The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1877-02-14

AMI aesailmen.s common to ham lnii y
f lie who looks for perfection in his fellow
man, IL matters not how exilte h
station, but deceives himself and wrong
his brother | honor the men who Il
these stations, but only as men. Taes
judges, Ike the members OF tie Senaf
and House, were chosen because Of thel
known political opinions and party affilia
tons. They would not have been chosel
unless these had been known. Now yol
have fourteen members of this grant
commission, seven on each side, standlh:
like two armies in battle array
panoplied ia party nail, steel clad an.
copper botlomed. VIII the tourney nos
begin? SHALL we witness the shiverin-
of lances, and see any or ali Of The
combatants rolling in the dust? Not 81
fast. if YOU please. These Daniels com,
to Judgment un Ter this bill have httl.
side play of their own first to be attend
Ell to. They are to retire to some IN
known place, at some unknown hour
and in some unknown way select soin5
unknown man whose unknown oplnlous
are to decide this great presidential con
test and, it may be, pronounce judgment
setting aside the popular verdict W ho
can contemplate such an innovation upon
the constitution and every established
precedents without SORROW of heart and
terrible misgiving5 as to the future. 10
one man. for it comes to this at last Is
delegated the powers and duties SO clear
" conferred ana imposed by the Consti
tution upon the whole Congress. Listen
to its solemn words:
The President of the Senate shall, in
presence ofthe Senate aul House Of Repr.--
scntative@ ouen all the certiiclles and the
votes shall then be cOunted;- the person
having the greatest numbe OF votes To-
President shall lie the President 1t such
nam Der = a ulai )rity Of the whole number
of electors appoiuteI; and ii no person
have such a maj 1ritA then from the person>
having the highest numbers not exceeding
three on the list of those voted FIR Is Presi-
dent, the House OF Representatives shall
choose Immediately, Ey ballot, the Pfesl-
dent.
There is no uncertain sound coming
up from this clause Of the Constitution.
Tell me, if you can, where there IS any
room under the provisions Of this clause
to form partnership with the judges Of
the Supreme Court, however honest or
or with any one else outside OF
the Congress, for counting and determln
ing the e ectoral vote The President Of
the Senate shall open the votes aud the
votes shall be counted in the presence Of
the Senate and House, or, as it has always
been construed by the Senate and House,
the person having the highest number
of votes, if Il majority Of all the electors
appoined, shall be the President if there
be a failure to elect in this joint conven-
vention, the House Of Representatives shall
choose Immediately, by ballot, the Presi-
dent.
Again | ask, how do W. get these
Judges in this constitutional court, It
self higher than the Supreme Court, es-
tablshed for determining a great politi-
cal result:
1t is most clearly gross interpolation
upon that instrument to induct them into
any such office. It's known to all read
ers Of the debates and proceedings had in
the convention which framed the Con-
stitution what anxious care our fathers
to separate as far as possible
the three departments Of our Government
executive and judicial
from each other. Could they have plac
ed an impossible gulf between them,
could they have stationed an angel wi tn
Il flaming sword at the portals of each, to
guard against the approaches of others, l
doubt not they would have done so. The
safety and perpetuily Of the Government
was often declared to depend upon the
S eady movement of each department in
its own proper, prescribed orbit. 1t was
then predicted, and has often been de-
cared since by patriots and statesmen,
that whenever one of these departments
began to ret-ench upon the rights and
privileges of the others, or either of them,
our Government would have entered up
on down grade dangerous to It's perpe
tuity and the rights OF lis citizens.
In this bill there is a surrender of the
powers and privileges Ct Congress to this
extra constitutional tribunal, the conse-
quences of which no man can foretell.
1t may be said, and has been said, that
Congress has reserved oitsclf the power Of
revising the decisions of this commission.
There is only one contingency i'll which
Congress eau ever get control of the sub
iect once it has been handed over to this
com flISSlOL, anu llldb IL tiDtti ObICClIJu
made in writing, by at least five Senators
and FIVE members Of the House of Rep
resentatives, the two Houses shall separ-
atelv concur in ordering otherwise, III
which case such concurrent order shall gov
ern." Let Us treat this clause with fairness,
and examine it in the light of past expert
ence and present surroundings, and see
If this pretended reservation Of power
is not far more apparent than real. The
decisions of this commission, rs long as
they settle no fact or principle adverse to
either party, but Indifferent in their
bearing upon the result, will of course 90
unuuestioned but as soon as any point
is decided giving advantage to either side,
and q reversal of that decision is sought
to be made, tie party gaining the advan-
tage will never consent TO surrender it.
To illustrate: Suppose majority, or
in the event of a tie vote, which is much
more probable, the 9th judge shall de-
eide that the commission cannot 90
behind the certificate of the returning
hoard of Louisiana, does anybody suppose
that tho Republican Senate would consent
TO surrender this advantage end reverse
the decision thus made Suppose, on
the other hand, it shall be decided that
the vote of Florida must be counted for
Tilden, does any man of sane mind i'm
agine that the House will consent TO
reverse this action No, Mr.. Speaker
this clause was only put into the bill to
preserve a sem bianoe Of control on the
part of Congress overa subject which the
Constitution gives it exclusive jurisdio
ton, and which jurisdiction cannot be
transferred to other shoulders. This
saving clause is delusion and snare.
Duty and obligation are the correiatives
of power and privilege, snd as TIE later
cannot be delegated or transferred, so the