The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1877-02-23

resumed. William NJ. Evarts, of Republican
counsel, spoke against the admission of evil
dence, and Judge John A. Campbell closed on
the Democratic side in favor of receiving testi-
mony. At the conclusion of the speeches the
court went into secret session, and, after an
hours debate, adjourned.
FRIDAY, Feb. 16.-The following is brief
minute Of the secret deliberations Of the COM
mission upon the question of admitting evil
dence in the Louisiana case. Mr.. Hoar moved
that the evidence be not received. Mr.. Abbott
moved, as a substitute, that evidence be re-
ceived 10 show that the act of Lou
isiana establishing a Returning Board for
that State is unconstitutional, and the
acts of said Returning Board are void.
This WAS rejected by the following vote !:
Payne, Thurman. Ndys-Bradley, Edmunds
Frelinghuysen, Garfield, Hoar, Miller, Morton,
Strong-8. number of other propositions for
the admission of evidence were presented and
voted down, the vote in each instance standing
to 8, as recorded above. The vote on MIR.
Hoar's original motion, that evidence be not re-
ceived, was then adopted by the following vote
Yeds-Bradley, Edmunds, Frelinghuysen, Gar
field, Hoar, Miller, Morton, Srong-8. Nays
Abbott, Bayard, Clifford, Field, Hunton, Payne,
Thurman. The following resolution was
then offered by Senator Morton, and adopted
by the same vote Resolved, That the persons
named as electors in certificate No. were the
lawful electors of the State of LOUISE
ana, and that their votes are the votes
provided by the constitution of the United
States, and should be counted for President and
Vice President. Justices Miller and Bradley
and Representative Hoar were then appointed a
committee to draft the report of the decision,
with brief statement of the reasons therefor.
A recess of about one hour was then taken TO
afford time for drafting the report, which,
upon the reassembling OF the commission, was
presented and after being read was signed by
Messrs. Miller, Strong, Bradley, Edmunds,
Morton, Frelinghuysen, Garfield and Hor.
The report is to the following effect:
The Electoral Commission, having received GER
tain certificates and papers purporting to be certf-
Gates of electoral votes of the State of Louisiana,
and certain papers accompanying the same and OBJ
iections thereto report that it has duly considered
the same, and has decided and does hereby decide,
that the votes of William Pitt Kellogg, o. ii. Brewster
A. b. Levisee. Oscar Jaffrain, Peter Joseph, j. H.
Birch, L. A. Sheldon and Morris Marks, named in
the certificate of William p. Kellogg, Governor Of
said State, which votes certified by said per-
sons, appears by certificates submitted to the
commission, aforesaid, and marked No. 10y
said commission and herewith returned, are the
votes provided for by the constitution Of the United
States, and that the lawfully TO be counted
therein certified, namely eight votes for Ruther-
ford Il. Hayes, of the State of Ohio, for President
and eight votes for William A. Wheeler, of the State
of New York, for Vice President.
eight persons first before named duly appoint
ed electors in and by the State of Louisiana.
The ground of this decision, stated briefly II
substantially as follows:
That it is not competent to go into the evidence
diunde to the papers opened 10y the President OF
the Senate in the presence of the two houses to prove
that other persons than those regularly certified by
the Governor of the State of Louisiana in and ac
.cording TO the determination and declaration OF
their appointment in other words, TO GO behind the
certificate of the Governor, far as II is founded
upon the action of the Returning Board.
The report also states that the commission
could not receive any evidence to show that
any elector was ineligible on the eth of Novem-
Der, the day of the election, on the ground
that it was not essential to show that an electoI
was eligible on that day long as he was
eligible when he cast his vote in the Electoral
College, and the fact appears that the alleged
ineligible electors, Brewster and Levisee, were
chosen TO fill vacancies caused by their own alb
sence from the college, and there was no al
legation of the ineligbility at the time they cast
their votes.