Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1879-06-06
THE LEGISLATIVE BILL VETOED,


Sins = After mature consideration of the bill
entitled An act making appropriations for tn,
legislative, executive and judicial expenses oi
the Government for the fiscal year ending JUNE
goth, 1881, and for other purposes" / herewith
which it originated with the following objection,
TO its approval; The main purpose of the bill u
to appropriate money required to support, during
the next fiscal year, the several civil department.
of the Government. The amount appropriatet
exceeds in the aggregate $4,000 coo. This none,
is needed to keep in operation the essential
Government Legislative, Executive and judi
cial. If the bill contained no other provisions
no objection to its approval would be made. II
embraces, however, a number of clauses reht-
ing to subjects of great general interest which
arc. wholly unconnected with the appropriation
which it provides for. Objections to the pIac-
tice of tacking general legislation to approp-ia-
tion bills, especially when the object is TO de
prve q coordinate branch of the Government
of its right 10 free exercise of its own disore-
tion and Judgment touching such general laus-
lation to House bill No. l, which was returned Ia
the House of Representatives on the 10Th of last
month"; | regret that the objections which
were then expressed to this method of legfla-
tion have not seemed to Congress of sufficient
weight Co dissuade from this renewed Moor
poration of general cnactments in an appro-
in respect to general legislation thus placed be-
fore me cannot be discharged without seeming
to delay, however briefly, the necessary apprOpri-
alton by Congress for the support of the Gov
ernment. Without repeating those objections l
respectfully refer to that message for state
ment of my views on the principle maintained
in the debate by the advocates Of this bill. viz.
That " to withhold appropriations is constitu-
tional means for the redress of what the ma
gard as " grievance" The bill contains the
following clauses viz: And provided, further,
that the following sections of the Revised Stat
utes of the United States, namely; sections 20l6.
2,0lS and 2,020 and all of the succeeding sec
tiOns of the said statutes down to and
including section 2i27 and also section
5,522 be and the same are hereby repealed
and that all the other sections of the Revised
Statutes and all laws and parts of laws author
iZng the appointment of chief supervisors of
elections, special deputy marshals of cleo
tions or general deputy marshals having any
duties to perform in respect to any election and
prescribing their duties and allowing them COM
pensation be and the same are hereby repealed"
20l7. 20l9 2O2S and 2O3l of the Revised Statutes.
The section of the Revised Statutes, which the
bill If approved, would repeal or amend "a are part
amended February q, 1871. entitled IAN act to
enforce the rights Of citizens, of the United
States to vote in the several States of this
Union, and for other purposes" All
of the provisions of the above named acts, which
it is proposed in this bill to repeal or modify, re-
late to Congressional elections. The remaining
after the enactment of this measure, is that
which provides for the appointment by a Judge
of the Circuit Court of the United States. of two
Supervisors of Elections in each election dis
trict. at any Congressional election, on due ap-
plication of citizens who desire in the language
of the law, to have such election guarded and
scrutiniZed.n The duties of Supervisors will be
to attend at the polls at all Congressional cleo
tions and to remain after the polls are open un-
til every vote cast has been counted; but they
will have no authority to make arrests or to per-
form other duties than to be in the immediate
presence of the officers holding election, and TO
witness all their proceedings including the
counting of the votes, and maj king return
thereof The part of the election law which will
he repealed by the approval OF tins bill includes
those sections which give authority to Supervl-
sors of Elections to personally scrutlnlze, count
and canvass each ballot, and all the sections
which confer authority upon United States Mar
shals and Deputy Marshals in connection with
Congressional elections. The enactment of this
bill also repeals section 5,522 of the Criminal
Statutes of the United States, which was enacted
for the protection of the United States officers
engaged in the discharge of their duties at Con-
gressional elections. This section protects Su-
pervisOrs aud Marshals in the performance of
their duties by making the obstruction or as
saulting of these officers or any interference
with them, by bribery or solicitation or other
wise, crimes against the United States. The
true manner and effect of the proposed
legislation are plain. Supervisors with au-
thority to observe and witness the proceed
ing at Congressional elections will be left, but
there will be no power to protect them or to pre-
vent the interference with their duties or to pun
ish any violation of the law from which their
powers are derived. If this bill is approved only
a shadow of the authority of the United States
at National elections will remain; the ubstance
will be gone, and the supervision of elections
will be reduced to mere inspection, without
authority on the part of the SUPERVISORS TO do
all that will be left to the Supervisors, is per-
mission to have such oversight of elections as
political parties are in the habit of exercising
without any authority of law, in order to pre-
vent their opponents from obtaining unfair ad-
The object of the bill is to destroy
any control whatever of the United States over
Congressional elections.
The passage of this bill has been urged upon
the ground that the election of members of
Congress is matter which concerns the states
alone; that these elections should be controlled
exclusively by the States; that there are and can
be no such elections as National elections, and
that the existing law of the United States reg
ulatIng Congressional elections is without war
rant in the Constitution. 1t is evident, however,
that the trainers of the Constitution regarded the
election of members of Congress IN every State
and in every district as, IN very important
sense justly matter of political interest and
concern to the whole country.
The original provision of the Constitution on
this subject is as follows: Section 4. Article /.
The times. places and manner of holding cleo
tiOns for Senators and Representatives shall be
prescribed in each State by the Legislature
thereof, but Congress may at any time by law
places Of choosing Senator" A further provision
has been since added which is embraced in the
fifteenth amendment. 1t is as follows; " Sec
tion l. The right of citizens of the United States to
vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United
States or by any State on account of race, color,
or previous condition of servitude. Section 2.
article by appropriate legislation"
Under the general provision of the Constitu-
tion (sectiOn 4, article II Congress in 1866 passed
2 comprehensive law which prescribed full and
detailed regulations for the election of Senators
by the Legislatures of the several States. This
law has been in force almost thirteen years. In
pursuance of it all of the members, of the pres
ent Senate of the United States hold their seats.
Its constitutionality is not called in question.
II is confidently believed that no sound argument
san be made in support of the consttutionalityo of
Iatf fNfS nj
which will not show that the elections of mem
bers of the House of Representatives may also be
sonstitutionaly regulated by National authority
The bill before me itself recognizes the prin-
;lple that the Congressional elections are not
State elections, but National elections 1t leaves
N full force the existing statute under which Su-
Derylsors are still to be appointed by National
authority to " observe and witness CongessiOn-
n elections whenever due application is made by
,,he citizens who desire said elections to be
guarded and scrutinized." If the power to su-
Deryise in any respect whatever the CongessiOn-
n elections exists under section f. article of the
Constitution, 1t is power which like every other
lower belongngtO the Government of the United
states, is paramount and supreme, and includes
,he right to employ the necessary means to carry
I into effect. The Statutes of the United States
which regulate the election of members of the
House of Representatives, an essential part of
which 1t is proposed to repeal by this bill, have
been in force about eight years. Four Congress
ilonal elections have been held under them, two
IF which were at the Presidential elections of
1917 and 1876. Numerous prosecutions, trials and
convictions have been had in the courts of the
United States in all parts of the Union for viola
ions Of these laws, In no reported has
their ConstitutiOnality been called in question
BY any Judge of the courts of the United States
The validity of these laws is sustained by
uniform course of judicial action and opinion.
II 1t Is. urged that the United States election
laws are not necessary, an ample reply is
furnished by the history of their origin and of
their results, They were especially prompted
by the investigation and exposure of the frauds
committed in the city and State of New York at
lhe elections of 1873 the committees representing
both political parties. The vote cast in the city
3t New York alone in 1868 was not less than l5,-
20. committee of the FOrty-fourth Congress,
m their report submitted in 1877, adopted an
opinion that for every one hundred actual voters
1t the city of New York in 1868 one hundred and
eight votes were cast, when in fact the num-
Der of lawful votes cast could not have ex-
,eeded eighty. eight per cent. of the actual
voters Of the city. BY this statement the num-
Der OF fraudulent votes at that election in New
York City alone was 10000 or 90 O. These frauds
completely reversed the result of the election in
.ihe State of New York, both as to the choice of
ioyernor and state officers, and as to the choice
II the Electors of President and Vice President
lf the United States. They attracted the atten-
ION of the whole country. 1t was plain that if