The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1877-02-02
UHot Has Been Established ell.

" H(tI I1uS DSSN 4IStttOttSNCtts
The debates upon the arbitration bill at
Washington last week, which ended in the
passage of the bill i'll each House by ma
ioritv of more than swo-thirds, have not
determined who shall be President, but
they have established, beyond all future
disturbance or denial, few points of I'M
purtance, which are really worthy of public
attention.
l. The proposition that the Constitution
confers upon the President Of the Senate
the power to count the electoral votes in a
Presidential election, including the power
to determine, when there is more than one
certificate from any State, which of these
certificates shall be counted, and to declare
the result, while the two Houses of Con-
gress are present merely as witnesses and
spectators-this proposition has now been
subjected to an exhaustive discussion, in
which the Constitution and the constitu-
tional history and practice Of the country
have been thoroughly explored, and every
principle and every fact bearing upon the
subject brought to light; and the Judgment
is that this proposition is utterly base
less, without anything to stand upon, a
mere device and invention trumped up for
the occasion and brought foi ward for a
partisan purpose without any reason, or
fact, or Truth, or law, or precedent To justi-
fy or support it.
III. 1t is established that the scheme Of
counting the electoral votes of Florida and
Louisiana, as certified by the Returning
Boards Of those States, in favor of Hayes
and Wheeler, when, in fact, the people of
each State gave a majority of their votes i'm
favor of Tilden and Hendricks, is scheme
that cannot be maintained and carried
through by any means hitherto known to
our laws.
III. 1t is established that the claim of
the Republicans that Hayes aud Wheeler
were elected in November by the acti n of
the Returning Boards of Florida and Lou
isiana is a sort of claim that the Republican
majority OF the Senate do not regard AS
substantial enough to insist upon.
". 1t is further established that, pro-
ceeding upon this unsubstantial and hollow
claim, and maintaining tina. the frauds in
Florida and Louisiana were not frauds,
certain of the Republican managers had
conspired to declare Hayes Presid, n, 20 in
augurate him, and tn put him in possession
of the Government without any legal or
equitable right whatever.
V. 1t is established that these RepuSi-
can managers had conspired to do this
through the usurpation, 10y the President
of the Senate, OF the power to pass upon
the electoral votes by virtue of his own al
legged authority alone, without allowing
either Senators or Representatives to object
at any stage of the proceedings, or to call
him to account for his action. Tha. this
was their design is certain, not Only from
the universal avowal of Republican press
and politicians, but also from the fact that
most of the debates were devoted to over
throwing and annihilating this pretended
power of the President of the Senate.
VI. 1t is established, finally, that the con-
spiiators had arranged and determined to
employ military force to carry out their
programme, or else the project of counting
in Hayes by the Seuate only would not
have been a thing for anybody to be afraid
of. To this consummation President Grant
was pledged. For this purpose he had
brought troops to Washington from distant
posts. This design lie has clearly an
nounced on several occasions, and it has
been boldly expressed in the National Re
publican newspaper, the party organ at
Washington. This design and the military
preparation formed the only real, substan-
tiai element in the Republican case.
VII. This conspiracy has now been de-
cidedly checked. The pretended power Of
the President of the Senate has been ex-
ploded and rendered ridiculous. The con-
spiracy to declare Hayes elected by the
frauds Of the FloI ida and Louisiana Re-
turning Boards has been defeated for the
present at least and the scheme of using
military force to put down the House of
Representatives in a revolutionary man
nei. has been anticipated and stopped and
hence All the public satisfaction over the
passage of the bill.
VIII. All these things have been done,
declared and established by majority of
more than two-thirds of each House of
Congress.
What may be the future development i'm
the working of the arbitration act, time
alone can show. But these present results
from the debates and votes of Congress are
positive and indisrutable. T. Sun.