The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1879-07-05
STILL HIGGLING.

I able to EXPRESS ourselves with sufficient cleal
IS ness to enable him TO comprehend us. Iw
i. weeks ago the FREE TRADER said the demo
a cratic position in regard to federal interior
encc with elections in the states was that " tn
r only control congress under the constitution
can exercise over the election of members o
A congress in the states is that which each house
n derives from the constitutional provision t.
, Judge of the election and qualification of IT.
, own members" Subsequently however, III,
FREE TRADER admitted that the case could
arise, and the constitution had provided for it
where the states making no provision for the
election of members of congress, the federal
government might, as a matter of sclfpreser-
E walton, be compelled to make its own provi.
sion for the election of congressman, but in
that case, congress must forego any attemp to
interfere with the elections of the states, but
take full charge of It's own elections, Conduct
ing them with its own officers, &c. Our es-
teenled contemporary imagines he finds gar-
ing inconsistency here, and proceeds to argue
that it amounts to Il full admission OF his as
sumption of plenary power by the federal go
vernmcnt to interfere with the elections in the
states in any way and to whatever extcst it
pleases, to the full extent in fact of the power
which he thinks he finds in that clause in the
constitution which reads as follows The
times, places and manner of holding elections
for Senators and Representatives shall be pre-
scribed in each state by the Legislature there
of; but the Congress may, at any time, by law,
make or alter such regulations except as TO
the place OF choosing Senators" Our esteemed
contemporary however admits further along
that this plenary power refers only to nation
al " elections, and not to state elections. This
brings up the question, what are national "
elections, and when we get at what they mean,
perhaps we NAV arrive at some definite con
cluson as to what control congress can use
over them There are 3 classes of national Off
GERS chosen by ballot-presidentia electors, US.
Senators and member, Of the house of repre-.
sentatvcs. As tothc first, they are clccIcd, ac.
cording to the constitution, " in such manner
as the legislatures of the States may direct. y
Is there thus any sense ia which their cleo
ton can be called nationals" The famous
g by election commission didn't think there
was, for it utterly denied the right of the ma
by the states of the result of the election OF
electors. Then each state elects two senators
toIcongress. They are to be chosen by the
legislatures of the states respectively The
la .; /, nd ( hnlI In nln
for senators shall be prescribed IN each state
by the legislature thereof" but congress may
by law make or alter such regulations" The
creation of the members of the legislature
will hardly be called national" election
nor is it easy to see how the election of sena
tor by the state legislature is a national
election. The merely incidental power OF con
gress to fix the day on which such elections
shall be held, or to say that the two houses of
a state legislature, if it have two houses shall
vote on the same day, &c, can hardly make it
an election by the nation, or national" Yet
if the Davenport law is proper, the federal
supervisors and marshals can take physical
possession of the state legislatures by means
of bayonets, and run the election under the
plea that 1t is national"
Then if neither the election of presidential
honal control, how does the election Of con
eressmen become national" They shall
be chosen every second year by the people
of the several states" not of the nation"
and the voters for members of congress shall
have the qualifications, says the constitution,
of ELECTORS of the most mum erous branch of
the state Legislature" 1.-The right to vote,
says the Supreme Court, comes from the
state" The members of congress are called
representatives" Whom do they represent
their respective districts, states or the nation ?"
And they are elected at polls established by
state laws and presided over by state officers
who count the ballots and declare the result. |
Are these national" elections?
Congress possibly may have power, as we
have said, in case the states refuse to make
provision for their election, to take possession
of and regulate the election of members of the
national house OF representations; but no such
contingency has ever yet arisen and no such
power has ever yet been exercised 1t may
possibly, in the contingency wehavc indicated,
expel all state action and interference with
such election except as to the qualification of
voters, but it has not yet done so. 1t may pos.
sibly have power, in the extreme case suppos-
ed to separate congressional elections from
the elections of state officers, set up ballot box
es of It's own, appoint its own election officers,
&c, but it has not yet done so, But until con-
gress does make such a change our elections
will be state and not national elections. The
Davenport election law, for which the stall
warts are fighting, does not pretend to make
or alter" any state regulation on the sub
ject OF elections, has therefore no constitutional
warrant in the clause quoted above in refer.
ence to such alterations or changes but is a
hold imnudpnt and shameful nttempt TO do |