The daily gazette., 1877-02-13
THE FLORIDA SNAP JUDGMENT


WAgmTSGToN, Feb. 11.-After the de-
cision in the Florida case, by which a
pare majority Of one in the Electoral
fecting the merits of the controversy,
u is not surprising that the vote of that
State should be given to Hayes, against
the votes OF the people actually, fairly,
peaceably and legally cast for Tilden. as
aseertainen by Judicial inquiry.
HOW the commission reached the con-
clusion that nothing but the certificates
anu anu aacomhyaanylng &C ,h papers, which We're
be considered in trying this case as in q
court OF equity, has yet to be explained.
The proceedings given to the public are
confined to the mere motions and votes,
and throw no light whatever upon this
most important point.
The Electoral act never could have
passed, or have been accepted by the
House Of Representatives, but for the
perfect understanding that the testimony
taken by the committees of Congress
was to be weighed at its full value. The
words OF the law leave no doubt on this
subject with candid minds. 1t makes it
the duty of the commission to "consider"
an the, certificates, votes and papers OBJ
Jected TO, and all papers accompanying,
Htogether with the objections" The COM
~~.ADAOA 10 e1AoO ClupOWCEcu' W Jake luJO
view such petitions, dispositions, and
other papers, if any, as shall by the Con
stitutlon and existing law, be competent
and pertinent so such consideration"
The commission is the instrument of
the two houses; exercising a special au.
thority to act in their stead. Before this
tribunal was created they sent commit
tees to the disputed States to investigate
all the facts connected with the Presi-
nential election, in order to enlighten
their final judgment when the votes
came to be counted. The testimony ta-
ken by the House committee was sub
mitted to the commission, with the OBJ
lection filed to counting the Hayes cleo.
tors in Florida; but it was shut out on
the technical ground that it did not ac-
company the certificates, aud thus did
not come through the President of the
Senate
So, too, therecord of the Judgment in
the quo warranto proceeding against the
Hayes electors, declaring they were not
appointed, was barred from admission
on the same plea, 1t cannot be denied
that they are competent and pertinent"
as the act requires but according to the
decision of eight members of this com
mission, these papers should have been
submitted by the President of the Sen
ate with the different certificates, to be
considered at all.
This fine spun theory and wire-drawn
technicality, by which the four votes of
Florida have been captured and trans
ferred with tainted title to Hayes, will
not satisfy the country. 1t stands in the
nature OF snap judgment, and follows
precisely in 1.-THE paths of Wells and his
confederates, who sought to extenuate
their rascality by claiming to have OBJ
served the strict letter of the law, while
they nagrantly violated its provisions.
The commission have in no sense ex-
amined into the merits of the Florida
case, or determined which of the two
candidates had the honest majority of
votes. They absolutely refused to in
vestigate that question in any form, and
have simply determined to recognize the
Ger r.ifcate of Governor, who himself
was counted in by the fraud which re-
turned the Hayes electors, and then was
elected by the decree of a court which
this commission has declined to recog-
nize .4f
Something better than artful contrivan-
ces and refined sharp practice was ex-
pected from tribunal composed, with
two exceptions, of the best elements of
the Senate and house Of Representatives
and of five Judges Of the Supreme Court.
The confidence Of the country has been
abused by an exhibition of partisan bias.
which deprives the first findings of all
moral influence. An adverse verdict in
Florida, after any fair inquiry into the
rights of the contending parties, would
have been respected even by those who
are assured of Mr.. Tilden's majority in
the State. Hal. .na1.-
A Judgment for Mr.. Hayes rendered
upon contemplate quibble carries no
force whatever, invites distrlst of the
motives which actuated the majority,
and almost justifies the worst suspicion
Of those who originally opposed this plan
as being unfair to Mr. Tilden, who had a
majority in the Electoral Colleges and q
majority of the popular vote to stake
against the pretentions of "a claimant
backed by the fraudulent Capacities of
three Returning Boards. J. E. II.
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