The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1877-01-11
THURSDAY. January Il. 1877.
THE ELECTORAL COUNT.
Continued. J

CERTIFICATES.
SENATOR o. p. MORTON, OF INDIANA
l will suppose, as in the case of Louisiana,
here are two packages sent to the Vice
President. He opens them, and finds that
each one purports to be signed by the
Governor of Louisiana: that there are
two sets of electors each assuming to vote
for President and Vice President. WHO'S
to decide which is the correct return, who
is the Governor of Louisiana and which set
of electors was entitled TO cast the vote
of that state? Will you leave it to the
Vice President alone? You must believe
something in the integrity of men, and 10
that case it is safer to leave it to both
houses alone. 1t is safer to leave 1t tc both
houses than it is to leave it to the'presiding
officer of the Senate, because there is where
the power must rest lift Is not placed 10
the two houses of Congress
You cannot leave il to one house alone.
They do not agree; you cannot read both
sets; you can ouly read one set. and therefore
read that set which both houses of Con-
gress, supposing men to he patriotic and
to be honest and acting under the obi
cations of the Constitution and their
oaths, shall decide to be the true and valid
return / think that is the fairest way.
Mr.. Eaton-Suppose they do not agree
on the same return, what then?
Mr.. Morton The vote goes out, the
State has no vote, because unless there is
some tribunal to settle which vote shall be
counted you cannot count both, and
therefore you cannot count either. You
must have some tribunal to settle that
difficulty; and what tribunal is safer than
the two houses of Congress | Task my
friend from Connecticut March Is, 1876.
THE SAFER TRIBUNAL.
SENATOR MORTON OF INDIANA. Then
the question comes, which is the more
reasonable, which is the better, which is
the safer of the two-to adopt that con-
struction which gives this great power to
one man, the President of the Senate, who
may be counting the votes for himself, or
would it be safer to leave it to the determin
alton of the two houses Of Congress repre-
sentiug the States and the people? If we
are open to adopt either one of these con-
structions, | say the latter is the safer, it
is the more reasonable, it is in conformity
with the spirit of our Government and of
popular institutions l then adopt the
latter construction.-Ma Is, 1876.
TWO HOUSES DECIDE ALL QUESTIONS
ARISING,
SENATOR THURMAN, OF OmO.-The
Senate and the House stand on an equal
footing in respect to the count of the votes.
The houses do not lose their
individuality, but each house is equal to
the other in the functions that are to be
performed e As the power of
decision, and, in fact, everything but the
mere ministerial duty of reading the
returns and footing them up, is reserved
to the two houses, there is no necessity
whatever for constituting a majority of the
tellers of one political party or the other
All questions that arise for decision must
be decided by the two houses, The tel,
lers have certain ministerial functions tc
perform. They read the certificates and
if there is no objection then they put down
on the sheets, which are already ruled and
prepared for them, the votes. Thai
being done, when the work is completed
they add up the figures and hand the pa
per to the presiding officer, who declare.
the result. Their duties being ministerial
only. February 25, 1875.
SENATOR HENRY i. DAWES. OF MAssA
CHUsETTs.-I agree with the Senator tina
every disputed question which can possibly
arise upon the papers themselves them
selves had better be decided by the two
houses, as houses, than to be decided by
the President of the Senate. March 81
1876.
WHO HAVE VOTED THAT THE TWO HOUSE,
SHOULD COUNT.
All Senators who voted in 1875 for Nor
tons bill,
Yeas.-Messrs. Allison, Boreman, Boutwell,
Chandler, Clayton, Conover, Cragin, Dorsey
Ferry, OF Michigan; Flanagan, Frelinghuysen
Mitchell, Morrill,, OF Vermont; Morton, ogesby
Spencer, Washburn, West and Wright-2s
All Senators who voted in 1876 for Nor
toms BILL
Yeas-Messrs. Allison, Anthony, Booth Burnside
Cameron, of Pennsylvania; Cameron of Wisconsin
Chrstaincy, Dawes, Dorsey, Ferry, Frelughuyseu
Hamilton, Hamlin, Hitchcock, ingalls,, Jones, o
Nevada Key, Logan, Mcmillan, Merrimon, Mitchell
Morrill, of Maine; Morton, Oglesby, Paddock, Pat
terson, Sargent sherman Spencer, Thurman, Win
dom anda Wright,-32.
All who voted for the proposed bill il
1900 empowering a oh.mittee to examin,
all electoral votes.
Those in the Senate voted to give tn
committee decisive powers.
Yeas-Messrs, Bingham, Chapman, Dayton, Dex
ter, Foster. Goodhue, Greene, Hillhouse, LatimeI
Lloyd, PANE Read, Ross, SchuremAn, Tracy an
Wells.
Those in the House voted Ton motion o
Marshalll to give the committee qualified
powers.
Yea--George Baer. Bailey Bartlett, James A
Bayard, Jonathan Brace, Ohm Brown, Christophe
q, Champin, Samuel w. Dana, John Davenport
Franklin Davenport, Thomas T. Davis, John Der
mis- George Dent Joseph Dickson, VIM. Edmond
Thomas Evans, Abig Foster, Dwight Foster. Jon
athau Freeman, Henry Glen, ChaunCcy Goodrich
hlizur Goodrich, Roger Grlswold, William Barr
Grove, Robert GOOdlOe Harper, william IL. iii
Benjamin Huger, James Ii. Inlay, Henry Lee
Silas Lee, Samuel Lyman. John Marshall, Lew
x. MOrriss, Abraham Mott, Robert Page, JOSEF
Parker, Thomas Pinckney, Jonas Plat, Leven Pow
ell john Reed, John Rutledge, Jr., Samuel Sewel
James Sheafe, William Shepard Samuel Smith
George Thatcher, John Chew Thomas Richar
Thomas, Joseph r. Varnuh, Peleg Wadswortt
Robert VAIN, Lemuel Williams and Henry Woods
THE TWO HOUSES INSPECT RETURNS EACl
BY THEIR CHOSEN TELLERs.
SENATOR THURMAN. Now what are tn
duties Of these tellers? The President @
the Senate takes up return, opens tn
envelope, docs not read it himself bu
hands 1t to the tellers. For what purpos
is it handed to the tellers? First, tina
they may read it, and having rea
it, then, ii no objection Is made
the vote Of that State is put dow
in the blanks which have been previousl
prepared. But it is the duty of the tel
ers, when they read such returns, to ar
nounce to the joint assembly any defect
that they may find. We find an exampl
at the last count where the teIlers repor
ed that the returns were all in due forI
except that one Of the seals did not a,