The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-01-13

Ref
SATURDAY I. JANUARY 10, 1877.
what the Conspiracy Means.
The deliberate purpose Of the Radical
marty ut washington Is. to usurp Tor the
Senate and the Executive Department the
spowersos appointing the President OF a'e
Tinted States, This combination was APP
pretended NEST seriously by the trainers fne OF
the Constitution, as any man may see "
/ reading the debates in the convention LOAF
framed the Constitution. Those tllustrtous
men endcayored to prevent any successiui
combination Of chs kind. His espcclaliy
seen in the provisions relative TO the e.ec-
ton 81 President. It Is required that the
!. counting Of the electoral vote for Prcssaens
shall take place in presence OF tho sen Gu.
ate and the House OF Representatives, ana
I'm case OF failure to elect, 1t is provided Thar
the House Of Representatives shall elect the
President. a1oy 81 s..>:iSt I,.sssi
The trainers OF the Constitution intended
that. in the event OF a failure to elect the
President through the electoral votes, tue.
House OF Representatives, the popular
branch Of Congress elected by the people,
and fresh from the people, as it were, shouiq
elect the President, aud thus intercept the
possibility OF the assumption Of that cleo
tion by the Senate under conspiracy with
the Executive Department.
The party OF usurpation indicate their
purpose to be to defeat the requirements OF
the Constitution by revolutionary action.
They propose, in the event OF disagree
ment as to the conditions Of the proceeding
of counting the votes, that the duty shall
devolve upon the president OF the Senate.
This Is precisely in contravention OF the
Constitution, which was designed particu-
larlv to confer no such authority upon that
officer. All authority given by it is---hrst,
to both bodies OF Congress, in joint SEES
sion, to count; and second, in case
OF n failure to elect, to the House OF
Representatives to act, as it were, tor the
people and elect the President OF the United
States. The president OF the Senate would
have no more authority to count and pro-
nounce who is elected in the exigency OF
disagreement between the two bodies OF
Congress than would felon sentenced to
the Dry Tortugas.
But the conspiracy is for combination
;. between the Senate and the Executive to do
this revolutionary thing. That there must
be an understanding between the Senate
and the Executive must be apparent to all
men the moment the usurpation is clearly
shaped. The SENATE would not daret VEN
ture upon so lawless step unless it had the
assurance Of the Executive that they would
be sustained in it.; for it would be an
act OF violence that would not stand
q moment unless sustained By force-by the
bayonets at the command Of the Executive.
This is the very conspiracy which some OF
the wisest of the fathers OF the republic
apprebended and they thought they had
provided against it. But what are laws to
dishonest men, who have power enough to
shield themselves from the penalty OF law:
& What is the constitutional line Of pro-
ceedins for the House Of Representatives.
in the apprehended dilemma OF disagree
ment between the bodies? 1t has been SIM
plychalked out by that able man and honest
patriot Mr.. TRuMBULI, of Illinois. He says:
What is to be done if the Senate and
House cannot agree on the count OF the
electoral vote? The presumption is that
each house is to do its duty, and pass
law to carry on the Government. The peo-
ple have the right to demand this Of both
houses, and let us demand it in an earnest
tone. II the two houses cannot agree,
=, o1n onl hoan
the duty OF the lower house to elect a
President, and the Senate Vice-Presi-
dent. That is the way out Of the difficulty,
the peaceful and constitutional way, and
when he is elected he is to be sustained,
and whoever by force undertakes to resist.
he Is traitor, and should be dealt with ac-
cordinsly. It is said that such course will
be productive Of civil war. Does the man
who asks On honest election want war? Not
= by any means. There are few men who
have taken the Job to elect Hayes il you will
allow them. You will allow no man to enter
your house as q thief except at his peril.
The man who climbs up into the presiden-
tial chair except in the constitutional way
is a thief and robber, and while l
do not believe there will be any
civil war, vet am glad I belong to race
who know their rights and will maintain
them. We will so peaceably through this
crisis, but in order to do so the House Of
Representatives must exercise their proper
functions, and so must the Senate. II any
Government officials are in the conspiracy
to seat in the presidential chair o candidate
not elected they should be impeached by
the House before the bar Of the Senate. The
House Of Representatives must do its duty,
and bring to trial the men who are conspi-
ring against the liberties OF the country.
And this is the way to defeat the con-
spiracy so long ago apprehended. The con-
spiracy of the Senate with the Executive to
take to themselves not only oil the patron
age and perquisites OF the Government, but
the election Of President OF the United
States, and thus the entire administration of
the powers of the Government.
The Count Concurrence Indispensable.
The Chicago Times assumes that the
twenty-second Joint rule is a constitutional
principle-it Is statement OF constitu-
tional law that was ordained and established
with the Constitution. cit is a part Of the
fundamental and organic law Of every
two-chamber Legislature that exists in