Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1877-01-11
COMMUNICATED
The Presidential Count.

The publishing house of the Appleton
has just issued a volume Of G70 pages, giving
thorough and exhaustive record OF the pro.
cecdings OF Congress since the constitution
went into effect, in regard to the Presidential
count, and derives therelrom these points.
lst. The exclusive Jurisdiction Of the two
houses to count the electoral votes BY their
own servants, and under such instruction as
they NAY deem proper to give. on occasions
arising during The counting or by previous con-
current order, or by standing Joint rule, has
been asserted from the begloulug OF the Gov
erumeut, and has been exercised at every cleo
ton to the present time by concurrent orders
from 1893 to 1865 and by standing joint rule
in 1860, 1869 and 1873. Every counting at
these twcuty-onc successive elections has been
conducted under, and goTcr0ed by the reguIa-
tons thus imposed.
2nd The President Of the Senate, although
he has regularly IN person or by some subsll-
tutc, appointed by the Senate, performed the
duty Of opening the electoral votes, has never
IN single instance attempted to 60 step be-
yond that limited function, or attempted to de.
tcrmpe what votes he should open, but has
opened ALL and submitted them to the action
of the two houses unless required to omit par
ticular votes by the concurrent order or acts OF
the two houses Where returns from two sets
of persons, claiming to be electors have been
received, ne has invariably opened and submit
ted all of them, and has never assumed to with
hold or delay anything. He has obeycd the
orders OF the two houses as TO every act which
he has done during the counting and as to the
announcement of the footing Of the tellers
when they had enumerated the votes.
3rd. The TWO houses have exercised the right
to fix and established the methods of procedure
by standing rules.
These rules deduced from the history Of the
Presidential counts from the beginning Of the
Government, at every election, to the present
day, would seem to demollsh entirely the pre-.
tentons Of the extreme radicals TO invest the
President OF the Senate with the right, not on
lg iG open, hu: to decide finally what votes
shall be counted If the President Of the SEN
ate has this right under the Constitution, then
every act Of Congress, AID every jointr1lc OF the
two houses on this subject has been absolutely
void, as 10 contravcution of the Constitution,
Tor, if the President oil the Senate was thus in
vested with such right, no joint rule and no
act Of Congress could divest him Of it; nothing
but change or amendment OF the Constitution
ITSELF and it would seem that the President Of
the Senate and Congress (maoy OF whose early
members assisted in framing that Instrument)
have been cropping in ignorance at every cleo.
ton to this day. The extreme radicals, 10 their
desperate effort to retain power, have put the
most perversc construction on the words of the
clause of the Constitution. The words are that
"thc President Of the Senate shall, in the pre-
scuce of the Senate and the House, open all
the certificates, and the votes shall then be
counted" This clause obviously does not give
him the right even to count far less to decide
what shall be counted, but confines his powers
to the more ministerial act CT opening the GER
tificatcs. The construction claimed would 10.
vest with auocratic powers the third officer
in the Government such powers as no govern
mcnt, far less u republic, would ever give to
any man; such powers as 10 the hands Of an
unscrupulous partlzan would make the ballot
nullity and the election farce 1t would make
him the grand returning board Tor the nation,
to decide what votes should be counted and
what thrown out. Il.