Morning journal and courier., 1880-12-10

combinations that would operate disadvan-
 tageously for the ex-Speaker he thought his
 successor would most probably be Hon. } Thomas M. Bayne, representing the Twenty
 third Pennsylvania district in Congress
 When reminded that it had been rumored
 here for some days that Governor Hoyt was
 developing much strength in the direction of
 the Senatorship, he replied that he did not 1 think that the Governor would enter the lists | at all, as the information received from liar l risburg to-day indicated such determination l on his part.
 The credentials of General Garfield as Sen
 ator-elect from Ohio are still among the arch
 ives of the Senate It is expected though that
 within day or two General Garfield will
 by letter request the Vice President to return
 the same to him so he may return them
 through the Governor of Ohio to the Legis-
 lature. In thus returning the credentials the
 General will also transmit 8 letter declining
 the Senatorial office to which he had been
 elected. Senator Pendleton, in converse
 tion on the subject of the vacancy which will ! be caused by General Garfeld's declination, | said he was clearly of the opinion that the Legislature could legally proceed to elect
 successor to Senator Thurman ten days after
 it received the notice of President-elect Gar
 fields declfnation. He had carefully studied
 the law concerning the case and his opinions
 based on the result of very laborious re-
 search of all the legal authorities bearing on
 the subject
 | The Committee of Ways and Means held
 meeting to-day to consider the recommends tions made by the Commissioner of Internal
 Revenue in his annual report. A majority of
 the committee were of the opinion that the
 present law relating to the adhesive stamp
 tax upon proprietary medicines, cosmetics,
 bank checks and deposits &c., should be
 modified. At the same time it was felt it
 would be impossible to do anything on the subject at the present session. The subject
 was referred, however, to the Committee on Internal Revenue, of which Mir. Carlisle | is chairman.
 Congressman Rurd intends if possible to ! secure action in some manner this session on l his bill, the supplement of which is an act to
 establish regulations as to imported goods in
 bond and with duties paid and for other pur- | poses. Mir. Hurds bill was intended to pre- ! vent discrimination against certain railroad
 lines and the trading public ln the matter of
 transportation of goods through Canada. The
 bill provides that it shall be unlawful forUnited ! States customs officers to seal any car in ! which goods, wares or merchandis SC
 shall have been placed to be transported from
 one point place in the United States to h. ! other point or place in Canada. The bill also levies duty of so per cent. Gd g05orem upon
 every railroad car manufactured in the Do
 minion of Canada and brought into the United
 States In conversation this morning MT.
 Hurd said if he could not secure action on
 
 mind by which he thought he could accom- plish his purpose. The abrogation of the I treaty of Washington would do away with all \ the unj just and discriminating regulations in | force in the Dominion. With reference to American lake ports he said he contemplated i offering resolution directing the President \ to give notice to Great Britain of the inten- \ tion of the United States to abrogate the { treaty of Washington. MT. Hurd believed
 that the New England representatives who ' represent the people that have suffered on account of the prosecutions of American fish | ermen would vote for such resolution. A ! new treaty could then be made which would not only regulate the fisheries, but adequate ly protect the interests of lake ports border \ ing on Canada.
 \ There are nine contested election cases | maining to be decided by the House. Some
 of them will probably never be heard of. No \ brief has been filed in the contest of Harrison against Shelly of the Fourth Alabama dis ' trict. The evidence adduced by Mir. Harri- ' son is meagre, and the case will probably ' nevers be brought before the House. There | are two reports in the case of Bixbee against Hull, of the Second Florida district. The | majority report is in favor of hesitting mem Der, MT. Hull. Mir. McCole, who is contest ! ing the seat of MT. Orth, from the Ninth ' Indiana district, has asked for more time \ in which to file evidence. It Is not believed ' that MT. McCole will make out case, and | the contest will hardly be brought before the ! House. Messrs. Merchant and Herbert gave notice of their intention to contest the seat of MT. Acklen, of the Third Louisiana district, \ but they have failed to present any evidence \ and the contest will probably be dropped. The committee is ready to report in favor of the sitting member in the contest of Boynton \ vs. Loring, of the Sixth Massachusetts dis ' trict No report has yet been made in the ! celebrated Donnelly -Washburne case.
 \ The Electoral Count-A Republican Cau- ' eus-A Policy of Active Opposition to
 the Morgan Resolution.
 \ WASHINGTON, Dec. 9.-The Republican \ Representatives and Senators in joint caucus ! tonight decided unanimously to oppose the passage of the Morgan joint rule by every | parliamentary device. There was some diff ! ference of opinion in the caucus held last ' night by Republican Representatives alone ! on the question of flibustering to defeat the ' Morgan resolution. The opponents of the
 extreme theory were in a small minority, and | they did not seem to be very firmly grounded in their suggestions for conservative action. ! The fact that there was a difference of opin-
 ion, however, led to the call for joint
 caucus at 7:3O this evening. There was
 large attendance of Republican Congressman.
 Senator Anthony was made chairman of the
 caucus and Townsend of Ohio secretary. Mir.
 Conger briefly stated the object of the joint
 caucus. He said that the question presented
 for decision was whether the representatives of the party should resist the passage of the | infamous Morgan resolution Mir. Conger l was decidedly of the opinion that 1t should
 not be allowed to pass. He explained that
 on the evening previous in the caucus of
 Republican Representatives Judge Lapham, | Of New York, had offered resolution which he believed met the appreciation of a \ majority Of those present. Judge Laphams resolution read. After a preamble reciting the belief that | the Morgan resolution unconstitutional
 this resolution pledges the Republicans to resist its passage by every means known to parliamentary law. MT. Robeson made one | of the principal speeches of the evening. He | avowed the belief that the Morgan rule origi-
 mated as part of a scheme to count in a Democratic President in the event of close
 election. He outlined the position assumed by the Republican Representatives in oppos- ing the resolution and pointed out what he claimed were inconsistent and incongruous
 features of the resolution He believed the ] l resolution to be unconstitutional and revolu- tionary and thought that its passage should be firmly resisted. Senator Blaine made speech which elicited great applause. It ringing and stalwart in tone. After criticising the resolution he spoke of the old twenty second joint rule which had been cited by the Democrats as a precedent for ) the new rule they now proposed ) to enact. Blaine denied that the ) old twenty second rule was a precedent ) for anything. He claimed that the rule was rendered extinct and disposed of as a prece- dent by the creation of the electoral commits } l sion a tribunal in the creation of which l both Democrats and Republicans had hand. He maintained that the proposed rule was
 dangerous, because it was at variance with , the theory of the framers of the constitution ) that Congress should not have the power to , elect President.
 Speeches were also made by Messrs. Keif-
 CT, Lapham, Teller, Saunders, Ferry, Robe son, Hiscock, Conger, Burnside, Hawley, : Haskell and Butterworth. These gentlemen
 were all of the opinion that the electoral rule
 implied usurpation of power on the part of Congress in assuming the right to count the
 electoral vote. The Lapham resolution was | fT,o1Iv adoTtad xrifIout a diSSaptinr voice