Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-01-27
SENATOR MORTON.


The we'll known Indiana Senator IS
now the leader Of the opposition tothc !
bill now before Congress for determine :
ing the method of counting the Elec-
toral Vote he is now the vehement {
advocate for the President of the Sen {
ate as the uncontrolled agent for trans {
acting the whole business, he is now |
the angry impugner Of the claim of
Congress to go behind the face of the
State certificates, he now opposes
strenuously the judges of the Supreme
Court having anything to do with the
matter. TO show clearly how COM
pletely he plays the partisan in this
matter, and how little he is Influenced
by any public principle, we clip from
the New York Herald his record in
regard to the various questions now
under debate.
s. B. NJ. refuses to read the signs OF
the times, and is thereby committing |
political suicide, and it will not take |
long we hope for him to follow in the
track of Boutwell,, Logan, Packard,
Stearns, Chamberlain and Returning
Board Wells.
So long ago as January, 1873, Sena-
| tor Morton began to warn the Senate
and the American people OF the ex-
IRENE danger which would threaten
the country if Congress did not adopt;
some way of counting the electoral
vote to the exclusion of the President
of the Senate. On the 9th of January
he introduced resolution instructing
the Committee of Privileges and
elections to Examine and report at
the next session of Congress upon the
hest and most practicable mode OF
electing.the President and Vice Pres
iden and providinga tribunal to adjust
and decide all contested questions con-
nected Herewith" On the 18th of
the same month he made set speech
on the subject, in which he gave much
snace to showing the dangers to the
country if the Vice President should
he allowed to count the vote. Many
of his words have a curious appllca-
tion at this moment and to the present
{ situation. He said, for instance -
Upon the hypothesis that the President
!, | of the Senate has the power to open ana
/ count the electoral votes, and that the Two
: | houses are to be present merely as wines
l iect either Jointly or separately, every body
- must perceive that it is q vast and danger
| Gus power to repose in the hands OF one
! ! man-especially when he may be ardentIy
| devoted to the fortunes of a great party
In the same speech he said:
tits not the history of parties that they
will voluntarily surrender an advantage
: though tainted with odium and 1nJustlee'
e FEBRUARY 25, 1875, he said, still urging the
: adoption of some tribunal" for deciding
n disputed votes:
q If we have no rule. whenever vote Is
= opened by the President of the Senate IN
j. the convention of the two houses 1T mus
be counted, whatever may De the hrTeSu
e Iarity or the unlaWfulneSS of it. There Il
no way to prevent it. That is the CONDITION
i If you have no rule. without any run
% every vote must be counted, no matter how
false, how fraudulent, how unlawful III ma!
e be.
This alternative Mr.. Morton held up as
e terror to the Senate and the country L
pursuade them to pass his bill.
In March, 1876 he was still so anxious tina
l. the Vice President should not cOnnt tn
r vote that he was not unwilling TO submit
to the decision of n disputed election to tn
- Supreme Court. On thu 10th of March n
IS in fact foreshadOwed precisely such selec
20 ton ofSupreme Court judges as the presen
Electoral bill proposes. He said -
1 think this question cannot come be
Z, fore the Supreme Court dicially-certaln
IF " not under the present law that we have
- but I wi II now read the plan OF the amend
u ment that / would suggest in case the ser
ate determines that we have the power I
eS establish an umplre:-
lg THAT the Judges of the Supreme Court {
=; the United States shall be assembled IN tn
u chamber of the Supreme Court at the sam
IN time that the two houses of Congress ar
~ counting the electoral votes for Preslden
and Vice President, and in case the wv
houses shall fail to agree as to which is IN
be true and valid return as provided Tor IN IN
section, the returns shall be 1mm edlatel
BY submitted to the said judges, who sha
summarily decide which is the true an
T. valid return, which return shall be coun
o. ed"
a. 1t seems to me that if we have got to r
er fer this question to anybody IL would
at more satisfactory to refer it to the SupreH
Court of the United States, and II you cai
,rt not do it in the character of the Supren
n Court then let your special tribuni
OF be composed CT judges of that court, an
! let them decide it, and decide 1t torWlth'
no On the Dist of March he said again -
he tive have power to give any outside II
bunal Jurisdiction we have power to give
gh to the Supreme Court, and that won
be the most satisfactory tribunal
lrs which we could refer so great a question
.at The people of this country won
submit with more satiSlaetl t2ia,, 10 2,,o u
to the decision of any one man,
IA care not how wise or how great he mig
. ! be, or any special tribunal that we mig
Ia create In answer to the question put
my friend from North Carolina, say
cannot confer the jurisdiction upon u
cd Supreme Court as Supreme Court. ST.
GU if we have the power t9 create "A specl
me tribunal we can confer it upon the JUG
of the Supreme Court because they are II
Ice judges of that court.
les AS to the power of the two houses in ca
to uf a contested vote, he referred on Marc
no q to the case of Michigan, in 1887, saying
i'm simply refer to it briefly for the purpo
:. of showing that Congress assumed su
III stantially the power over these cohlSst
-, votes long ago, and that seems to have be-
Ills the better Judgment OF members of the ~
Wo houses at different periods OF our history
Finally, on the same day, and in his Ia
remarks urging his own bill, he said -
- We can understand in view of what too
Oh place three years ago last month the nec'
zoe sity of providing some method for couI
i"' ing these votes. We cannot, as comnl'
In lovers of our country and patriots, SWo
to stand by this government, pass over l
ed duty of providing against such dangers
, lie right at the door. AS said before, al
len plan is better than none almoSt.l
ms; 1t would seem that Senator Mort'
sa- might, if he chose, have claimed the pate
- nifty of the present Electoral bill, whit
III however, he vehemently opposes. He c'
as tainIy more clearly and oftener than a
er: other man, set forth the danger which mt
IN arise from leaving the count to the Pre-
dent of the Senate.
re- ---
lgi- CONVENTIONAL INTEREST.
cry
will M, CL.,L:,,o roI I'll,