The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-07-12

stand that the appointment by the peo-
pie might be one thing, and the action of
the returning board another, or that the
latter, even as evidence of the former, was
worthless if it was fraudulent.
FRAUD UNDER THE FORMS OF LAW.
In all the discussions of the subject the
men disposed to favor the conspiracy
professed most profound yeneration for
the ''.sforms Of law" This was the key
note struck at New Orleans by the visit
ing committee, and it is heard in every
subsequent argument of counsel and
commissioner on that side. 1t seemed to
be understood among them that a formal
cheat was perfectly safe from exposure.
If the sepulchre was whited on the out
side, it made no difference that it was
filled with Corruption, dead mems bones
and all uncleanness. No refuge of lies
could be swept away, no hiding place of
falsehood could ever be uncovered, if it
was built in the prescribed form. Only
|, give it the legal shape, and the overflow
ing scourge would be turned ;aside., But
legal form, however valuable as a covering
for fraud, was, in their judgment, no pro-
lection for truth or justice or public
right. The will of Louisiana was pro-
nounced at the election with all the SOL
emnities required by the law of the State
and the United States. The appoint
mept of the Tilden electors on the 9TH of
November was a perfectly legal piece of
work; there was not a flaw in the record
of it as it came from the hands of the ap-
pointing power. But it was looked on
with perfect contempt Neither the Wis
:iting committee nor the Hayes counsel,
nor the eight commissioners, bestowed
on it any of their love, Their affections
were otherwise engaged, they gave the
homage and devotion of their hearts to
the beautiful regularity, the exquisite
precision, with which the returning
board compounded its false certificate.
Another paradox of the eight is curious
enough to be noted. They declared re-
peatedly that they had no power to try.a
contested election case, and for that rea-
son they would not look at the evidence
which showed what persons were duly
appointed electors by the people. Now
mark |! The c"se was this: Each of
those votes came accompanied by what
was asserted to be proof that it was cast
by electors duly appointed. The conflict
was to- be determined blythe verifying
power which Congress unquestionably
has, and which the commissioners ex-
pressly assumed when they swore that
| they would decide who were duly APP
pointed. To decide it one way or the
other required precisely the same juris-
dictiou, and called into exercise exactly
| the same faculties. Yetithey held that
| if they decided according to the truth in
favor Of the electors actually appointed
| they would betrying contested election;
but; IF they decided in favor. of the pre-
| tenders, who had nothing but @ fraudu-
lent certificate, they would not be trying
contested election; in other words,
| their jurisdiction was full and ample to
decide it falsely, but wholly unequal to
| the duty of deciding it truly. .;fs{ ri,
TIE FULL EXTENT, OF THE OUTRAGE.
After all, there was but one question
| before the commission. Had the Amer
ioan people "a right to elect their own
Chief Magistrate3 They had the right
Their ancestors struggled for it long,
fought for it often, and won 1t fairly.
Being embedded in their constitution, it
cannot be destroyed except by q force
strong; enough to overthrow the organic
structure Of the government itself. Leg.
islative enactments or judicial decisions
are ;powerless 'eitherto strengthen or i'm
pair it. The legerdemainI of .law-cratt,
| the catches of special pleading, the snap
peradoes of practice, do not help us to
i decide matter like this. a. great nation
| must not be impaled upon pins point.
| Precedents which might, bind. aicourt of
quarter sessions; determining the settle
ment of a pauper cannot tieup the hands
4 of the supreme legislature defending q
| fundamental right Of the whole people.
! When GrenYilleG eGin 1895: cited the au..-
1 thority Of divers cases to, show that
I America might be taxed without repre-
sentation, Pitt answered: el come not
here armed at all points, with the statute
book doubled down in dogs ears to de-
'fend the cause ofliberty. / can acknowl-
l edge no veneration for any procedure,
Z, law or ordinance that is repugnant to
reason and the first principles of our con-
| stitution. Irejoice that America has re-
/ sisted" So spoke the defiant friend of
our race in the presence of hostile Par.
| lament ten years before the Declaration
j of Independence. And now, after this
4 long interval Of time, we behold our great
est right-the rightion, which all other
! rights depend successfully assailed in
our own Congress with the same small
weapons that Grenville used. IF brute
4 force had crushed it out, wemight have
borne the calamity with fortitude; butte
see it circumgented by knayery and pet
! tifogged to death, is too much to be en-
dured with any show, of patience.
| Ifithe majority of that commission
could but have realized their, response
bility to God and man, if they could only.
have understood that in q free country
I liberty and law are inseparable, they
1 would have been enrolled among our
| greatest benefactors; for they would have
added strength and grandeur ito our in
stitutions. But they. could not come up
to the height Of the great subject. Party
passion 30 bennmbed their faculties that
I 3 fundamental right seemed nothing to
d them when it cameiin conflict with some
argument supported by artificial reason
a ing, and drawn from the supposed analo-
4 gies oftechnical procedure. The coristi-
! tuition was; in theirjudgment, outweighed
!: by void statute and action of: a corrupt
! returning board. a.t.d- ,..i.,t. !,cL
4 Let these things be remembered by our
I, children's children; and if the friends Of
free government shall ever again have
such contest, ,1let them take care how
they leave the decision Of it to tribunal
| like that which betrayed, the nation by
enthroning the great fraud Of 1875.
,n4ualr Cd ales'! 3; j. S. BLACK.
The Turks have secured all the
Egyptian ironclads. Two frigates and "a
gunboat, of little value, are the only
j, lighting vessels in the Egyptian navy.