Middletown transcript., 1877-02-03
The conference oOmml.tse.. Plan

The New York World of the 18th
says Every thoughtful student Of our
political institutions who has really
formed an opinion of the rights which
the Federal Constitution intends shall
belong to, and Of the duties which it
intends shall be performed by, the two
houses, respecting electoral votes, will
bring the measure which has just been
reported, for examining those votes, to
the test of that constitutional standard
For ourselves, as our readers know, we
have very decided views on these ques-
tions We do not believe that the
trainers of our fundamental Law intend
ed the President of the Senate to be
anything more than an official receiver,
keeper and opener of the electoral GER
ti6cates Those things done, his func-
tions are all exhausted, and the two
houses have complete and exclusive
Jurisdiction Of the whole business. All
the powers Of examination, veri6cation,
testing and counting which the Consti-
tuition or the laws allow or supply, re-
side in the two houses. The two houses
are the best and safest repositories of
this power One represents the peo-
pie, and the other the States. The
former makes a President and the lat
ter a Vice. President, in default of an
election BY the electoral colleges These
two bodies 10 this business are CO.
equal, with co-sxtensivs powers as to
the place of meeting and the presiding
officer. They meet and act as separate
houses, and not as convocations of
members Neither the House nor the
Senate in any Presidential election has
ever yielded one title of its power to
superinteHd and control the .examina-
tion, the exclusion and the counting of |
votes. All these are affirmative acts
they are things to be done they can
not come about of themselves. When
a certificate is opened the votes do not
count themselves; they must be count
ed. That counting is an act in which
both houses must concur, or there is no
count This has been the uniform con-
struction from 1889 to the present time
whenever a vote has been objected to
The joint-rule of 1865 was but a codi6-
cation and formal expression Of this
uniform practice. No casuistry can
make the examination of vote, the
decision if it be a vote, or the count
ng, a negative act. The Constitution
Iays 'the votes shall then be counted "
If either house decides that particular
ist does not contain "the Uotes," and
'efuses to count that list, it is not
counted, and, of course, cannot be
counted, by the two houses. Either
louse can reject, and refuse to make,
n incorrect final enumeration of the
Vhole vote 1t is said this is a tre-
nendous power So it is But it had
o be reposed somewhere, and it has
'een wisely reposed in the two houses,
nd practically in one house, if one
Iouse refuses to concur in an afirma- !
i've att. 0s II the tt=HFee n keaias eaas, the lnwer
Ouse is nearer to the people, and there
ore more trstued by the Constitution, t
han the upper house. 1t is the lower
ouse which makes President if the t
lectoral colleges fail to make him Its '
uthority in that matter is supreme and a
ole. The Senate cannot interfere with Q
hat authority any more than the lower Q
ouse can with the making of Vice. t
resident Therefore the lower house i
lust for itself, as a house, examine, t
cunt and ascertain if any person has a s
lajority Of the votes for the Presidency a
1t must, for itself, decide how many n
lectors have been appointed, and be its Fl
Wn exclusive Judge of its own jurisdic- v
on to make a President, as the Senate "
over its jurisdiction to make Vice Y
resident This law cannot be changed il
: modified by the inquiry which or e
hat party controls either house, for it Il
an immutabls law, and if the ques- I
on had been adequately discussed in "
ongress. as it ought to have been, ii
lch, we are sure, would have been the 81
,inion of the country. These are our Il
,inions, by which We are compelled to ii
st the mode just recommended by the
int committee and We do not see
w it is possible to reconcile with n
eue opinions the rule that single re-
IN is to be counted unless both bodies to