New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-01-15
nov NOT TO CHOOSE Il PRESIDENT.

Whatever argument the Senate may make, we
hope that it will not agree to the choosing Oh
President by lot. Sclf-governmcnt by the Dice
box, self-governmcnt by pulling straWs or MP
ping pennies, would be a contemplate and
odious farce. IL We are not able to elect
Chief Magistrate or to determine whether one
has been elected, in any better method than
by tossing coppers, we had better hire some
debilitated European family to come over and
give us the blessing of hereditary mon
archy. Yet it is gravely proposed at
Washington to submit the questions at
issue in the Presidential contest, not TO
argument but to the decision of tribunal
the control of which shall depend upon
chance. 1t is proposed to form Tribunal
composed of four judges of the Supreme
Court, who are supposed to be equally divided
in opinion, five Senators, to be chosen, OF
course, by the majority i'll the Senate, and five
REPRESENTATIVES, to he chosen by the majority
in the House, and from the ten
members of Congress one is to be
dropped by drawing lots. In such a
game the House would certainly select five
particularly stiff and unreasonable Democrats
and the Senate five stiff and unreasonable Re-
publicans. each house naturally choosing men
who could not he moved by any argument to
act against its party. The dropping of one
man by lot is intended 10 determine, and I'M
der such conditions would surely determine,
the decision of the board. Either house, we
NAV presume, would select men sure to carry
out the will of the majority Of that house,
reason or no reason. The result would be IA
decision corresponding with the political
preferences of the members composing the
board, aud the majority of those members
would be fixed by lot
This is an awkward and inconsistent mode
of reaching the result. II would be infinitely
easier 10 provide that on the 14th of February,
in the presence of the two houses of Congress,
the President OF the Senate shall toss cop
per, and while the metal is spinning in the
air Mr.. Hewitt shall cry " Heads or "Tais
"for Tilden." This would be a most in
genious and simple mode of settling qucs-
ton so difficult. and it would be very much
better than the cumbrous cOntrvance of a
large commission 1t is absurd to detail nine
men to record the result of the flip Of a cop
per Certainly il is not necessary to detail
four members of the Supreme Court of the
United states for that duty. Unless the cop
prr should he bulldOzed, any newsbOy of
moderate intellect could decide the question.
If the Senate and the House were each to
select a committee, knowing that its decision
would be based, not upon accident, but upon
law and evidence, we might expect the choice
of very different sort of men. The House
might choose, and the Senate, we hope, would
choose ut least one man of high character
and independent habits Of mind. In the end,
that man would settle the question, and would
decide upon the weight OF evidence and
the force of reasoning submitted. Believing
that neither house has any power whatever to
look behind the returns from State, we do
not hesitate to say that if such investigation
must determine the result of the election at
all, it should be made by "A committee equally
divided politically, so that no decision could
be expected unless the weight of proof and
argument, on one side or the other, should
secure H.
But if accident is to determine the compo-
sition of the board, accident will determine
the result of the election. The American pee
plc, i'm that case have elected nobody. The
dcc-bOx. the flying copper, or the drawn
straw, shall elect a President for us. If we
have come to this, let Us get rid of the cx-
pcnsive and demoralizing form of elections
altogether. The conventions having nOmi-
mated. let each then designate its most skilled
gambler, and let the Presidency depend upon
a trial of skill or luck between the two. Pos
sibly, i'll time we might arrive at the dignity
of seeing Il President elected by game of
"Old Sledgc."