Union and American. [volume] (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1875-1877, 1877-02-01
THE ELECTORAL COUNT.


of the "Act to provide for ard
regulate the counting Of the votes
for President and Vice.P President,
and The decision of questiOns-ariS
ing thereon, for the t rim common
cling March 18th, A. D., 1871" be
cause of my appreciation of the
imminent peril-to the institutions
of the country, from which, in ny
judgement. the act affords a wise
and Constitutional mcans.o of escape
For the first time in the history Of
our country, under the Constltu'
ton as il now is, a dispute exists
With regard to the result of the
election of. the Chief Magistrate Of
the Nation. 1t is understood that
rpon the disposition of disputes
touching the Electoral votes cast
at the late election by one or more
Of tie States depends the question
whether one or the other Of the
candidates for the Presidency is
the lawful Chief Magistrate.
The importance of having clear
.ly a~scertaincd, by a procedure reg
uIated by law, which of the citi>
Gems has been elected, and of hav~
ing the right TO this high office
recognized and cheerfully agreed
to by all the people Of the Repub,
lie, cannot be oyer,ebtimated, and
leads me to express to Cpngtess
and to the Nation my great satis-
faction at the adoption of a meas.
ure that affords an orderly means
Of decision Of the grayely exciting
question. While the history Q -four
country, in its earlier periods,
shows that the President Of the
Senate has counted the votes and
declared them, and nGtwithstand-
ing our whole history shows that
in no instance of doubt or dispute
has he exercised the power Of de-
Gliding; that the two HOUSES Of
Congress have disposed Of all such
doubts and disputes. although in
noinstance hitherto have they been
such that their decision could es
sentially have affected the result.
For the first time, thea, the Cow
eminent of the United States is
now brought to meet the question
as one of vital to the result, and
this under conditions not the best
calculated to produces On agreement
or 10 induce calm feeling in the
several branches of the Govern.
ment, or'amonS the people of the
country,
In a case where, as now, the re-
suit isinvolved, 1t is the highest
daty Of the law making power To.
provide, in advance, a constitution
al orderly and just method Of cSe-
cutting the Constitution in this
most interesting and critical Of It's
provisions. The doing so, far from
being a compromise Of right is an
enforcement Of right and an exc,
cution of powers conferred BY the
Constitution Oh Congress. | thihk
that this orderly method has been
secured by the bill, which, appeals
ing to the Constitution aud the
law as the guide in ascertaining
provides a means Of decid-
ing questions of single returns
through the direct action Of Con
gross, and in respect to double re-
turns by a tribunal Of inquiry
whose decisions stand unless both
Houses Of Congress shall concur
on determining otherwise, thus Sc.
curing a definite disposition Of all
questions of dispute in whatever
aspect they may arise. With or
without this law, as all Of the1
States have voted, and as a tie
voteiis impossible, 1t must be that
one Of the two candidates has been
elected and it would be deplorablel
to witness an irregular controversy
as to which of the two should re-
ceive or which should continue to
hold the Office.
In all periods of history, con-
t~roversies have arisen as to the
succession in the choice Of the
Of States, and no party or
citizens loving their country and
its free institutions car sacrifice too
much of mere feeling in p.eServ>
through the upright course Of
law, their country from the smell.
est danger to its peace on such an
audit can not be impress
too firmly in the hearts Of all
the people that true liberty and
real progress can exist only thro'
a cheerful adherence to .constitu,
tional law.
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