The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1880-01-27
A POPULAR VOTE FOR PRESIDENT.

mud Vice President ~ tho United States shall
| M arc he o jaolinne to the electoral avatnm
/ tho popular vote theory | ] s,oh a dangerous
Rtcp IN Tho direction Of Capitalization that
! Democratic adhct ing III tho opinlona If ieTer
| con, If Jackson, oF Benton md IF Calhoun
can only contemplate Mr. Towpaendss propo
81 ion With feelings nf surrtiae and aenti-
mRnts "a nearly allied 10 disreapeot "a the
gravity Of tho puhiact end n decent regard
| for the opinions Of The gentleman from Hi
nei4 wiIl permit II IL not within tho line "
/ legitimate augmentation TO qucaton any
enileman'e sincerity. nor IL IL deenrnua ~
meet even falIactous posii ion Ivy an attempt
AZ riairule Hence Mi rownscnds PROPOSE
tlon must stand OF fall upon ita own merits.
| In order TO reach any fair analysis Of tho
gentleman'a proposition II ia frat necessary
| "a glance nj The nature Of The Federal gov
erument and the relations which tho Statea
| Of the Union boar 10 II.
That No consolidated government wau In
| tended nv tho framers " the constitution IN
| connluaively ahnwn IN every line and word of
the fundamental law upon which tho Union
IA based, unless II hc the preamble. upon tho
words oF which, and upon these only. tho
fiiandp Of consolidation base their fallaclous
and dangerous political hereay. The pre-
| amble rrcites that
Eve, tho people Of tho United States. In
order 70 form moro perfect Union,
do ortialn and establish this constitution"
cie
IL ahould ho noticed IN this connection that
tho preaent constitution superseded tho art-
cles Of confederation. Wherein II waa declared
that
'ln determining duoationu IN the United
States. In Gonereaa assembled. each State
shall have ono vote
This waa regarded as not 40 perfect u
luion ma waa doomed advisable and hence
the prcsent constitution provided for a
more perfect Union: Tint Ia, linton more
perfect than TINT which held tho States to-
gether during the war Of the revolution. and
until II was succeeded by tho more perfect
Union provided for by tho onnRtitutou. Had
n perfect Union been provided for. the pre-
amhle would have naid SO. and II could not
have boon left optional with tho States Or the
Confederation to join tho moro perfect tnien
But that the States had the right to adhere
to tho articles OF confederation or join tho
more perfect Union. Ia clearly proved by
article Z If the constitution. which dcclatea
that the ratiicaiiona Of tho conventions mot
the peoplel Of ninc States shal be sufIlcient
FOR the establishment of thia constitution b.
tmeci, thc States 80 rHtnpinG the same
Had u consolidation Of NIL tho States haen
contemplated. We Inc people" would have do
oarcd that ratification Of the constitution by
majority of the people OF tho United States
ahould give that instrument full force and
validity but "wa the people" did not make
the present constitution, for IN tho conven-
tion which framed 1t each State had ono
vote In its ratification each State had ono
amendments thereto zach State had ono vote.
Done In convention by tho unanimous con
sent Of Tho STATES present Is tho super
seripton to the charter OF our liberties which
Immediately precedoa tho signature Ut Gno
Washington as President and Deputy from
Virginia. II Ia u historical fact that
on tho seventeenth Of September. 1897.
the constitution was adopted. aud ON
the arventh Of December following little Della
ware in the exercise of u sovereignty won Nv
tho valor VI Washington and Llfayetta, ar
Warren and Marion. was tho first 10 Etvo In
her adherence 10 the new constitution. Other
States followed until tho twenty Hrst of Jnnc.
l1ss when the ratification by New Hampshiro
tho ninth Statcl gave effect TO The eorstitu-
tion "hctwoen the States 30 ratirying the
same." bit II had no moro validity Ill the
States Of Virginia. New York. North Carolina
aud Rhode Island than II IL had never been
adopted
So there can be no question but that thia
government Of tho United States Is nothing
moro than u government OF States; the SOW
pral States comprising the taion retaining all
tho rights thcy had under tho confederation
except such as have boon delegated to tho
Federal government. (Soetonth amendment:
= Fhe powers not delegatei Is tho United
States ny this constitution, nor prohibited by
IL to the States, are reserved to the States re-
spectiSely, or to the people,
Among the rights not merely reserved, but
expressly guaranteed. is (see article 81 that
no State shall, without Its consent be de-
prived of its equal suffrage In the Senate"
This provision Is an important factor In the
matter Of electing the President. for article 9
declares that each State shall appoint num-
Der Of electors equal to Its whole number OF
Senator's and Representatives In Congress It
,aunot escape the notice of the most casual
observer that the trainers OF the constitu-
ton intended to give the smaller States
greater relative power In the choice or
President than States Of greater numerical
strength. But Mr.. Townsend's proposition
total disregard Of State lines,
and by grouping the people OF all the States
into one community, each State would loso
It's entity, and those weak In numbers would
be reduced to the condition of obscure counties
or parishes in State. That the adoption Of
Mr.. Townsend's proposition would operate
with crushing effect upon at least thirteen of
the States is clearly susceptible OF mathe-
matical demonstration, basing calculations