The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1876-12-15
Oregon and Louisiana.


saw opening before them prospect by which
the will of the people could be defeated, and
they could retain their places under Hayes
1t was therefore announced first that the
vote in the three States named was close, and
then TINT the Republicans had carried them.
The Democrats, in the meantime, were not
idle. They secured certified copies of the
votes as cast, showing an absolute majority
in all three States for the Tidcn electors.
A convenient machine for preserving power
when cnce obtained was in operation i'll each
of those States, called Returning Board, and
the vote although exactly ascertained, could
rot be called official until it had passed
through the hands of these men. 1t was claim
ed for them blythe Republicans that their pow
els were Judicial that is that they could throw
out, upon any pretext, any number OF votes
from any district or county, and that their
decision, certified by the Governors of their
States, must be final and without appeal or
revision by any power.
These boards, composed for the most part
of unprincipled and corrupt men, many of
them candidates for office themselves, and de"
pendent upon the success Of the Republican
party for their support, did as they were ex
pected to do. Laying aside every principle of
fairness, justice and honesty, they threw out,
in the three contested States sufficient Demo
cratic votes to make the result show a ma,
iori,y for Hayes, when it had been actually
cast for Tiden. Their justification was that
large numbers of tolored voters had been
intimidated and compelled to vote the Dem
ocratic ticket against their will. The proof
upon which these charges rested was so
ilimsy and insufficient as to be ridiculous
before any other tribunal but returning
board.
The Republicans, anticipating the action
of the returning boards, insisted that the re-
turns must be counted by Congress as they
were received from the electors under the
seal of each State, and that Congress had
not the right to go into an examination of
the peculiar processes upon which the returns
were based.
The State OF Oregon had been conceded
to the Republicans, but q question arose
there in relation TO one of the Republican
electors who was declared to be ineligible,
by reason of being postmaster at the time
of his election. The Republicans apprehend
ed no trouble on that score, and having,
through their returning boards, secured nine
TO ridden, they awaited tile meeting of the
electoral colleges, which were to put the seal
Of the several States uron the vote, right or
wrong. South Carolina, Louisiana and
Florida were made to appear for Hayes, but
in the far off State of Oregon, Governor
Grover read carefully the Constitution of the
United States and the decision il previous
similar cases, and bearing in mind his sworn
duty to support the Constitution, declined to
commission the ineligible elector and accord
lngly gave certificates to the two qualified
Republican electors and TO the person having
the next highest number of votes, who hap
pened TO be Democrat.
The Republicans themselves have not al
insisted upon the eligibility of candidate
for electOr who held an office under the Uni,
ted States at the time of his election; .or in
several cases of the kind which have occurred
they have sought 10 cur1 the defect by the
pretended resignation and re-appointment of
the disqualified elcctor-an evasion of the
Constitution, TO say the least. This plan
was tried in Oregon. The two Republicans
refused to act with the Democratic elector,
ard the latter therefore declared their places
vacant, and filling them, the electoral vote
OF Oregon was cast two for Hayes and one
for Tilden, and the result duly certified and
transmitted under the seal of the State
The two Republican electors accepted the
resignation of the ineligible elector, and i'm
mediately voted him in and then cast three
votes fer Hayes. These they will send to
the President of the Senate, but they will lack
the seal of the State to attest their genuine
ness.
Lawyers differ upon the point in question,
but the Governor Of Oregon has the weight
Of respectable authority in law and custom
10 sustain him in his decision. 1t is main
tanned by Republicans that if The Oregon Re
publican elecor was ineligible q vacancy
was thereby created which could be filled by
the other electors. In answer to this it need
only be borne in mind that the law does not
recognize parties. In Oregon six persons
were voted for as electors of President and
Vice President The votes cast for one of
them were votes thrown away, because he
was on the day of his appointment ineligible
under the Constitution and the three highest
eligible candidates were therefore elected
One of these, it appears, was Democrat,
and the other two Republicans.
Governor Grover then, acting under
conscientious regard for his cath of office
issued certificates Of election to the two Re.
publicans and 10 one Democrat. Thus, with.
out the votes of the three contested Southern
States, Governor Tlden has the requisite
1875 electoral votes.
The action Of the Oregon Governor pre-.
sents TO the Republicans an unlooked-for
deilemma, either horn of which is inconven.
lent and unsafe for them to take. If they
adhere 10 their declared theory that Congress
has no right to go behind the certificates and
enquire into their fairness or validity, the
certificates will show 1856 votes for Tilden
and Hendricks, and they must be declared
President and Vice.President. If, on the
other hand, they take back all they have
said, and concede the right of Congress to
inquire into the returns from any State, the
iniquity in Louisiana will then be laid open
to view. Either the Tilden vote in Oregon
must be counted or the fraud by which the
vote of Louisiana was reversed be made an |