Mexico weekly ledger., 1877-02-01

ment. III the trainers or IL QcSlSneU 10 confer !
SUCH power upon the President of the Senate,
how unfortunate it was they did not say SO, which
might have been done by two more words. liz
staggered human crednlity to believe the trainers |
of the Constitution had thus designed to turn the
President of the Senate into a Judge on the most
critical case which could beiall the public, and
should not have said SO. If power to
open the certificate from q State implied power
to decide on its contents when opened, then the
President of the Senate had power to declare who
was the President, but he (Edmunds) denied
that power to do one thing Implied power to do
do another. The Constitution declared Congress
should nave power to pass any law to carry into
execution any power vested in any department
of the Government; the Constitution left 1t to the
Law -making power TO carry all these great forces
into execution. He then read from the decisions
Of the Supreme Court to show that the bill was
constitutional. The right to decide who was
the Senate, neither did it rest with Congress ex-
clusively until a law should be passed to that
effect. He denied emphatically that the Presi-
dent of the Senate had always opened and count
ed the Electoral votes. For just forty years OF
Government there never was an instance
where the Electoral certificate was drawn into
question. The bill did not take from the Presi-
dent of the Senate Or from the House OF Repre-:
sentatives any power which the Constitution had
vested in them, and therefore was not uncon-
stitutienal. In conclusion he hoped Senators
would carefully consider whether it was
wise by stimulating doubts in their own minds
to send this republic like the mountains which
the poet spoke OF, ''tumbling in the sea without
shore. - OR whether in a fair course of equal law
the dispute should be justly settled. e In the
AAOooS. NS hNiNh 0PP1oPL1"sAOh pNi "Sk1 e"NSA
up and discussed at length.
In the Senate, on the 22d, consideration
was resumed of the bill in regard to counting the
Electoral vote, and Mi. Morton took the floor.
He said the bill was the product % g nccnstrcus
plan. The shadow of Intimidation had entered
the Senate chamber He believed Rutherford b..
Hayes had been elected President of the United
States under the forms of law and according to
law, and he should be counted in, as eighteen
other Presidents had been, and inaugurated.
ton provides that the President of the Senate
shall, in the presence of the two houses, open all
the certificates and the vote shall then be count
ed, and If no one candidate has q majority Oh all
the Electors appointed the House shall imn1edi-
ately proceed to elect. The process contemplate
ed was q very simple one-smply to open the
certificates and count the votes, but c~ontenplat-
ed no time or place to try questions OF the ellgl-
bility either of the candidates or of the Electors.
Whether the Electors were eligible was a matter
left with the States under the Injunction OF the
Constitution. The handing down of the certif-
cate by the President of the Senate wasa declar-
alton OF the vote contained nit. Yer. few Re-
pubficans respect this bill. 1t viii be taken by
Republicans, if taken at all, as 3 dose of castor
oil. senator Edmunds burned his ship behind the
bill when he denied the power OF the President of
the Senate to count the votes In the absence OF
| Legislation. He thus seemed to make 1t neces-
sary to accept this bill. GeOiogists tell US there
n was n period in the earthis crust when there were
skuiless veriebrates; now we have got 10 the pc
riad when there are vertebrateless skulls The
Ipoger to count the vote resides in the. President
sl0f the Senate or IN the two houses. II it resides
TN the warehouses it can not be- delegated TO 2
fernmission or to a court: The mers matter OF
psrfofnsd by a teller; + aay question
tioiiS it can not be delegated to a commission.
The decision OF the Conference Committee
is binding only on being ratified by both
houses, bat the decisions of thisGonlnlission are
binding unless reversed by the action of both
houses 1t is, in every respect, a court invested
with high judicial powers to decide questions
of law as well as fact, with a right of appeal
81 not t1 another aOilrt hit tn the two homes OF
Congress. There is no power to so behind the
returns Of the election OF Electors certified by
proper returning or canvassing officers of Il
State. State courts can not do It, nor can Con
gYess nor Omitted States courts. If we concede,
d forssthe sake of argument. that the two houses
question lying behind that, and independent OF
il, and that Is as 10 what papers the. President
Of the senate is reqired 10 pen in the presence
of the two houses and hand to the tsllers. The
Electors in the several States are TO seal
up their votes and lists made up by the Governor
skaRil iaclase them TO the President Of the Sen
ate, indorsing the names OF the Electors upon
D the outside of the envelope. He is thus notified
J who the Electors. or pretended Electors. are who
. have voted, whose woes are contained in the en-
. bveiope. 1t is acertificate from the Electors, and
= none other that he is required TO open in the
presence Of the two houses. He is not in fact re.
, quired to receive the certificates Of any body but
I the true Electors of a State. He is therefore re
CURED in the discharge OF the duty OF his office
: to determine and present a true certificate from
the Electors of a State. He is bound as an Off
Ger of the Government of the United states tC
take notice OF those VINO nave been declared
, elected by the proper authorities OF the State.
e and, when a certificate Comes into his hands, It Ii
n his business at once to investigate and determine
for himself whether it comes from che Electors o
. d state. lie must decide that question upon hii
. peril, and present the certificate to the twf
4 houses of Congress-. Rutherford b. Haye'
" ought to be inaugurated, and must be inaugu'
. rated, unless q bill should be passed TO cOunt
h him out in defiance of well known principles OF
Il law. The Democratic Senators would not sup
= port this bill if it did not give Them q chance u
4. count in MIR. Tilden by going behind the returns
at 2:lt Mr. Morton said he was not able to pro
, coed further to-day, and therefore suspended
her of the special committee, then tool
Z the floor md spoke in favor of the bill.........
= In the House, a motion to suspend the rules and
pass u resolution directing the Committee oil
y Military Affairs to inquire into the cause Of tn,
= removal of troops from the frontier, whethe
sufficient force remains there to protect it, an,
the number of troops stationed at Wash
ingtoH, was defeated for want of q two-thiTd
vote. Mr.. Hunter moved to suspend the rule
and pass the joint resolution to amend the Con
U ~stitution by providing that no claims shall eve
be allowed or paid by the United States for prop
erty used, consumed, injured or destroyed dur
= ing the late rebellion, unless 1t belonged to per
e sons who were loyal to the G,vernmont
. a message was received from the Prerident, il
reply to Il resolution passed in December, re
q questing in regard to the service 9
the army in the south since the first of Angus
D last. SO #
The following is the substance of Mr.
Frelinghuyaen's remarks. on the 23d, upon tn
bill to provide for the counting of the Electora
, votes: Having been appointed a member of tn
q Special Committee which framed the bill, an
having, to the best of his ability, discharged hi
8 duty, ne felt ne could not remain silent while re
s hecting and patriotic people of the country wer
{ interested III this measure to the extent that tn
r. dignity of the Government should be maintained
that no bad precedent should be set, anu that til
q peace of society should he preserved. If Their
d ever was a tune when the representatives of tn
n American people should rise above party preju
;, dices and party feeling it was now; and, wit
y true courage and patriotism, they should deter
@ mine that they would avert this peril from tn
country. The duties 81 a faithful Sena
tor were always responsible, but it seemed C.
q him as if they now touched the highest point o
responsibility. at all events, Senator's must d.
n their dnty, whether it pleased their constituent
or not. He had no doubt that the complication
which now seemed to imperil the Government
would be adjusted by Congress and accepted b.
d the people, and the strength of this nation, de
veIoped during the war, would carry her for
ward into a new era, as all would have renewe,
confidence in our institutions. He believed thi
ntfa would no r,A>o - la~.1