The daily gazette., 1877-10-22
DEBATE IN THE SENATE,
the LOUISIANA SENATOR.

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THE LOUISIANA SENATOR.
Remarks ottte Dclatoare SeAa:ors, on the
~yett 18h Of Octooer,, '.,.. ,
From the Congressional Record.
Mr.. Eayard. Mr.. President, I was not
dsspossd 10 detsin the Ssost5 or delay
the. vote on this question, becarse 1t ap-
peared to the that the facts ware so we'll
known TO menbe.s Of The SsrAte that
fufther disCdssion w-s useless and uude-
eirable and yet, 81 ace the Sspator from
Oregon, who is now the acing chAirman
OF tie Comm ttes 4 Priv leg aud E,ec-
oDs aud who h: submitted this motion
for reteredce Of the ceedent' ais of M
Spoford, claiming 70 BE- Seuator from
the State Ak Louisiana, h:s rectted pro-
Positions advanced By me in M arch last,
when the coedentia's OF Nj. Kellogg,
cle m,ug 20 be a Secatot by Virtue of tue
alleged exisfeqc Of anotuer and di6re :
ent State gover ameut IN louisiapa came
up, 1t is pechaDs necessary, ss maGser
of respecs 10 PIN and for Tie proper un-
detstaadipg OF this case now u,fore the
Seuate, that some nolice should be taken
and some rep y made by lne. When N :.
Kel]ogg's credentials were presented and
motion made that be take the oath of
Office, / moved to amend the mo.ion to
the effect that the credentials should s.lie
upon tue table until the appointment ot
q Committee oa Privileges aud Elec-
tons, to whom they shail be referred -
and the SeDaie, after debate, srstaj ned
That amendment. l thea said: r. ..
U1der The usages OF this body certifi-
cate, regular in It's focm add recitiug the
substauJa al fact of election by compe-
tent body, has been held to eoustit0te a
p1 ina for 6 case, which entiGlf SIhe hold
or to be swo' n 10 at Tire com meucement
of bis te' On, Ieaviog objections not yet
ma ie to b, examined and p sed upon
subsequently. 1t creates, I say, a pr:nta
fa1,e G -e, bat W heH this prima jiocie dis
appears the presumPtions of Legality and
regularity which gives it its force are all
reversed upon any thing appearing TO
the contrary.
What are the facts, the recorded facts,
of history which have ccystaIliZed them
selves 10 The last six months iuto an ire
| fragable cundit' on that they may not be
shaken by any sectiou or by any as.
sault? They are these: that taeye Is TO-
| day, and that there W When the elec
ton of Me-. Spoffold took place, but Que
Legislature lawfully existing in the State
i of Louisiana competent TO elect Sena
l tor in Congress-; but one executive com
petent uuder the laws of the United
States to certify that election; but one
people as a community speaking through
The agency of single gover0meOt in r.
three great branches. executive, legisla
! tive, and judicial. These are the fact
| to-day; these were the faets then, perhaps
| on trial, bat since irievocably aud icre
versibly decided, which make the c1se o
| Henry M. Spoford not only regui+,
Drintd facie case for admission to thi
body under the pri nclples which I en-
] deavored to lay down at the Eat SCI siou
and which ! here again repeat, but VII OF
render his the only case, for there il lnS
other, whether of q FIRST or second face
| to conflict with 1t.
Why is not Mr. 6po ford now sworn ipi
BE has his creden nGials regular in forn
satisfying the Senate by theie recital'
that according to the copstitut.oo and tnt
laws of his State q Legislature exist
now, and did exist then, which, proceed
i ibp 70 the direclions of the ssatuts Of tht
| United Ststes, elected him almost unaui
| mously. There 10 no question isto hlt
| personal ouoli ficatiou, hat eve!y requi
Site of the Constitution is fnl6iled IS tc
/ age and residence aud citizenship Of the
United States aud all else. There is Iheu U
| a complete and confessed c. re, regular in
| every feature, in fuldiImenG of every re-
| uuiremeut of the constitution aud laws
| of the State of Louisiana and OF the Cou-
sIjtutjon aud laws of the q nited States
! What then staaJs ia the way? AootheI
case 10 alleged which W =" before tue Sed-
ate lest March, aud which we ave toid is
sill before the Senate or one of its CO n
mittees.
MI. President, in consi deing questio ons
of this Kind how do we act? Tlis body
| is a courS. The action OF the Senate is
judicial IT is its prerogat've and sole
preroga,ive TO deGel nj % rhe e'ecCo Us,
| a affiliations, aud returus OF JUS men,
| bers, aud iu so doing we act fs .Iod9es
bound by law. Such is the formal re-
tial and ac1ual spicit. Such propose to
he the spirit Q Which my vo6e and con-
duct shall conforn.
Does ANYTHING to-day appear TO the
coni.ary which shall by irs own force ana
our duty impress itself upon tue Jualc'a'
| K koowIedge, wbicn means the cousc' ence
of eyery man in tlis body? Ave there
no public facus which must be accepted
| Is chez nothing which OF us own Iofce
can fix and bind us? Sir, the iist o. tnose
| things of which courts OF Jpslce Jake
Judi dcialkuowledge is long andweli hnowu
and easily applied. PUbl'c Eacis, war OF
neace, the deaun or l'fe OF The pa " whom
| they have e'ore them, are fac ol
| wbica they will take noIice. Here say
that. if there ever wss at any time poliGl-
cal life 10 any other COVE ument oc pre-,
tended government existing in Tue STATE
| of Louisi ana since the Inauguration o,
what is Known 81 rbe government OF
| Nichols, 1t is to-day 20 dead fS though''
never bad had birch. Tlere is no statute
| law, there is no decree, ,Ghere is DO b"eaCt
of authority that suauds recorded upon
tbe records of that State to-day oCoei
than thar OF the single COVE nment whose
credentials are presented to you 10 'oas
by M Spo ford.
MIR. SAUL LSBURY. Nj. Presideat
desire to say that, as member OF the
Committee on Privileges and ELECTORS,
do not gard .he notion OF ftne Sena1ol
Com Marylapd as election at al upon
that committee, ror do 1 believe that any
DELAY whatever is pec essay in order to
enable us TO mike ap.oper aod lntelt'-
gent report to the Serate in ,efe ren'e to
fhe ouess,on arisipg upon the cedent ais
Of NJ. Spoaoyd. l perhaps should no.
have referred 10 what took p'a'e last
Maj CHI jn committee Il it had not been
Droueht up by Whit was announced pc,
fore. Ii is true. as has ncoa s'aOe'i, lhai