The New York herald., 1876-12-14
The Decision of Vice President Ma
son in the Wisconsin Case.
EREcoRD WHICH WAS INCORRECTLY QUOTED
Senator Mort0n'a Substitute for The twenty
Second Joint Ruls Resuscssssd
FROM OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT


sTTTur1oSAL AMESDMExT-A PRECEDENT
RELIED ON BIZ SENATOR'S EpMuNDs AND
MORTON EFTEcruALLY DISPOSED or
wAsHIycroS. Dec. Is, 1874
Real progress made to-day In the senate toward
settling tho Presidential muddlc In the nrst place,
Mr. Edmunds' constitutional amendment pro-
viding that tho Supreme Court should count
the electoral vote, defeated by IA yeas
this amendment on the ground that Is would
drag tho Supreme Court into politics, and It
doomed to failure from tho beginning. IL is under
stood that members Of the Supreme Bench have
pressed their very strong desire to have the Court
brought into the political strife in any way. The
small vote which Mr. Edmunds' measure received
raised smile At hts expense, and Senator remarked
that. like recent strike railroad, AS success II
was failure but as . failure II was undoubtedly Q
complete success
During the debate on the measure Senator Randolph
brcny recited the history OF tho electoral in
1857, whom offer made to throw the vote 0!
Wisconsin out and his few remarks caused . good
deal OF amusement at tho expense OF Senators Morton
and Edmunds In previous debate the other day
Mr. Edmunds had stated that In tho Wisconsin case
the Vice President decided substantially that tho
houses had authority, and that the Vice President
Edmu nds said on that occasion:-
.The certificate received by the President OF the
Senate, Mr. Mason, OF Virginia, and opened and
reported by tho tellers IN the regular way, with
all the others On tho President announcing that
somebody and questioned the right OF the presd
ing o1icer TO determine whether that the constu-
tonal vote OF tho State OF Wisconsin not, and the
presiding ocsr, IS stated declined to entertain the
question Of submit II TO the bodies pco-
pie whatever they might be called. who were before
him, and retired the chair and with the Senate
came back 10 the Senate chamber"
Mr. MoRToS-And said the only thing in order was
TO count the votes
Mr.. Epxuxps-And he said the only thing In order
was 70 count she vote.
Having read these words OF the two Senators Mr.
Randolph briefly showed them to be entirely mistaken
by quoting Vice President Aason's own words from
the Congressional Globe
Mr.. Mason said:-'sThe presiding oflcer considers
that tho duty OF counting the has devolved upon
the tellers under tho concurrent order Of the two
houses that the teIlers should determine for them
selves in what the votes are verified to thom."
Further, Mr. Letcher, in the Convention, having OBJ
jccted 10 Of the Wisconsin vote, Mr. Jones'
or Tennessee. tho reading teller. said:-
81 suppose, Mr.. President, tho proper way would be
for the tcers tho facts the convention
the two houses and lot them decide" and tho Vice
President at once replied:-
sThe presiding oniccr considers"
Senator Randolph emphasized this last pon. snd
called tho attention OF tho Senators from Vermont
Indiana It's clinchng force but they made no sign
Hc quoted from Senator Crittenden, OF Kentucky,
who mado vigorous protest against the assumption
Of any power upon the part Of tho President OF tho
Senate 30 decide upon tho validity invaidity OF an
electoral VOTE to which the Vice President repIed
"The presiding ofncer is utterly unaware that be
has assumed the exercise OF any such power.n
The opinions OF other members OF both houses we're
then cited TO the samo effect among them, Senator's
Seward and Douglas Bat the hardest blow was ro-
served for last whom quoted these words of the
Vice President
srhe presiding oniocr desires to say as no thought
he had distinctly stated whilst presiding over the two
houses in the chamber Of tho House OF Representa-
sves that tho conception OF the Senator from Georgia
Ia entirely erroneous In the judgment OF the pre-.
siding officer. The presiding onicer did not under
tako to decide whether tho vots Of the State OF
Wisconsin was good vote or bad vote. Tho presid-
ing officer upon that matter did than recs tho
fact which was reported TO him by tho teers pursu.
ant TO the concurrent order OF the two houssA The
presiding on1ccr did no moro than announce that
the vote OF Wisconsin hal been given 10
John G. Fremont whcshcr It was a. good
votc or bad vote ho did not undertake 10 docidcn
And finally Tho Vice President nc had mot under.
taken TO decide and had decided whether vote
Of tho State OF Wisconsin had been gwen John C.
Fremont or not, power that the Chair utterly dis
claims and never asserted"
These quotations stirred tho Senate, and evidently
settled several Senator'S minds 10 the powers OF
the Vice President
The defeat OF Mr.. Edmunds' amendment and Mr.
Randolph's demonstration that the Vice President
assumed no power 70 s'count" tho vote or
10 decide upon tho admission or exclusion OF
state IN 1857, but on the contrary, clearly and
pcatediy stated that this power belonged the two
houscs produced unexpected result Az the close OF
tho session Mr.. Edmunds gave notice that he would
call up tomorrow the bill offered aud advocatcdby Mr
Morton last session AZ . substitute for tho
.wcn.y. y.secoad Join. rule. This bilIl ansr long
debate was passed by the Senate but was recon-
sdered, moved . second time . third reading and
shcre rested. Il is therefore, properly before tho
Senate IL provides that the two houses shall count
the electoral vote; that where there is OBJ
lection 10 receiving the vote OF . State
the two houses shall voto separately on
the question, ~ under the twenty second joint
rule that the vote shall not be thrown except
by the concurrence OF both houseA In this differs
from the twenty rule which provided that tho
vote State should be thrown out the objection
OF one House. Mr.. Norton's bill also pro-
vides that who're two or sets Of
returns up, each claiming TO be rcgu-
lar tho Vice President shall open both or all
and they shall be submitted to the two houses and II
they cannot agrco which shall be received
both shall be rejected and tho vote Of tho State shall
not be counted.
II was believed In the Senate that Nr. Edmunds
notice of his revival OF this old bill was
without previous arrangements with Mr. Nor
ton, because the latter's face expressed both
surprise and annoyance Tho republicans say
the bill will not do at all but the awkward fact Is that
nearly all the republican Senator'S voted for Mt the
last session, ana in the long debate abort Of
them committed themselves 10 all its featurcs Tho
section commanding the Vice President to open all the
returns received where than up and
declaring only that shab counted which