New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-01-15
VIEWS OF JAMES MADISON.

fYRoM TIE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE
WASHINGTON, Jan. 1.-THE present political COM
plications arise from two cause.-the original de-
fecs in that part of the Constitution which provides
the machinery for the election of President and
President of the Unitod States and the failure
of Congress to correct them when they have been
discovered. These imperfections recognized
by the trainers of the Constitution themselves they
we're inevitable James Madison, 10 whom we are
more indebted than to any other statesman OF his
time for our knowledge of the Constitutional Con-
venton and its proceedings, said of thcm in 1923,
when writing to George Hay:
The difficulty OF finding unexceptonabIe process for
appointing the Executive OF government snch as
that United deeply felt by the conven
ton and as ae final Arrangement OF It TOO. place N the
latter stage OF the session. IL not exempt from DE.
gree Of the huIyng influence produced by fatgne anu
much less than usually prevails IN thein
Although in many respects the present crisis is
without precedent, some of the difficulties we now
meet with were foreseen by the statesmen Of the
early days of the Republic and they have left some
very important advice to which it may be well now
TO give heed. In this letter shall colate from the
writings Of James Madison few passages which
think have bearing more OF less direct upon the
questions now at issue. The high respect in which
Mr.. Madison's opinions all constitutional ques-
tons have always been held entitle them to the
most careful consideration.
Representatives had any constitutional right to de-
feat the will OF the people, when by the operation
of our electoral system the choice Of President de-
volved upon it. The elevation of any nan to the
chief executive office who not The choice OF
majority of the people even though was done by
constitutional methods, was in be estimation a
"usurpaton and surreptitiou intrusion" In
writing to Mr. Jefferson, Jan. 10, 1901, he said
find that the vote Of Kentucky establishes the tie be,
and throws the result into the hands OF tho
House of Representatives. Desperate az some OF the adj
verse party be- scarcely allow myself 70
believe that enough will he found TO Illustrate the at
into the ~ chez magistracy the choice Of faction
On superstition OF either event. whether OF an inter-
regnum in the Executive, of surrepntous intrusion
into It. il becomes question OF the first order what IL
the course demanded by the crisis VIII be best I'd
acquesce IN suspension or usnrpatiHn OF the Exeen-
tive authority till the next meeting OF Congress
IN December next, OF for Congress to be sum,
moned by joint proclamation or Recommendation OF tne
two character having majority 81 votes t0G me-
prerogatve OF converting the legislature must reside IN
one or tic other Of them and II both ssnenr must SUP
the people would undoubtedly be pursued Ana u, IN
reference TO the Constitution the proceeding De not
strictly regular, tho irreguiay Will ne less III FORM tsah
any other adequate TO the emergency, and will be in
form only, rather than substance whereas the other
OF the people the scope of the Constitution and OF the
public order and interest
careful study these extracts leads to some in
teresting conclusions. In the Presidential election
lean candidates had each received 70 electoral
votes John Adams 80, Charles c. Pinckney 81, and
John Jay /. Under the Constitution the election
was thrown into the House of Representatives. Mr..
Madison evidently feared that Of two things
might happen-that the House, setting at defiance
the expressed will of the people and the limitations
of the Constitution, might elect John Adams; this
he would consider "usurpation" and "surrep-
titous intrusion;7 his other fear was that the
House might fail to elect any one. in which case
there would be an interregnum, because neither the
Constitution nor the act Of 1892, which authorized
the President of the Senate or the Speaker OF tho
House to act President of the United
States in case of removal, death, resignation,
or inability of both President and Vlce-Presdent,"
provided for q failure to elect Now what Gid james
Madison propose to do IN case the House of Repre-
sentativcs declared John Adams TO be the President,
or failed to elect any one3 Did he advise ac-
auescence in either case Not at all his language
shows conclusivcy that he held TO the doctrine that
either Thomas Jefferson Aaron Burr. both of
whom had received majority and an equal number
of the electoral votes, entitled 10 the place and
that one of them would be the legal President after
the 4th of March, 1901, III spite OF the election OF
any one else by the House of Representatives,. or IN
spite of the fact that the result Of the election
should not at that time have been declared.
extra session of Congress- not for the purpose OF
choosing n Prcsident-for that it would have no
power to debut evidently to devise means that the
Intentions of the people" might be pursued
The proclamation for this extra session was to be
made by the two men having the highest number OF
votes even though some one else had been declared
10 be the President by the House of Representatives
and imam gurated Fortunately, through the intf
enc, Of Hamilton, patriotism and good sense finally
prevailed in the House over partis'Iship, and no
occasion for putting Mr. Madson's plan INTO prac-
tice arose bat his advice may be pertinent now
We should remember that the object OF Our electoral
system is to ascertain the will of the people and Of
the States and that neither house OF Congress has
right to take advantage of its lmpertectons ID de-
feat that will.
Mr. Madison deprecated an election by the House
of Representatives under any circumstances, and on
more than occasion attempted 20 have tue neces-
sty for il removed. In 1923, almost forty years
after the Constitution was framed, he proposed an
amendment proviii tor the choice Of electors ~
districts and in writing 10 George Hay on this sub
iect on the 23d of August Of that year, gave his
opinion of the rule of electing President by tho
House of Representatives in these words:
But with all possible ATTACHMENTS, the present rule OF
voting President by the House OF Representatives -
an ,r,at a denartuTe nom the Republican principle Of
%nmerieal equality and even irom the Federal rule
which qualities the numerical by STAGE egaiyl ana 10
pregnant, also. with msehievons tendency IN prae
tee that an amendment OF the Constitution on this
point 10 justly called for by all It's consderate aud best
| friends.
! The need of such an amendment is even moro
pressing to-day than 1t when Madison wrote the
letter quoted. Mr.. Madison evidently held the opn-
ion that under certain circumstances the electoral
vote of q State might not be valid. Ia writing 70