Mexico weekly ledger., 1879-05-15
THE VETO
Of the Bill Prohibiting Militia
nv Interference at the Polls.

~ interference ~ the OAAss
As anticipated Mr.. Hayes has
vetoed the bill passed by congress to
prevent military interference at cleo
lions, and submitted to his excellen-
CIV separately and apart from army
appropriations. This last message
has at least two merits. Its senten-
e are decided and its meaning un-
mistakable. Something of this sort
was to have been expected. There
was no more room for lodging and
yet it is astonishing, that, in the face
of the incidents brought out in Con-
gress and mentioned in this paper,
our accidental president should as
sert that no fact had been produced
which tends to show that laws author
izing the employment of the army
ought to be suspended for a single
hour at any place, in any state or
territory.
This single sentence in regard to
the ~expediency of what has been We
toed, however bold and unqualified
it undoubtedly is, strips the struggle
between Congress and the executive,
of every thing bordering on the
Revolutionary and to make that
more apparent the president asserts,
and correctly too, that there were
no laws authorizing resort to the ar
my 20 enforce laws in existence, prior
to 1906.
1t has been doubted if the convention
ever contemplated such a thing as q
standing army. The authority given
Congress was to raise armies, not on
army. This suggests that armies
were to be used only in unusual inn
mergencies, and limitation of power
to provide for more than two years OF
their support confirms this view. Art.
10, Sec. 8 of the constitution
provides for the calling forth of the
militia to execute the laws, suppress
instructions and repel invasions
and it is well known that the regular
army, large as it was, would have
been overwhelmed in the late wal
but for the volunteer corps raised by
the loyal states.
We r too much accustomed to an
army to revive such discussions and
revert to them to show that it is
wholly within the perview of the con-
stitution that Congress and the execu-
tive should rely upon a posse comita-
TINS and the militia for enforcement oil
law.
When the president complains thai
by excluding the army from the polls
on election days he is stripped of al
authority and characterizes it as 3:
discrimination against national ant
in favor of state government, doe.
he forget what he said in hi.
last veto and overlook tina
he is as much commander-in.
chief of the militia when it is called
into the service. of the United State!
as he is of the regular army?
The issue presented by this veto
cannot be avoided. Congress ha!
sought to secure a free, uninterrupted
and honest ballot for the citizens o.
this country, but the unscrupuloui
partlsans that surround Mr.. Hayes
r determined that it sha!; not bt
successful. They are fixed in theft
design to count another president IL
and rely upon the present executive
to assist them with the whole cIyI
and military power Of the government.
and he mTa88 ufq institutions and brina
the ballot into contempt. He ma,
not think 50 now. He may honestl,
eAclaim, sis thy servant a dog that he
should do such ihings?'' but let him
take counsel, he has embarked on Q
path that leads in that direction.
The pretense set up for this addi.
tional veto is that the president oughr
to be able to enforce law. Let u:
look INTO this matter. The on.
ly persons that can execut,
federal laws are Z. S. Marshals ant
they are clothed for that purpose il
each state with powers possessed by it
sherifs. These can call bystanders t.
their aid, and summon a posse conf
tatus. Ii resisted, they may command
every male inhabitant of their coun
ties If they think fit, ineludin,
militia, to come to their as
sistance with such arms as the,
may direct. What more power doe
a marshal need on election or an,
. other day than this tremendous au
thority. In enforcing the lawful or
der of a federal magistrate the Uni
ted States are one nation and can exc
cute. that mandate without the help Q
OF the hired mercenary. The authori
ty of the marshal without the army i
too great and there will not he a fire
ballot in this country until supervi
sors are stripped of their ability t
control the result of elections.
At this distance from Washington
il is impossible to forecast what vii
be done. We should not be sur
prised, however, If Congress, lookin,
upon the regular army as an unneces
sary and superfuous appendage
should either conclude to reduce it
size or leave it to be taken care O
under existing laws.