The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1876-12-28
REPUBLICAN AUTHORITY 0
THE 2aa JOINT RULE.

large element in the Republican par
ty has endorsed and urged upon the
country the proposition that the 22d
joint rule of Congress has been abro-
gated and is no longer in force. No
intelligent man who has taken the
pains to investigate the subject can
hold to any such proposition, unless
he cares more for the uccess and
supremacy of his party than the OBJ
servance and enforcement of the law
Of the land rs its exists upon the
statute books to-day, unrepealed and
in full force and effect. What is the
history of this Twenty Second Joint
Rule, the existence of which has
caused SO much trepidation and a.
larm in The ranks of the Republican
party? By the Constitution of the
United States, the President of the
Senate presides in joint convention
when the electoral votes are counted.
The Constitution proceeds no fur
Their, it simply provides that-the
President of the Senate shall, in the
presence cf the Senate and House of
Representatives, open the certificates,
and the votes shall then be counted.
On the 9th day of February, 1865,
the two Houses Of Congress adopted
the TwentySeeond Joint Rule. Or
the 9th of February the President
approved the same and it became as
much a law Of Congress as the Act
of 1892 upon the same subject. The
Joint Rule provides among Other
things that-"If upon the reading o.
such certificate by the t~eliers, \ +
no vote objected to shall be counted
except by the concurrent votes ofths
two Houses" On the 18th of Feb
ruary, 1859, the House having under
consideration the counting of the
electoral vote, Benz. F. Butler intro
duced the following resolution:
"Resolued, That the Twenty Sec
ond Joint Rule of the House anc
Senate be, and is hereby rescindet
on the part of the House"
Mr.. Bingham, in his remarks from
his place in the House, used the fol
flowing language, 1Congressiona
tGlobe, 40th Congress, page 1885,.
"Mr. Speaker, who before eve
heard of resolution for the repea
of a Joint Rule in that form? A con
current resolution or a joint rule O
the Senate and House of Represen
tatives to be "rescinded on the par
of the House." You might just al
well introduce a resolution here to
day that the Act of1792, GOVERN!
the same question, abe, and the sam,
is hereby rescinded on the part o
the House." What business has til,
House, acting separately, to repeal
Joint Rule Of the t,oo Houses, or al
Act of Congress. Wherein does tina
differ from the act of secession o
rlSouth Carolina? wherein they sale
that the constitution and laws of til,
United States, though declared to b,
the supreme law of the land, Gar,
hereby repealed on the part of Soutl
Carolina" The Grand Army If tn,
Republic, under the lead of the hon
orable gentleman himself and 9th
ers, notified the State of South Car
olina and other States that had fol
lowed her lead, that the laws of thii
country were not to be repealed b,
any body of men whatever, withou
the concurrence of the Senate an,
House of Representatives, and tn
Constitution of the United State
was not to be repealed or altere
without the concurrence of the Leg
islature or the conventions of three
fourths of the States"
1t is needless to inform the reade
that Buffers resolution was not q
dopted. No resolution for the repes
of the Twenty Second Joint Ruls ha
ever passed the Senate and House {
Representatives and been approve
by the President; and no one pre-
{ tends that it has been repealed b
any act of Congress. Yet Republ
can speakers and Radical newspaper
all over the land are claiming ths
because the Senate, since the las
Presidential election, refuses to b
:. governed by the Twenty Secon
Joint Rule, that therefore it is abrt
gated. Wherein do they differ i
principles, in the language of Hol
JOHN A. BINGHAM, from the act
secession of South Carolina, whe
she declared that the Constitute
and laws fthe United States, thong
the supreme law of the land, al
hereby repealed and abrogated G
the part of South Carolina. But I'll
great lights of the Republican part
go further and say that the Senat
and House Of Representatives al
simply present as spectators in tt
: Join Convention to see the yot,
e counted by the President of the Sci
t ate. Was such q sentiment ever
vowed by any member Of Congre:
prior to the last Presidential election
= If any such remarkable utterant
L was yer heard in Congress, the Co
g~ressional Record fails to disclose i
. Not only has it's opposite been he
{ to be the true Interpretation CT Il
I XIIth amendment of the Constit