The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1879-05-08
FURTHER HISTORY OF THE
VETO.

AS the last veto of President Hayes
has awakened great interest In the ex-
ercise Of this power, and as the democ-
racy claims that no man has the right to
thwart the majority of congress,-rep-
resentatives of the people,-it is well to
know how often and who exercised it
during the history of the United States.
Happily an authority supplies the in
formation.
Since the foundation Of the govern
ment there have been eighty-nine We
toes by presidents; two by Washing
ton, six by Madison, one by Monroe,
eleven by jackson, eight by Tyler,
three by Polk, nine by Pierce, three by
Buchanan, one by Lincoln, seventeen
by johnson, twenty-five by Grant, and
three by Hayes. OF these, twelve were
what are called pocket vetoes, where
the president fails to return the bill
either way before congress ~adjourns,
receiving 1t within the last ten days of
the session. Jackson is credited with
most Of these. OF all the eighty-nine
vetoes Pierce was overruled by a two
thirds vote, which is required to pass
the bill after a veto, five times; johnson
fifteen times, Grant three times and
Hayes once. Washington vetoed a bill
for the appointment of members be-
cause he said it was impractical, and
once for the reduction Of the army in
1877 because he thought it was imprac-
ticable and unjust. Madison, jackson,
Tyler, Polk and Pierce vetoed bills
making appropriations for rivers and
harbors, on the grounds that it was un-
constitutional, unjust distribution of
government funds and too general. The
five times Pierce was overruled were
for internal improvements. Most of
the cases where jackson exercised the
veto power were on bills for the bene-
fit of corporations, except in the IN
stance of Clay's land bill in 1888. Mon
roe's one veto was given against n bill
for aid to the Cumberland road; Madi-
sons vetoes against the incorporation of
churches, establishing United States
banks; Tyler's against the fiscal bank
bills, tariff bills, regulating contested
elections, and river and harbor bills;
Folks against river and harbors bills
and French spoliation claims; Pierce's
against French spoliation claims, aid
to INDECENT insane, ocean mail appro-
p%riations and Internal improvement
bills; Buchanan's against aid to agri-
cultural colleges, a mail route to Cali
fornia, a private claim and the home
stead bill; Lincoln's one veto was on
a bill to correct clerical errors in a
revenue act in order that all errors
might be included. johnson vetoed
the civil rights bill, freedmen,s bureau,
admission of Colorado, in which he was
sustained; suffrage in the district of
Columbia, admission of Nebraska,
against military rule in the rebel states, |
tenureo Of Office act, three supplemental
bills to the reconstruction act, amend
ing judiciary act, admitting Arkansas,
claiming its admission by previous acts;
excluding electoral votes of the rebel
states, freedmen's bureau discontinued,
admission Of North Carolina, South
Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama
and Florida, because it superseded the
mode presented by the constitution;and
copper tariff. In but two of these was
he sustained-the one mentioned above
and the n regarding the admission of
the several states just named. Grants
vetoes were nearly all against private
bills. The exceptions were bills regard
ing the Indian trust funds, regarding
local matters In the district, and proof
In homestead entries, ~perfecting the
revision Of the statutes and the bill he