The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1877-02-15

: force these vacancies would have to b,
iilled by popular election. II the law o.
lsVs was In force then the absence o.
these two electors would give the Others
authority 10 gil the vacancies, provided
any one had been elected. II the vote,
oil Levissee and Brewster are TO bt
counted, and il man Is to be made Pres.
ident ot the United States by counting
their votes and the votes Of I,ouiSiana
then It Is done by mere forms Of law, CON.
trary to the principles Of the Constirl.
tion ot the United States and In violation
Of the rights OF the people.
Senator Thurman--ls there any statute
Of Louisiana that requires the certificate
OF the Governor2 ~.
Mr.. Trumbull--There ia 4 statute that
requires the Governor to commission all
officers except certain persons therein
named, and which do not include Presi.
Dental electors. ua .y|
Senator Thurman--That is tue law Of
1872. But is there any statute requiring
him to issue certificates to Presidential
electors? r .........
Mr.. Trumbull-No, sir, not specially.
Mr.. Stoughton followed with an argu.
ment on the Republican side. He ex.
pressed his surprise at the objection that
the certificate Of Governor kellogg was
imperative. It would be remembered
that when the vote OF Connecticut was
counted her Governor, Mr.. Ingersoll, was
Presidential Eleclor at Large and that
his certificate had been received without
objection. Such objections were hardly
suitable to the dignity OF the OCCASION.
It had also been objected to-day,
and the objection had been urged with a
good deal Of zeal, that Governor Kellogg
was not Governor OF Louisiana, and that
Louisiana was governed by military
despotism. He supposed that that meant
that a military force had been on the
representation Of Governor Kellogg to
the President ordered to Louisiana for
the purpose Of suppressing insurrection.
The learned counsel (Carpenter) was
right when he succeeded in saying
that without such aid the government, Of
which kellogg was the head, would have
been overturned, but the counsel should
have reflected that the very fact that Gov.
Kellog had made such application, and
that it had ceen granted was decisive cyi.
denCe that he was Governor OF Louisiana.
He argued that the Returning Board was
a legal board and had the power to as
certain the vote, and finally the certifi-
cate; it seemed 10 him the decision Of
the commission in the Florida case deter.
mined the entire question here as 10 the
right OF the commission to go behind the
action Of the RetBrning Board, and did
not perceive that any question, much less
the main question, that was now open for
argument. He quoted against Trumbulls
argument from the report by Senator
Trumbull to the efiec! that neither
the Senate or House, nor both
houses jointly have the power un-
der the constitution ito canvass the re.
turns Of an election and that the manner
OF choosing electors was left exclusiyely
to the State. He also quoted on the
same point a letter recently published
from ex-Judge Church, OF New York,
whom he characterized as great lawyer
and an upright Judge and a pure poll
tician. He went on 10 argue that State
corrects the frauds OF its own officers and
does not apply to Congress for that pur.
pose and that Congress would best per-
form its duty by discharging it within
its authority, leaving out frauds that
are sometimes assumed and sometimes
offered to be proved TO be taken care Of
by the tribunals, who have the jurisdic.
ton over them. Congress might have
the power, but it did not have the right
to disregard the highest legal authority
OF state. Coming in the course Of his
argument TO the objection OF the Return
ing Board Of Louisiana, for not having
filled the vacancy in theBoard he said the
law on the subject was merely directory
and that failure 10 obey the law did
not interfere in any manner with the
capacity or Jurisdiction Of the Board. II
two or five members had been Democrats
and had afterwards changed their poll.
tics, would the Board be asked TO cease
to exist on that account? In conclusion
he said: Talk to me about the outrage,
frauds and disfranchisement Of the vOt-
ers. There are two sides to the question,
and il you sit here to go back and can.
vass the votes, you sit here 10 administer
the laws Of Louisiana and you must ad.
minister them bylearning who have been
disiranchised and what was the lawful
vote Of that State in harmony with her
laws, and not in harmony with the will Of
q party.
Mr.. Shellabarger next addressed the
Commission on the same side. He argued
that the act OF 1872 did not govern in
1876, during the Presidential election,
and that the revisory act Of 1870, which
provided for canvass Of the returns by
the Board and Governor, was repealed
and was not in force in 1870, for that
provision which made the Governor
canvasser for the purpose of election
was inconsistent with the 54th section Of
the session act Of 1870, which expressly
provided different tribunal for all cleo
tions, including the Electoral College.
1t was also repealed by the repeating
clause OF the session act Of 1870. The
election law Of 1872 applies to all cleo.
tions and furnishes the machinery or
means Of conducting all elections in the
State, including .the Electoral College,
but it may be asked, said the speaker,
"How can you preserve aud keep in force
that provision OF the act Of 1870
reversing that OF 1868, which pro.
vides for filling the Electoral College,
consistently with that which you
have Just been stating, answer, first Of
all, that it isan exceedingly benign canon
Of Interpretation; that law is never re-
pealed by new act unless either express.
iy SO done or else the repugnance be such
that it would be impossible for the two
acts TO stand together, and in using this
language am but repeating the words Of
the Supreme Court Of the United States
as announced on many occasions. Anoth-
er Interpretation is this, that in cases Of
doubt, whenever an Interpretation would
lead TO consequences that are either alb.
Surd or hurtlul to the public welfare,
that Interpretation will never be tolera.
ted unless its escape is impossible. The
next step is this: Is It possible to escape
the conclusion that under the legislation
Of Louisiana Louisiana was disiranchis-
ed, AID invite the gentlemen on the
other side who may suppose this act is
repealed by which only the Electoral
n.IIn.a -, L. EIIoI a.