Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1877-01-26
Counting the Electoral VOte---PInn OF
the Joint COsimittee.


ing the electoral vote came 10 an agreement
ON the subject last Wednesday night, and
their scheme was stated in the form of
bill which was presented TO Congress on
Thursday.
The bill provides that the two houses
shall assemble on the second wednesday
of February, in the hall of the House OF
REPRESENTATIVES. The President OF the
Senate will be the presiding officer. Two
tellers are to be appointed on the part oil the
House, aud two on the part of the Senate.
Tho President Of the Senate shall open all
certificates Of Electoral votes, in alphabetical
order of the States, beginning with the let
Ter A, and the tellers, having read the same,
shall make list of the votes as they appear
On the certificates. They shall certify this
list to the President of The Senate, who VIII
announce The result, aud the person having
n majority OF the voIes shall be declared
President of the United States. If any
question shall arise on the reading OF any
certificates, as to whether the votes shall be
counted, the objection having been stated
by the presiding officer, the Senate shall
withdra to its own Chamber; the oljec-
lions raised shall I've considered and decid.
ed without debate, aud unless both houses
concur in sustaining the objections, The
vote objected to shall be counted.
When two sets of returns have been re-
ceved from any Stale they shall be opened
by The President of the Senate and laid be-
fore the joint meeting. In cases where
more than one sci of returns is presented
VI,, IaI N Itrn Nyiih
all accompanying papers, are 10 be referred
to a commission 10 consist Of five Senators
to be elected by the Senate FIVE members
of the House to be elected Ivy the House,
and the four Associate Justices of the Unit
ed States S tpreme Court, for the first, third,
eighth, and ninth circuits, and these four
Associate Justices shall select 9Th Justice
who shall moi lie the Chief Justice. The
senior Associate Justice shall preside al the
sessions of this tribunal, and it is clothed
with all the powers of either or both houses
of Congress to make investigations. The
decisions of this commission shall be made
in writing TO both houses, which shall be
convened in the hall of the House of Rep
resentalives TO receive such decisions, and
the decision of the commission shall stand,
unless both houses concur in rejecting
them, as is provided in the first section of
the bill with reference 10 the vote of object
ed States, from which but one return las
been received.
The four associate Justices who will con-
stitutc part of the commission, and who are
designated by the circuits over which they
preside, are Nathan Clifford, of Maine /;
Samuel +. Miller, of Iowa Stephen ].
Field, Of California, and William Strong, or
Pennsylvania. The other four associate
Justices, one of whom will be selected TO
complete the commission, are Noah ii.
Swayne, Of Ohio David Davis, Of Illinois !;
Joseph p. Bra dley, Of New Jersey, aud
Ward Hunt, of New York.
This grand con. mission of fifteen persons,
who are TO decide The important questions
referred 10 them by the joint meeting, are
TO take an oath to act impartialy and give
a true judgment according to the Constitu-
ton and the laws. They are TO decide by
majority of votes, whether any and what
votes fro IN the disputed States are the votes
provided for by the Coz stitution, and how
many Electors were duly appointed in
each OF said States.
No debate is in order in the joint meeting
of Congress and no questions are to be put
by the presiding officer, except in motions
that the two houses separate. lie shall
have power 10 preserve order. The bill
makes provision for the seating of the
President of tho Setnate, the Senators and
the officers of the Senate in the hall of the
In ;nipt oh oil ~ lo lie
solved until all the votes are counted and
the result declared; but when The houses
have separated to consider any question
raised, either house can take a recess till
the next day. Any power, now existing in
the Constitution, which would permit
proceedings in the United States courts as
to the right or title Of the person declared
elected, are ot to be impaired by the pro-
visions of this bill.
This plan for counting the vote and de-
Gliding disputed points is understood TO
have originated mainly with Senator Ed
munds Of this Stale, and on Saturday Mr..
Eimunds opened the debate on the bill in
tue Senate with powerful speech explain
ing and defending lis provisions. As this
speech is without doubt the best and
strongest presentation of the case, in favor
OF The measure, that can be made, we give a
summary Of lis leading points:
MIR. Edumds began by having read the
18th article of the Constitution, after
which lie said :-Under this article of the
Constitution, some eight or ten million of
citizens Of tue United States authYrized by
the laws To select Il chief magistrate in the
a f..N II. IL
urtd 10 d scharge that duty. They had eS-
pressed their preference, and the contest
WAS CLOSE that ii became a matter of Sc
riUus debate between 5,0O0,00 OF people on
one side and 1000, 900 of people on The 9TH
er as 10 which oil their candidates had been
elected. Congress was now brought face to
face with The question as to what means
were left for deciding this dispute A large
part of the people on either side believed
their candidate TO have been honestly elect
ed, and If kept out of office great consti-
tulional wrong would be dohe.
II there was any duty greater than anoth-
er devolviug upon Congress it Was that of
providing some means Y which, no mat
Ter what The result might ue, all men might
say the due course of Law has been taken,
1t had appeared 10 the committee charged
with the unerous and Unpleasant duty of
framing this bill that if The Constitution
authorized them 10 lay down a procedure
which should lead TO any result through
the calm ordinary administration of The
law, ii would I've a benetlcent act for The
Republic. Ga the contrary, if Congress
should fail TO do tais our pOslerily under
this or some form of government would
feel that this Congress had failed in per-
forming great duty. He then referred TO
the labors ofthe committee and said:
Opposing political opinions, opposing po-
litical education, partisan feeling had sub
sided on both sides, and The measure upon
which they sOlennly united in reporting
they commended 10 the consideration Of
The Senate. He then explained the provis-
ious of the bill at length, and in regard to
the first section said his own individual
nnininn IhnI -. hnrn ..-LI.r..