Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1879-07-07
A REVIEW OF THE CONTEST.

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lream of floating into power in 1880 on
IN irresistible current of popular opin-
on. They saw that sharp reaction
had taken place in the public mind, and
that all indications pointed to the choice
by the country of another Republican
President. After much wrangling among
themselves they agreed upon a pro-
gramme which they believed if carried
put would enable them to hold the Solid
South, and add to it the electoral vote of
New York This, together with Indiana
and one or two smaller Northern States,
would give them a majority in the next
Electoral College. They undertook first
to repeal the Federal Election laws,
which are the only effective safeguard
against fraudulent voting in great cities;
and, second, to reduce the army TO a
skeleton, and provide that in no case
should it be used to keep the peace or
enforce the laws of the United States at
elections. At that time the Democrats
only had control of the House; the Sen
ate was still Republican. They embod-
led their political schemes in the shape
of "riders" to the regular appropriation
bills, and set up the revolutionary doc
trine that they had the right to refuse
the money necessary to carry on the
Government unless the Senate and the
President would permit them to have
their own way. The Senate paid no
heed to the threat of starving out the
Government, and refused to concur in
the House riders. The House declined
to pass the bills without them, and the
session ended at noon on the 4th of
March, leaving the Army and the Exc
cutive, Judicial and Legislative branches
of the Government without dollar ap-
plicable for their support after the 30th
of June.
President Hayes Immediately conven-
ed the new Congress in extra session Oh
the 18th of March. The Democrats
then modified their programme, aban-
doning all effort for the reduction of the
Army. They had obtained control Of
the Senate in the meantime by the in.
coming of Democratic Senators from
Southern States, elected in the place Of
Republicans, and they imagined they
could cover up their partisan purposes
and raise an issue between Congress and
the President, in which the people would
take the side of Congress. They passed
the Army Appropriation bill with sec
tion prohibiting in effect the use of any
armed Federal force, whether military
or civil, to keep the peace or enforce Law
at the polls. This the President vetoed
on the 30th Of April. Then they tool
the section out and modified it, so far a.
it applied to civil officers. and passed i
as separate bill. The President found
this would practically suspend the en-
forcement Of all the United States stat
utes where elections were in progress
and would subordinate National to Stat
authority. He killed the bill with (;
veto message on the 18th of May. La
ter in the session the Army bill wa
passed, with clause prohibiting tn
employment of the troops as a polio
force at the polls. Most of the Republi
cans in the House voted for this bill
In the Senate, however, the Republicans
fearing some trick of Interpretation Turk
ing in the words police force, opposed il
The President placed the meaning upo
the words given them in common us
and signed the bill.
The Democratic attack upon the eleC
ton laws began with saddling ride
upon the Executive, Legislative and il
dicial Appropriation bill, providing fc
their entire repeal. The Democrats r,
; vived the old Southern doctrine of Stat
Sovereignty, and professed to assail the'
, laws on the ground that they interfere
. with the rights of the States to contr
elections. The bill in this shape W;
, vetoed May 80. Then the Democra
/ backed down from their threat of star
D ing the Government unless they cou,
get rid Of Federal Marshals and Supe
2 visors at elections. They hit upon Il
: experiment of dividing the Appropri
ton bill into two bills, one relating
the Executive and Judicial Department
and the other to the Courts. The fo
!, mer they passed in clean shape, and
4 became a law. Upon the latter tn,
e tackled provision, not repeating t
u election laws, for they had given up th
!. as hopeless, but multiplying them by 9
dering that no money should be spent
e liabilities incurred for their enforcemer
n This bill met with sharp veto on Il
5. oath of June. Afraid to adjourn wi
y the courts uprovided for, the Democra
got out of what they said was to be the
v last ditch, and retreated to new fror
E. Ter. They subdivided the Judicial bi
d passed without any political attachme
&c all its provisions except the clause re
n ting to Marshals and their deputies, a
D. then passed separate bill to pay I
II fees of those officials, loaded with D
SIok Il