Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1880-03-03
THE ELECTORAL COUNT.
[Frem the Chicago Inter Ccean.l

There is no lack of evidence to show
that the Democrats are preparing for
the Presidential campaign with a view
to count in their candidate for Presi-
dent, whether he is elected by the peo-
pie or not. They have considered all
possible contingencies, and have meas
ured the value of all pretexts that may
be used in their favor. If three candi-
dates should be placed in the field, it
will be the policy of the Democrats to
encourage the third party in certain
States where the conditions are favor
able, SO as to throw the election into
the House. They may do this by
abandoning their party organization in
the States selected and voting for the
third-party candidate. With this con-
tingency in mind, the way for the cleo
ton of Democratic President is being
opened by the unseating of Washburn
in Minnesota. The Third District in
that State has always been Republican,
and Washburn had an undisputed ma
joritv CT 3,O12, yet the Democrats of
the House committee have decided to
unseat him and give the seat to Dem
ocrat. None of the Northern Demo-
cratic papers explain or defend this
action of the committee, but the Bour-
bon papers of the South, assuming that
no explanation or defense is needed,
accept the action of the committee as
conclusive evidence that the next Pres
ident of the United States will be a
Democrat.
But if the election cannot be thrown
into the House they will have matured
plans to influence the electoral count.
They have oil the experience of their
last endeavor to seat a man who was
not elected at their service, and it has
enabled them to manufacture new pre-
texts on which the votes of States may
be questioned or thrown out. Events of
the last few months have shown that
the conspirators are acting on q we'll
considered plan, and, while many of
their schemes have been exposed, it is
to be presumed that many features of
their programme remain as secrets with
the leaders.
The people have seen enough, how
ever, to alarm them, and the belief that
the Democrats. anticipating defeat at
the polls, are preparing to count out
the Republican candidate, has become
a firm conviction. There are those who
laugh at such an idea, but they are of
the class who act with. or encourage, the
Democrats, and it ia their trade to make
light of any accusation against the
Democratic party. Those who read the
Democratic record between the lines
see that If the contest is a close one, q
great crisis is to come with the count of
the electoral votes.
The Senate and House are both Dem
ocratlc. There are constitutional pro-
visions and rules susceptible of differ
ent interpretations, and, after cam
paign in which the Democrats have de-
voted their best energies to TECHNICAL
ties, there will be numerous points on
which to base objections. In such @
contest the Republicans can only cling
to the accepted Interpretation of the
constitutional provisions and rules, and
Vice President Wheeler must be guild
ed by the constitution as interpreted by
the highest authorities and by prece-
dent.
Ex-Vice President Colfax, in an arti-
Gle published in the Philadelphia Times
some weeks ago, calls attention to the
vagueness of the clause of the constitu-
ton directing who shall count the votes,
and in the course of the article says:
Inc Twelfth amendment of the constitution.
after requiring the electoral votes to be <di-
rected to the President of the Senate" says:
"The President of the Senate shall, in the pres
ence Of the Senate aod House of Representa-
ives, open all the certificates and the votes
shall then be counted :" And the act of 1892
thus shows how the two houses are to be
brought toget Their, 3in presence of whom the
certificates are to be opened and the votes
counted: Congress shall be in session ON the
second Wednesday of February, 1888, and on
the second Wednesday, succeeding every meet
ing OF the electors, and the said certificates, or
SO many OF them as shall have been received,
shall be opened, the votes counted, and the
persons who shall fill the Offices of President
and Vice President ascertained and declared
agreeably to The constitution"
The important question, "By ,ohons countedS"
is too large an one to be discussed incidentally
to another matter as now, and therefore only
quote briefly. in this connection the following
from Justice Story: sit is casas onaissus; the
constitution does not state who shall count the
. vote And Chancellor Kent, in his Comment
aries, says: .tThe constitution does not ex-
pressly declare by whom the votes are to be
counted and the result declared. La the case
of questionable votes and closely contested
election this power may be all important, and,
presume, in the absence of all legislative pro-
visions on the subjecs, that the President of the
Senate counts the votes and determines the re-
suit, and that the two houses are present only
as spectators, to witness the fairness and &C
curacy Of the transaction and to act only if no
choice be made by the electors. -
There was in February, 1863. warm
discussion as to whether the vote of
/ Georgia should be counted for Sey~
mour. The point at issue is thus stated
by Mr. Coifax: e@nE15e1e
In 1865 the Twenty second joint rule was
adopted by both branches of Congress, just
before the counting of the electoral vote which
reelected President Lincoln. 1t resolved, in
brief, that disputed electoral votes should not
be counted, Except by the concurrent vote of