Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-02-17
THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION
All Evidence Excluded.

As the work of the Commission goes
on, it becomes evidentth its machin-
cry is to be principally used for the
purpose of shutting out evidence and
setting aside the merits of the case.
When on the motion of Judge Miller
it was ordered:
''Tnat no evidence will be received or
considered by the Commission which was
not submitted to the joint convention of
Senate with the different certificates, ex-
cept such as relates to the eligibility of F. C.
Humphres, one of the electors"
1t was at last supposed that the re-
cord of the quo aoarraato issued by the
District Court in Florida would be
taken into consideration-but as soon
as the Acknowledgement was intro
duced to prove the serving of the writ
before the action of the Board his ev-
idence was excluded and the case broke
down.
This is nothing less than for the
Electoral Commission after all the la
Dor and intellect which has been spent
upon it, to affirm that there is no pow
er in State or Federal government to
deal with the foulest corruption, the
most shameless fraud, the boldest de-
iance of law and the Constitution by
which the will of the people has been
set aside. Itwould be better if in the
face of all evidence it had set aside
| the allegations of the Democratic
managers as not proven; but it goes
| further; it denies that under any cir
cumstances they can be proved, that
any tribunal can be constituted which
can reach them.
For this we have no remedy-we
have agreed to abide by the decision
of the Commission and have to do so
but it is no longer Republican gov
eminent under which such condition
can arise. We have not only to sub
NIT to Mr.. Hayes as President but to
stand by helplessly, and see him re-
elect himself four years hence, or APP
/ point his successor.
The York Herald, with some reserve
of expression which we do not think
it necessary to adopt, evidently takes
the same view-we subjoin its remarks:
1.-THE proceedings which Immediately
, followed the opening of yesterdays session
| of the Commission fixed beyond doubt the
| sweeping exclusion of evidence implied in
! the decision of the preceding day. The
/ Commission had decided that no evidence
/ is admissible beyond the certificates and
/ papers submitted to il by the President OF
/ the Senate. But it so happened that among
! these papers was a statement relating to
the writ of QlkO t0dTTGntO served on the
/ Hayes electors on the 9th of December, and
/ the Democrats cOnsOled themselves with
. the idea that the Q0u tvdTTdIato proceedings
| were already in evidence, and the Commits
| sion, even underits own order, W0uld have
| to consider them The DEMOCRATIC counsel
] did not feel quite sure of this point, and
/ seized the earliest opportunity to bring it
to test. They accordingly introduced the
! Attorney-Generalo of Florida as o witness
| yesterday morning and attempted toprOve
/ by him the hour of the day at which the
| writ of ono tDdTrdatO was served on the
| Hayes electors. Mr.. Evarts promptly OBJ
| jected to the question as excluded by the
! order of the COmmi SSiOn. The objection
! was sustained. II is too obvious that the
1 rniin0 ont of this TESTIMONY is fatal to DEM
/ ocratic hopes founded on the writ. Mr..
| O'COnOr and his associates had laid special
] stress the fact that the WIFI was served
I on the Hayes electors before they had or
| ganiZed as an electoral college. The hour
| of serving the writ was the very hinge of
! that part of their case, and the exclusion OF
| testimony on that vital point Is in effect an
! exclusion of the whole quo IU0JTdlltO pro-
! eeedingS as part of the Florida case. The
! consequence is that the Democratic case, so
/ far as that State is concerned. has COM
| pletely broken down by the tnadmlSSability
| of all the proofs which have been so elaoo-
! rately prepared during the asttSo months
] q great mass of testimony collected ana
! digeSted with so much labor by committees
| of Congress, and thought by the Democrats
/ to form the main pillar of their case,
| turns out to be of no more consequence
/ than if that vast machinery of investiga-
| tiou he'd not been set in motion. The DEM
! ocratic stronghold, fortified with such in
| finite pains and labor, has been thanked by
| their opponents, who march safely past
/ without finding an obstruction, Scuh hopes
as remain to the supporters of Mr.. TiIden
! must rest on quite other grounds IMAM
| those on which they have heretofore re-
! lied. The herculsan work done by their
| committees and the wonderful cross ex-
| aminations of Mr.. David Dudley Field Will
! be treated as so much 1rrevelant rubbish,
| which the OmmissiOn brushes aside as
! having no bearing on the case. Mr.. Tilden
/ has no longer anything to stand upon ex-
/ cepting the certificates sent 70 Ihe FFesl-
/ dent of the Senate and such testimony as
! may be offered to prove that particular
! electors were ineligible. This is o slender
/ reliance In the case of Humphreys, the
contested Florida electOr, 1t rests upon
I wire-drawn legal techinicality. The OBJ
! lection to the Oregon elector, Watts, Is not
| quite so unsubstant ial; but the Democrats
| must be very sanguine if they expect to
| succeed when their hopes hang on so Slen-
| der thread as dispute over the meaning
! of the word ''vancancy," which is the turn
/ ing point Of the Oregon dispute. The eight
I Republicans who form the majority OF the
! Commission are not very likely TO award
/ the Presidency TO Mr.. Tilden on a mere re-
| finement as TO whether there was vacap-
/ CIV which the two undOubted Hayes cleo
! tors were empowered to Ill.,