National Republican., 1878-06-10


never asked for the House Of Represent atiycs,
not for u moment. Mr. Matthews msy come
here IN obedience to the subpoena or he may
state TINT parties are so evenly divided In the
senate that he cannot attend that lac can get
nobody to pair with him long enough TO en-.
able him TO come here aud tell the truth.
Then, II he docs So we shall take that asa
sufficient excuse and rive him time, or we can
sit here IN the evening aud will ask the
committee TO accumulate itself to every posi-.
bic contingency Of that sort, for | do not de.
sire that public business shall be delayed nor
even party injured by the loss of II vote But
that must he on the return Of our subpoena.
lie can raise the question In no other way.
We have given the invitation aud It Is re.
| turned to US with the information that there
Is court which can examine him (Which
contains II negative pregnant that this is n
court that cannot examine HIM, and we have
| the further intimatiOn that IL is court
which Can do him justice (Which contains an.
other negative pregnant that this Is a court
which will not do him ju.tcC).
| That Is the condition exactly In which we
are now. am not going TO suffer under that
imputation If eau help II, and therefore |
ask simply that q subpoena shall issue aud
on the return We will consider such excuse as
tho witness may have for not answering.
Mr.. COx-Thcre is 10 doubt that u subpoena
is probably necessary in order to test the qucs-
tion df the question shall be raisod). The
difficulties which may arise, of course, are
those which We only need to be well aware Of
so that any course pursued may not be blindly
taken. Tho question of privilege so far as
this matter goes, comes, take 1t, under tho
provision of the sixth section of the first arti-
cle of the Constitution, which provides that
Senators aud Representatives shall In all cases,
except treason, felony, aud breach Of the peace,
be privileged from arrest during their attend
ance at the sessions of their respective Houses,
and In Uninu la mud raiurninu frnn tha
The manner in which that eau become priv
lego, not to respond TO subpoena Of q court, Is
manifostly that ii there be privilege from ar
rest for contempt In not oboying the subpoena,
then the subpoena itself would DO vain thing
and would have no power.
How far that privilege ought to he construed
as going is thing which would not admit
as in any way specially nppertaining to the
Senate or TO the Gction Of q Senator, but purely
as one appertaining to both bodies. The claim,
therefore, is just as much n claim for the Rop-
rcscntatiyG US 1t Is for the Senator. / think
that, as has been suggested, the subpoena is the
only way to test H. Undoubtedly members of
the Senate would advise las members of the
House would be likely to do under similar cir
cumstauccs) as to what is the proper and dig
niicd way 10 put the matter SO that there will
be nothing Of what may seem TO be an angry
collision in any way, either between the
bodies themselves or between them aud the
WIN pSlsOHul IlgulS
Mr. Recd-l suppose that the privilege Of n
Senator (if he has any ia this matter can arise
solely from his character Us public officer,
and solely TO the public benefit not to his own
benefit or TO his own privilege. We asked Mr..
Matthews to come, and he has declined for
certain reasons. We had a right TO ask him,
and he had q right to decline. The next thing,
l suppose, is to send him subpoena, il we deem
: IL desirable. What is to follow is u question
, , for after consideration
The Chairman asked Mr.. Cox whether he de-
sired to suggest any change in the phrascology
of the resolution.
Mr.. Bu,lcr-Lcst there should be any mis-
: understanding, desire to comment u mo-
meat upon the provision Of section q. article /.
of the Constitution "yhcy Senators and
Representatives. shall in all cases. except trcl.
son, felony, and breach Of the peace, be pTvi-
legged from arrest during their attendance
: | think that if my learned colleague (AIr.
Cox had examined little further he would
have found that that is but an Cmauation oil
the privil lgcs claimed by members of Par!ia.
mcmt of both Houses or claimed for them, and
that it only means arrest for debt which
: was then, both in ths country and in Eng
! land, wcll-knOwn process oil collecting debts,
, and it extends no farther. In Smalla' case be-
! fore the judiciary Committee, when Smals
was in danger Of being carried to South Caro-
lima, 1 had occasion TO examine the question
pretty carefully, and with all my sympathies
aroused In his behalf and with the
sharpest eye to find some cause for
holding him here, l was Obliged to &c.
, port rs a subcommittee TO the Judiciary
Committee, that there was no reason. | think
my colleague will lmt that that never WAS
: held to exempt members of Parliament
loither Of the lIuus Of Lords or of the llousc
Of Commonsj irom lUuislnncnt Tor contempt OF
court, and he will ind Aure than one instance
where the Chancellor dealt with both CaSsc-
ior contempt OF the ,yuit Of Chauccry' The
, privilege from arrest means, therefore, priVi.
lege from arrest for debt, or quasi debts. tOr;s-
arrest in the execution Of civil process.
Mr.. Rccd.--Amd from arrest for mislc.
mcmor.?
hr Butler.--NO. II has been very distinctly
: decided that all misdcmcunOrs arc breaches Oi
: the peace and all indictments for mislcmcanUl
include the Phrase against the peace They
ar1 liable to arrest for misdcmHnOr. The
! point on which | thought | would get
/ Smal.s from under arrest was that tho
I statute of South Carolina did not
! make his crime II felony, and that thcrr
:, are no grades of misdcmCauOr. Selling q gllss
. of liquor.and assault and battery (short oil as
+, sHult with intent to kill stand on exactly tn,
| same grade. Therefore privilege from arrest
+ only means from arrest on civil process, from
, arrest for debt, through mrsnc process or oXccu
+ ton.
| have only made these observations lest
somebody should consider or lest the public
= mind should get abused with the thought that
= we have some great and high privileges her,
a thnt allow us TO refuse to testify.
/ Mr. CUX-l do not know that | do except
that the time itself shall be so set that thclC
a shall be no unnecessary collision.
I The ChHirmam-UulCss otherwise instructed
by the committee, | shall take care that IL
I such question is involved.
The resolution was then adopted and the
committee adjourned until eleven o'clock to-
, day.
The Florida subcommittee.
l JACKSONVILLE, FLA, June &C. A. Byron
, , clerk Of Leon County, produced the ballot-boX
; of precinct No. IL, including sOrIo of Bowers
"jolly jokcrs."
c. H. Edwards, former clerk, was also cx
amncd, and testified that Joseph Bowers had
told Lin he had put in scvcnty-thrco or sov
: cnty.four of the jokers, and when demonstrated
A with said he didn't care; it had given IIayc,
majority in Florida, and that the poll-lis
L had been made to correspond with the joker,
i put in.
= The committee took recess and af.crwad
C examined Samuel B. Mcl.in, who was shown
his confession as published, and acknowledged
!. it to be genuine, and let it go down as n part
I of his evidence. He testified he was n member
9 of Il canvassing board IN 1876, and after the