The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1877-01-25
COUNTING THE ELECTORAL VOTES.

commended for Passage.
A Bill to provide for and regulate the count |
ing of votes for President and Vice-Pres- |
ident, and the decision Of questions aris- |
ing thereon for the term commencing |
March 4, Ammo Domini 1877.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives Of the United States Of
America in Congress assembled, That the
Senate and House Of Representatives shall
meet in the ball Of the House Of Represent
atives at the hour of 10 O'Clock post merid-
ian, on the first Thursday in February, A.
d. 1877, and the President of the Senate
shall be the presiding officer. Two
tellers shall be previously appointed on the
part Of the Senate and Two on the part OF
the House of Representatives, to whom shall
be handed, as they are opened by the Presi-
dent of the Senate, ali the certificates, and
papers purporting to be certificates, and the
papers shall be opened, presented and acted
upon in alphabetical order Of the States, be
ginning with letter A, and said tellers hav-
ing then read the same, in the presence and
hearing of the two Houses, shall make list
of votes as they shall appear from said GER
tificates, and the votes having been ascer-
tanned and counted, as in the act provided,
the result of the same shall be de-
livered to the President Of the Senate,
who shall thereupon announce the
state of the vote and the names Of the per-
shall be deemed q sufficient declaration Of
the persons elected President and Vice
President of the United States, and, to-
gether with list Of States. be entered on
the Journals of the two Houses. Upon
such reading of any such certificate or pa
per, when there shall be only one return
from q State, the President of the Senate
shall call for objections, il any; every OBJ
lection shall be made in writing, and shall
state, clearly and concisely, and without
argument, the ground thereof, and shall be
argued by at least one Senator and one
member Of the House of Representatives
before the same shall be received. When all
objections so made to any vote or paper from
State shall have been received and read,
the Senate shall thereupon withdraw, and
such objections shall be submitted to the
Senate for its decision, and the Speaker OF
the House OF Representatives shall, In Ike
manner, submit such objections 10 the
House of Representatives for Its discussion !;
| and no Electoral vote or votes from any State
| from which but one return has been received
| shall be objected to except by the affirmative
vote of the two Houses. When the two
Houses have voted, they shall immediately
| again meet. and the presiding officer shall
| then announce the decision Of the question
| submitted.
Sec. 2. That if more than one return or
| paper, purporting to be returns from a
| State, shall have been received by the Pres
| ident of the Senate, purporting to be GER
tificates of Electoral votes given at the last
| preceding election for President and Vice.
President in such State, unless they shall
| be duplicates of the same returns, all such
| returns and papers shall be opened by him,
in the presence of the two Houses, when
met as aforesaid, and read by tellers, and
| all such returns and papers shall thereupon
| be submitted to the judgment and decision,
as to which is the true and lawful Electoral
/ vote of such State, OF Commission const1-
| tuted as follows, namely: During the ses-
sion Of each House, on the tuesday next
| preceding the first Thursday III February,
| 1871, each house shall by viva voce vote,
appoint five of its members, who, with
| five Associate Justices Of the Supreme Court
| Of the United States, to be ascertalned as
hereinafter provided, shall constitute the
Commission fer the decision Of all questions
upon or in respect to such doubtful returns
named in this section, on the Tuesday next
preceding the first Thursday in February,
A. D. 1877, or as soon thereafter as may be.
| The Associate Justices of the Su-
| preme Court of the United States now
assigned to the First, Third, Eighth and
Ninth Circuits shall select, in such manner
as the majority of them shall deem fit, an
! other Of the Associate Justices of said Court,
| which five persons shall be members Of said
Commission, and the person longest in
commission of the said Justices shall be
| President Of said Commission. The mem
beers of said Commission shall respectively
| take and subscribe to the following oath:
| do sOlsmnly swear or affirm, as
the case may be, that will lmpartially ex-
| anime and consider al questions submitted
| 10 the Commission Of which l am mem
Der, and a true judgment give thereon,
| agreeably to the Constitution and the laws.
So help me God.
which oath shall be fled with the Secre-
tary of the Senate. When the Commission
shall have been thus organized, it shall not
| be in the power Of either House to dissolve
the same or to withdraw any one OF its
| members, but il any such Senator or men,
Der shall die or become physically unable to
perform the duties required by this act, the
fact of such death or physical inability shall
be by said Commission, before IL shall pro-
coed further, communicated to the Senate
or House of Representatives, as the case
NAV be, which body shall Immediately and
| without debate proceed by viva voce vote
! to fiji the place so vacated, and the person
| so appointed shall take and subscribe to the
oath heretofore presented and become q
member of said Commission; and in like
manner, in case any OF said Justices Of the
Supreme Court shall die or become pBysi-
cally incapable of performing the duties re-
quired by this act, the other OF said Justices,
| members of said Commission, shall lmme-
diatelv appoint another Justice Of said Court
| member of said Commission, and In such
Appointments regard shall be hsd TO the i'm
partiality and freedom from bias sought by
The original appointments to said Commits
| sion, who shall thereupon Immediately take
and subscribe to the oath hereinbefore sub
scribed and become member Of said Com
mission to fill the vacancy so OccaslOned
All the certificates and papers purportlng t
be certificates Of Electoral votes OF each
| State shall be opened in the alphabetical or
der of States. as provided in section one OF
this act, and when there shall be more thar
one such certificate or paper, as the certlh'
Gates and papers from such State snail Dc SC
opened, excepting duplicates Of the same
! return, they shall be read by tellers, anC
} | tbereup pom the President of the Senate shall
call for objections, il any. Every objection
, | shall be made in writing, and shall STATE
| clearly and concisely and without argument
, the grounds thereof, and shall be signed Dy
: at least one Senator and one member OF the
| House of Representatives before the SAME
, shall be received. When all such Obiec
, tions so made to any certificates, vote o.
, | paper, from a State shall have been receiV
ed and read, all such certificates, votes anC
| papers so objected to, and all papers &C
Campaigning the same, together with suci
objections, shall be forthwith submitted t
said Commission, which shall proceed U
r consider the same with the same powers
if apv, now possessed for that purpose b.
!: the two HLu4 ,sc:ing separately or togetk
!. Ell, and by a majority of votes decide wheth
er any and what vote from such State are tn
votes provided for by the Constitution Of tn
United States, and how many and what per
r sons were duly appointed Electors in sue
State, and may therein take into view sue
: petitions, dispositions and other papers,
any, as shall by the Constitution and nov
existing laws be competent and pertinent /
such consideration, which decision sha
i to be made in writing, stating briefly tn
ground thereof, and signed by the member
of said Commission agreeing therein
8 whereupon the two Houses shall ag2l
i meet, and such decision shall be read, an
y entered in the journal of each House. Tn
!. counting of the votes shall proceed in con
! formity herewith, unless, upon obJeetlo
u being made thereto in writing by at lea'
!, five Senators and five members of the Hous
e | of Representatives, the two Houses sha
: separately concur in ordering otherwise
d in which case such concurrent order sha
e govern. No votes or papers from any 9th
e err State shall be acted upon until objection
previously made to the votes or papers frol
| any State shall have been finally dispose
Of.
u Sec. 8, That while the two Houses sha
Il be in meeting, as provided in this act, 4
n debate shall be allowed and no quest1o