Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1880-01-21
SPIRIT OF THE AGE,
Wednesday, lam n, 1880,
Iron our regular eoHssPondsn',i
WASHINGTON LETTER.
M.sHIssIos, D. O.. Jan. u. lssO.

Democrats TO expedite the business 0
Congress and 10 have done with II IL
time for an early adjournment, Their
are evidences Of "breakers" aheat
that may set all calculations at naaghl
II IL understood that the Appropria
ton Committee have 80 perfected
their plans as to be In aposlllen Il
put all the regular bills through N an
unusually short time a member o
the committee said yesterday that II
far as the appropriations we're con-
eerned they, could be passed within
month. But there are numerous out
groupings OF prolonged financial de-
bate IN both houses. a. we'll ~ Of 9th
or stormy discussions, tho end OF
which cannot DO toreseen. In view
OF those manifestations. tho general
political sstaation and. the well'knowu
procllvities of Congessmen, do mol
think tho desire Of the Democrats ioI
short session can DO realized
There Is growing feeling among
the more thoughtful aud iar'siehted
congressman IN favor OF some leg'sla'
- l..
ton on the subject OF counting the
electoral vote. Aud 1t does not re-
quiro a remarkable foresight to dis
cover that some action IN that direo'
ton would be most wise. All the
signs Of the times point to contest
unprecedented in bitterness and re-
sulting perhaps in no end Of complI'
cations, IL ~ clear that the radical
party will not give up control OF the
government upon simple expression
ofthe will Of the people against them,
II it can DO held by hook or crock or
by the commission OF any sort Of des-
perate political crimes. True, a DEM
ocratic Congress counts the votes this
time, but will not The Republicans
claim, as they did before the Electoral
Commission was created in the last
contest, that the President Of the
Senate has the sole right to count the
vote, and thus precipitate n deadly
struggle. Schuyler Coltay-there are
people that remember who he is-had
an article in a late number Of the
Philadelphia Times, the sole object OF
which seemed to be to point ont the
power of the President of the Senat"
in making the count. Vice President
Wheeler would in that case assume to
count in the radical candidate.
A bill has been reported which is
perhaps as fair as anything that could
be passed. 1t provides that the two
houses shall meet in joint convention
under the same conditions rs he, eto-
tore, and that all the certificates or
papers purpor,ing to be certificates
shall be opened by the President Of
the Senate, and that in cases where
there is controversy, both houses
must concur in determining the result.
Under the old twenty second joint
rule adopted by the Republicans to
enable them to throw out the vote of
the reconstructed states, and repealed
by them in the Senate in 1916, when
they feared the Democrats might Use
it to reject Louisiana, the practice was
that mo vote objected to shall be
counted except by concurrent vote of
the two houses" In tie present bill
the vote of state must be counted
unless rejected by both houses, and
the decision Of a state court in the
case of disputed election is to stand
unless reversed by both houses. This
accords substantially with the measure
SD long, ably and persistently advo-
Gated in the Senate by the late Sena-
tor Morton.
The feeling here in reference to the
situation in Maine goes far to create
a desire to have everything plainly
defined IN relation to the Presidential
question. The course of the radical
party in that state is an illustration of
the means they will resort to to retain
power. Before the election last fall,
defeat Of the Blaine crowd seemed
certain from every view, but seeing
this they flooded the state with money
and prevented choice of governor
BY unblushing and wholesale bribery
and bulldoozing. Then, when the
governor and council, by strict con-
struction of the laws, upset them and
took away the fruit OF their rascality,
they again resort to the most despica.
blstactics to prevent quorum of the
legislature. The man who offered a
half dozen brides and actually paid
the money in two, says the charge is
put up job. Aside from the over
whelmlng evidence produced, there is