The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1876-12-07
will amount to nothing.


members of the rump, a full chorus on
that side began to sing, "Hold the Fort
for Hayes and Wheeler" much to the
edifcation of Judge Denny, of Indiana,
who is here as counsel for the Board of
Canvasscrs, and the renegade North Car.
Gilman, Settle, whom Vance thrashed
out so handsomely on the 7th of Novcm-
Der.
At the time of going to press matters
remain unchanged from what they were
Friday night A majority of the Demo.
Gratis are sleeping, and large number of
the Radicals seem to regard the whole
business as good joke, and to act as
they would at big barbecue, camp
meeting or militia muster. Meanwhile,
the old peanut seller in the lobby is dri"
ing pretty fair trade-thc average Ra,.-
ical statesman being able to hold oat
long while on "goobers" and the hope
of 5000 session.
MONDAY, Dec. 4, 1876.
The monotonous show at the capitol
ended yesterday. The constitutional
House aud the rump body having spent
the Sabbath in the hall together, every
body felt that an end of some kind would
be reached on yesterday, and not few
thought it would be bloody end. The
city was full of men from the surrounding
counties. Many of them had come to
attend the fair, and large numbers had
come to see fair play in the count which
it was understood would be had yesterday:
The parties who had q copy of the real
returns were inside of the hall, and it was
known that Mackey had q set of the doc
tored returns. The rump and their
hackers had taken the precaution to keep
everybody out except members and the
representatives of the press, and had in
tended to have what they called count
of the vote, but which would have been
mere opening of the thirty-two envelopes
of doctorcd returns which Hayne, the
Secretary of State, had turned over to
Mackey, the bogus Speaker of the rump.
The hall presented pretty much the
appearance it had for three or four morn.
ings previous, the long watch and ftful
sleep telling upon many of the members.
At a quarter to IL the usual formal ad-
iournment took place, without anybody
leaving their seats except the member
who made the motion. The roll was
called and the Speaker and pretended
Speaker then announced to the respective
bodies over which they presided that the
House of Representatives was opened.
Mr.. Orr, of Anderson, then made a
motion to adjourn, when Speaker Wal
lace arose and made the following re-
marks:
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives !:
have just been officially informed that
there are now in readiness upwards OF 100
armed men who are about to enter the
hall for the purpose of ejecting certain
members upon this floor. The members
to whom it is intended that the force
shall be applied have been recognized by
this House as members, and we dispute
the authority of the State Government to
eject from this floor any member of this
House upon the ground that he is not a
legal member of the House of Represen.
tatives of the State of South Carolina
We insist that this House is the only
competent authority to pass upon the
qualifications and election returns of its
own members. The force to which / have
alluded is acting directly under the au.
thority of Governor Chamberlain and
under his commission. The chair is
given distinctly to understand that if tha
force is resisted by the members Of thi'
House, the military force of the United
States will be invoked to its assistance; tha
that assistance will be rendered not fol
the purpose of upholding another body
claiming to be the House of Representa-
tives of South Carolina, but upon the
ground that that force is under the Gov.
ernor, and that the action of the military
is in support of the Executive authority
of the State. With view of preventing
collision upon this floor in which lives
may be lost and blood shed, with view
of preserving the public peace, with :
view of submitting to proper and lega
arbitrament all the rights we claim OF
this floor, the Chair is of the opinion tina
this House should withdraw from thi
hall. While we assert our rights as th'
legal House of Representatives of Soutf
Carolina, while we dispute any authority
under the sun to decide for us who have
, rights upon this floor, but solely for tht
purpose of preserving the peace and pre-
venting bloodshed and of conforming ou
conduct to the public teachings of thu
political leaders of the State, I am O
opinion that this House should withdraw
{ to another hall. 1t is not essential to the
legality of the House of Representative
that it should sit in this hall. The con
stitution requires that the General AS
sembly should meet in the city of Colum'
pia, and with view of giving emphasis
to the reasons for our withdrawal, desire
to repeat that while we claim and insist
upon all our legal rights, for the purpose
of keeping the peace and preventing vio-
lence and of preventing bloodshcd, we
will repair to another hall and exercise
the proper functions that appertain to
this body. may as well state that the
only legal House that can exist in South
Carolina is body consisting of sixty
three members. That constitutes quo
rum of that body under the constitution,
the membership of that body being fixed
at 1874; the constitution also providing
that majority of those members is alone
competent to do business.
I, therefore, gentlemen, upon the
grounds stated, and for the reasons given,
while insisting that we are the only con-
stitutional House of Representatives in
South Carolina, that for the purpose of
preventing bloodshcd, / recommend that
we do adjourn to another hall in this
city.
At the conclusion of General Wallace
remarks, Mackey handed u paper to Mr..
Marshall, Reading clerk of the last
House, aud requested him to read it.
Mackey prefaced this action with the re-
mark that he had intended to request
that the preamble and resolution be read
the first thing after the roll call, but that
he had, through courtesy to General
Wallace, withheld it until he had finished
his remarks.
Mr.. Marshall then read the following:
Whereas the House of Representatives
of the State of South Carolina did assem-
| IL. 4l,o L,n oF Horao of Rppro.