The daily gazette., 1877-01-27
TIE DEBATE IN THE HOUSE BE-
GUN. lIiiH.
SHORT, PITHY SPEECHES BY THE LEAD
ING SUPPORTERS AND OPPONENTS OF

@-'N SCA NOAA Ems N OfHOAhAlb w
The BILL. rsranzss s.ars'asrrt1ssa.a
WASHINGTON, JAM, 25.- Mr.. Pdgae
(O.) moved to proceed to the business on
the Speakers table in order 10 refer the
bill OF the joint committee, which had
come from the Senate, to the Committee
on Counting the Electoral Vote.
i SPEECH OF MR.. HEWITT.
Mr.. Hewitt (dem.) of New York,
thought that the bill transcended in
Importance any measure which was
likely to come before Congress during
the present generation. sAtter the cleo
tion he had believed Tilden and Hem
dricks1elected, and nothing had oc-
CURED since that time which could
orherwise than strengthen that convic-
tIon. He had been aeked why. hold
ing that opinion, he should agree to
depart from the ancient way in which
twenty-five Presidents had been de-
clared elected, which, IL it had been
adhered to, would have resulted in the
Inauguration of the democraticRcandi-
dates. This question he intended to
answer fully. clearly and without re-
serve. The main opposition which
the Democratic party had to meet was
the Influence of the administration.
After the defeaJ of the Republican
party in November still remained
intact, and claimed the election of its
candidate, and attempted 10 strengthen
that claim by returning boards, mill
tary interference and by declaring
that the Vice President had the right,
to count the votes: The scheme was
thus completed for counting Tilden
out and Hayes in. He was confident
that the project would be executed
to the bitter end, the president of the
Senate would count the votes and de-
clare the result, and the President OF
the United States would deliver up his
high office to the person declared so
elected, and by the use of troops he
would be duly inaugurated. OfcOurse
the House would not be silent and
passive spectators of that programme,
and would insist on Its constitutional
right to participate in the count, and
would count the vote of Floriada and
Louisiana for Tilden. The result of
such state of things was civil war.
The rights and principles for which
the Democratic party of the country
struggled would have perished if the
attempt to count in the republican
candidate for the presidency were
acquiesced in, or if, not being acauies-
ced in, war should result. There was
no escape from that position except by
an agreement between the patriotic
of both parties, who preferred the
good of the country to the success of
party. Partisan as he was supposed to
no hnt nofrinttn ha
forth to be. regarded, he had deemed
it his bounden duty to labor zealously
toward the attainment of some Just
and constitutional plan of settlement
whereby but one President should be
declared by title which all citizens
would respect, and which no consid-
erable number of votes would dispute.
The bill even if not within, the strict
letter of the constitution was certainly
within its spirit 1t substituted law
and order for strife and anarchy. It
meant the supremacy of the civil over
the military power. 1t meant the pre-
servation of the autonomy of states.
1t meant oblivion of all the bitterness
of the past, security for the present,
hope for the future.
Mr.. Garfield co. desired in the out
set to say some good things of the bill.
1t had some great merits, which he
most sincerely recognized. 1t was in
tended to abate strife in great and
trying crisis of the nation. It was in-
tended to aid in tiding over a great
present difficulty. possibly great
bring result, and would leave the
person declared,to be thcelect of the ma
tion with more undisputed title than
perhaps under any other method as
yet suggested. If he had to speak
of the bill only as a partisan he should
say he was. not afraid of lis operation.
1t was not enough for him that the
bill would tide over the present danger,
however great. They should inquire
in what shape, if passed, this bill
would leave the institutions of the
country and transmit them to posterity.
He then proceeded to argue in support
of the theory that it was the right of
the President of the Senate to count
and declare the electoral votes, As
of his argument, he cited
the fact that in thirty-one States of
the Union the opening and publishing
of the votes for Governor is a minis
terial act and is put in the hands of
designated officers, while iu only seven
States the Legislature was the canvass
ing and returning board.
Mr.. Hoar remarked that in all the
old thirteen Ssates the two houses of
the Legislature counted the votes.
Mr.. Garfield replied that in ma
lority OF the. original States the Leg
stature elected the Governor This
bill would make Congress returning
board, with all the vices and none OF
he excuses of the returning boards of
.he States.
The House att o'clock adjourned.
EVENING SESSION.
The House met Mt 7.30 P. M, with Mr.
Hooker (Miss.) in the chair. The first
speech was made by Mr.. Caldtreu (Tenn.)
who advocated the bill. He declared
himself ready by his vote to commit the
.auaa in I'M uhinh ha haliayad ho Tho tyih,,