The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1876-12-08
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and the house should deny il, crisis
would be precipated at once.
1t is apprehended that if this question
were freed from the baleful influence of
precedent 10 the action of previous as
semblies, taken, no doubt, with no thought
of the ultimate complications and disas-
tiers to which it might lead, there would
be little question and no difficulty. While
it is true that the terms used In the con-
stitution are s'senate" and house OF rep
resentatives.' il can not be pretended that
they meet. as a congress IN which the
constitution declares all legislative powers
granted by it are vested. There is no
legislative function whatever involved In
counting the vote, beyond the inherent
right Of every assembly called together to
deliberate. sor do any act, to choose sue b
officers and adopt such rules for its gov
eminent, not inconsistent with the author
ity under which it may be convened, as
may tend to facilitate the transaction OF
the business before it. When the votes
have been counted, ifthere is no choice OF
president aud vice president, then there
is degolved upon these bodies distinct
and separate duties, of an entirely diff
erent character. viz: the choice OF a presl-
dent by the house, and of vice president by
the senate. And neither of these bodies
perform these duties as legislative bodies,
or 10 any legislative capacity. When as
sembled for this purpose they do not
carry their legislative organization with
them even. For instance. when the house
meets to elect president it's speaker has
no more authority to occupy the
ch1ir than any other member. The
body must organize as if its members
had never met as an assembly before.
So when the senate and house meet to
count the vote, the presiding officer of Meth
er body has any more rightful authority
to occupy the chair than any other mem.
Der; and if this view be correct the sup
posed authority of the president Of the
senate in that assembly does not exist
The only reason why he opens the certi
6cates of votes is because he is made
the custodian of them until the meeting O
the joint assembly to count them. TIT
duty and right of the assembl.
is to choose its own presiding officer
appoint its own secretary, its own CON
mittess, and aohen so assembled adopt it
own rules as any other deliberative body
The familiar case of the two houses of tn
state legislatures meeting in joint conven
ton to choose United States senator fur
. nishes the only analogy known in our syster
10 to the meeting of the two houses of congress
e to count the electoral vote; but it woul
!. seem that the nature of the duties to be pei
3 formed and the absolute necessity to til
: oh Of nj
o and certain action should have more weigh
L in determining the course to be pursue
than any precedent or analogy. Beside
(, there is measure of justice and equit
l 10 the bodies becoming and acting as or
when thus assembled to count the vote, fl
the house is composed of about five tim'
, as many persons as the senate, and yet
lseparate action the two bodies hay
precisely equal weight. There can be I
Z treason given why a senator, as memb'
Of body to canvass the votes for pres
dent, should be equal to five congressmt
in determining the important ques tiol
there to be settled.
have given no intimation of what lud
ment think this joint assembly shou
! pass upon any of the questions likely
come before it; nor have | assumed, e
% cept for the purpose of illustration, that,
~ acting separately, the senate will vote o.
way and the house the other; OF if acti
together, Republicans will V te one W
at: and Democrats the other 1t is greatly
u be regretted, and one of the overshadowi
- dangers of our times and politics, that
: spirit of partizau servility is so prevale
u as to justify such fear or. suspicion
give rise to such assumption on the part
any. Iregret exceedingly to see many
our leading journals and opponents Of p
y tiZan opinion among the people, on b(
y sides, indulging in such assumption
10 | cannot but hope and believe that, n
withstanding the bitterness which poist
the spirit of our heated political contes
10 such as we have just passed throus
re there are enough statesmen in b,
ase' branches of congress, and in both part
Tres to consider all these important questi
axe from a point of view far above that of
ana average politician. and decide them JUS
iai- under a sense of their obligations to tt
ell constituents. to posterity and to II
God. PHILEX