The news and herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1876-1881, 1877-01-11
Tho Maclsey Houoe OF Representatives.
Is 1t q Lawful House?

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report of a special committee ap
pointed by the NIackey House o
Representatives relative to the OF
ganization Of that body and the con
stitutional validity thereof.
1t is an ingenious and able papo
presenting tho most plausible M
gument for sustaining tho illega
action of Chamberlain and his part,
IN their usurpation Of the authority
of tho State. Summed up in q fov
words the argument is this:
Tho Board of State Canvassers hat
full authority to refuse certificate!
to the members elcct from Laurcns
and Edgciield. Their action coulG
not be reversed by tho Supreme
Court. That thus there were onl,
l16 mombors eloct to the House ol
Representatives that tho Clerk ol
the Late House, having full authori-
ty in law to mako up tho roll OF
members, was justified in putting
this number on his roll, and in OK,
Guiding all others chat the Mackey
House, having been organized with
fifty nine members, the maiority
of one hundred and sixteen, was
duly constituted, and that conse,
quently all its action is in strict
accordance with the Constitution.
1t will be observed that tho key
stone of this argument is the legal :
ty of the action of tho State Board
Of Canvassers. If this position bo
not maintained the whole fabric f,lls
to the ground, and the organic .tion
of the House undor Maclsey and all
Of the subsequent actions of the
Chamberlain Government must Der
forco be illegal. The legality of the
action of the Board of Stale Can
vassers depends upon three propo-
sitions
l. Either that this Board hoard
the protest and conte t
with regard to the elections in
Laurens and Edgeiold, and de-
cided that they were fraudulent
2. Or that, without hearing the
protest and contest, they had facts
before them which induced the belief
that the elections were invalid, and
that thoy, in consequence thereof,
refused to ISSUE certificates of olcc-
ton
3. And that in this they wero
acting with authority of law.
l. No protest OF contest was in
fact heard The idea of a pro, ,est
or contest involves judicial action
upon a case made, in. whicsx there
are parties complaining and parties
defending the result of which de-
ponds upon facts established by
legal testimony, governed by law
produced and relied upon it is a
trial before loyal tribunal. In
the present case tho prinaa .fucie
count Of the ballots cast in these
two counties showed that certain
Democrats had the highest number
OF votes. No notice of protest WIS
served on any of them. No notice
of contest WIS given. No testimony,
in legal sense, was hoard. No
witnesses were examined. Certain
&C 2,urte statements, it seems, were
somehow made before, or put into
possession of, the Board But thorc
WAS no pretence OF any legal exami
nation into the cases. Indeed the
two members Of the Board who had
characters to lose (the Secro ;ary Of
State and the Attorney GoneraD
voted against the action of tho ma
iority in tho case of IIaurcns county,
and the former filed his formal pro
test against the action of the Board
in relation to both OF the counties,
on the ground That they had decided
upon an e;r 2,arte showing.
II. But it may be said that the
Board heard no protest or contest,
and yet that they saw enough to
prevent them from Issuing certiii-
Gates to the members elect from
Llurens and Edgcield. 1t is diff
cult to catch the distinction be-
tween this course of action and one
adopted aftor hearing protest. The
election was either valid or invalid.
If valid, the certificates were issued
as matter of course How could
it be declared invalid without the
examination of testimony, and how
could testimony be examined unless
the issue was made as to the validity
Of the election, and how could tho
issue be made without q protest or q
contest ? If the Board of State
Canyassers pass at all upon the
validity Of the election, they must do
SO in some Judicial capacity. In
this capacity they decide upon issues
raised before them. How can these
issues be made, except by parties
Interested in setting aside the result
against parties interested in sustain
ing it ?
1t must be borne in mind TINT
there is no pretcnce that L,urens
and Edgefold failed to hold an eloc-
ton. The people mot on tho day
fixed by tho amendment Of tho Con
stitution the managers of election
opened the polls the ballot boxes
were regularly prepared; tho ballots
were cast, and after tho polls were
closed the boxes were opened, the
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