumption implies and fore
shadows that that officer will undertake to
do so, IF he does and declares Gov.
Hayes elected president, then Grant, I'M
der color of that declaration, would, no
doubt, proceed, against all objections, to re-
deem his pledge to see Hayes installed as
president, and especially if the house
should sanction such a declaration by sit.
ting by as a silent and therefore asserting
witness, In that case it would be said
that silence gave consent and that forbear.
ance to dissent in season foreclosed dissent
out of season, and after resistance would
be denounced as rebellion and treason.
In the presence of such an assumption
and its threatened consequences, what
remains to be done2 | know of no other
resource than for the house, in tie opera.
ton of its authority and dignity, to inter
fere, peaceably if it can, forcibly if it must
to arrest the usurpation. If the president
of the senate, with q majority of the
senators, should, as the consequence Of
such interference. secede, as already men.
toned, from the joint meeting, and, re.
turning to the senate chamber, there, OF
elsewhere, proceed to consummate his
usurpatlon by declaring Hayes elected
contrary to the opinion of the majority Of
the house and of the non-sceding senator's
it would be left for the house and such
senators to choose between submission anC
non submission. If they chose the latter
alternative and proceeded, as they probah
ly would, to ascertain and declare who wa!
elected, or whether there was failure o.
election, and such failure as authorized
the house, under the constitution, to max,
an election itself, an issue would be ioineC
between the majority of the senate on on,
side, and the majority of the house on tn,
other. This issue, in case the latter shoult
declare Tilden elected, would be main
tanned, not only by the house, a popula
and constitutional body, but by the non
seeding senators and great majority of tn
adult male population of the United State
as shown by the late election returns. L
these circumstances, the higher sanction
Of law would be on the side of number
and the reproach Of rebels and traitor
would fall the other way.
To avoid such an issue, you yentured il
your earnest and eloquent leader of tn
Odd ult. to advise temporary submission o.
the part of the majority, with an appea
to the people at the next presidential cleo
ton. profoundly sympathise with you
desire to preserve peace and to avert eye
the chance of civil war, but am not pre-
pared to admit that even submission, wit
such an appeal, would under the oircum
stances, be the wiser or safer part Sub
hitting now in the freshness of our in1igua
ton, what would we do four years hence
tanned by time and humiliation? StoopiD
to accept the yoke of a master, now. woul
we be less willing to wear it when it ha,
become familiar? Hardly. All exper
ence teaches that mankind are more dis
posed to suffer. while evils are sufferable
than to right themselves by an appeal I
arms Moreover, the usurpation of to-da
becomes precedent and an encouragement
to future usurpations, The spirit of free
dom once compromised, as the virtue of
woman once tainted, is gone. Eterns
viligance supplemented by unwaverin
courage is the price of liberty. Sue
were the reasoning and maxims of on
fathers when they braved the usurpatior
of George the III.
But, would not be misunderstood
repeat, would avert the terrible calamit
OF civil war by every pacific mean;
nay, by every honorable concession sho
of the surrender of our free institution
and of liberty. These would fight 70
at all hazards, and with faith and courae
on our side, our fight would prosper.
But again, it the conflict must com
let it not be anticipated on our part
any act of violated independent sta
authority, or by any merely local on
break, but let US contiue to bear and 70
bear until the friends of constitution
government in congress shall have exhau
ted every honorable and peaceable r
source, and shall have made up the issl