The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1877-02-02

40 was offered by his emissaries TO
Beverly Nash. of South Carolina, for
'is vote; and stiil larger sum is charg-
I'd to have been ff-red TO Judge Lev
isee, of Louisiana for his vote; in view
If these facts, we say, and the evidence
that Tiiden will l-ave no stone uuturn-
ed to secure his election to the Presi-
dency, suppose the commission should,
as we believe it will, declare Hayes the
legally elected President, is there any
prospect the matter will end therel
This act gives the right to question tine
election, il such right exists, and a
quo warrant would bring the question
before the Supreme Court. IL the
Court shall admit the right, the whole
question will be reopened, and the &C
ton of the Commiss' on will have been
a useless proceeding because it settled
nothing. 1t cannot declare upon the
right of the contestant. without con
sideriDg the right of Congress to sp
point the Commission, and whether
Congress or the Commission possessed
the power IF any" to count the vote
If it decioed Congress had the power,
that would not prevent a decision liz
favor of the contestants right, and if it
decided Congress had not the power,
the whole proceedings of the Commits
sion would be null and void. The
time for counting the vote. as fiIed by
the Constitution. will pass while these
proceedings are in progress or before
they begin and there can then be no
legal declaration of the result of the
election. What will be the result? A
person, not contemplated by the peo
pie, will act as President. certainly till
the matter can be adjudicated by the
Court, 10 favor of either of the claim
ants, or until a new election can be
held to settle the difficulty. The old
pl n presents fewer difficulties, would
be more generally acceptable, and
would give least latitude to these dis
posed to dispute its authority. That
old way is not only plainly set forth in
the Constitution, but it is supplement-
ed by such testimony as that of Chan
celIor Kent, and until the present com
complications his declarations have
been held to be the true presentment: !:
"The President OF the Senate on the second
Wednesday in February succeeding every
both houses of Congress, opens all the GER
tttcates, and The votes are then to be count
ed The Constitution does not expressly de
clare by whom the votes are Tn be counted
and the result declared. In the case of ques-
tionable votes, and a closely contested elec-
ton, this power may be all-iTporta Mt; and
presume, in the absence of AL legislative
provision on the subject, t1at the President
of the Senate counts the votes and determ-
ines the result, and that the two houses a e
present only as spectators, to witness the
fairness and accuracy of The transaction, and
TO act only if no choice be made by he elec-
tors"
Now look at another feature of this
incoDgruous "What you call it." Sup
pose either Tilden or Hayes should dis
pute the conclusions of the Arbitration
Board, they would have no tribunal to
appeal to but the Supreme Court, the
majority Of the Associated Justices If
which, by being on the commission,
hare already prjudged the case, and
are incompetent to render an impartial
decision upon it or any case arising
from it. 1t does not propose to inter
fere with the right, if it exists, to ques-
tion the decision of the commission,
bat it disqualifies the only tribunal to
which the case can be carried, from
hearing The case, because five of its
constituent parts have already decided
the merits of the case.
If there ever was an act which SO
exposes its own weakness,
we fail to remember it. Aud yet the
people are asked to accept it upon its
merits.