The Portland daily press., 1880-01-17
THE SUPREME COURT GIVES
THE CONSPIRACY ITS
DEATH BLOW.
Both the Fusion Senate and
House Declared Illegal.
THE CORRECTNESS OF THE
REPUBLICAN POSITIONS
ASSERTED.
Law and Order is Destined to
Prevail.
CORPORAL DAVIS TO BE OUR
NEXT GOVERNOR.
CORPORAL DAVIS TO BE OUR
NEXT GOVERNOR.

BANGOR, Jan. 16.--The following document
| will be forwarded by special messenger Of the
| Supreme Judicial Court tomorrow morning,
addressed to Hon. Joseph A. Locke, President
of the Senate, and Hon. Geo. E. Weeks,
| Speaker of the House OF Representative
Augusta, Me-:
| BANGOR. Me-, Jan. 16, 1880.
| The undersigned, Justices of the Supreme
| judicial Court, have the honor to submit
| the following answers to the interrogatories
| proposed and based upon the accompanying
| statement of facts:
Question:.
/. Have the Governor and Council right
under the constitution to summon a person to
| attend and take seat in the Senate or House
| of Representatives who by the official returns
| under the decision of the court does not appear
to be elected, but defeated, or not voted for; or
would such summons be merely void as exceed
ing the powers of the Governor and Council
under the constitution?
Ans-An election has been had by the cleo
tors of this State The rights of the several
persons voted for depend upon the votes cast.
| The result should be truly determined in accord
ance with the constitution and laws of the State.
1t was the duty of the Governor and Council
thus to declare it. Any declaration of the
vote not thus ascertained and declared is I'M
authorized and void. The Governor and Coun-
| Gil examined the returns and undertook to de-
| clare the result as appeared by the returns.
Various questions involving the true construc-
ton of the Constitution, and statutes relating
thereto, arose, and the Governor, by virtue of
his constitutional prerogative, called upon this
| court for its opinion upon the questions pro-
| pounded. By the provisions of the Constitu-
| ton the court was required to eXpound and
construe the provisions of the Constitution and
statutes involved; it gave full answers to those
| questions. The opinion of this court was
thus obtained in one of the modes provided in
| the Constitution for an authoritative determin-
alton of important questions of law" The
law thus determined is the conclusive guide of
the Governor and Council in the performance
of their ministerial duties Any action on
| their part in determining the vote as it ap
pears by the returns in violation of the pro-
| visions of the constitution and law thus de-
clared is usurpation of authority and must
| be held void. 1t only remains to apply those
| principles to the subjects embraced in the
| questions propounded.
The Governor and Council have no right to
| summon person to attend and take his seat
| in the Senate or House of Representatives
| who by the returns before them was not voted
for, or being voted for was defeated To sum-
mon one for whom no votes had been cast
would be q deliberate violation of official duty.
| To summon those whom the returns show
were not elected would be equally such viola
ton. Either would be intruders without right
into legislative body. The summons thus
| given would be void as in excess OF any pow
| ers conferred by the Constitution. Grant this
power and the rights of the people to elect
their officers is at an end.
Questions 2, and 4.
9. Has the holder of any such summons
! right to take a part in the organization or sub
| seouent proceedings of either House, to the ex-
clusion of the members rightfull elected as
| shown by said returns under the decision of
| the court or does such right rest in said last
| named member, to the exclusion of the men,
| Der summoned from the same district?
3. If summons were issued under the facts
! recited in the statement herewith submitted
| to Lewis Voter of the Pennington district
| Daniel Snow of Skowhegan Alfred Cushman
| of Ashland, James o White of Jay, Leonard
| HI. Beals of Lisbon, Osgood n Bradbury of
| Sloneham, George W. johnson of New Shar-
on, Lincoln Fl. Leighton Of Cherryfeld,
| Allen of Fairfield, Joshua e. Jordan of Sears
| port would such summons give either of the
| above named persons right to take part in the
| organization or subsequent proceedings OF the
| House, or would such right rest in Cyrus III.
| Thomas of the Pennington district, Hiram S.
| Steward of the Skowhegan district, John
| Burnham of the Ashland district John r.
| Eaton of the Jay district, William FL. Thomas
of the Lisbon district, A. F. Andrews of the
| Stoneham district, David n. Norton of the
New Sharon district, Henry G. Baker of the
| Cherryfield district, Charles A. Role of the
Vanceboro district, A. B. Cole of the Fairfield
| district, and Robert French of the Searsport
| district, to the exclusion of the persons sum-
| moned from the same districts?
4. If summons were issued under the facts
recited in the statement herewith submitted, to
Daniel W. True of Cumberland county, Edward
| A. Gibbs of Cumberland county, Rudolphus
| 2. Thompson of Franklin county, James r.
| Talbot of Washington county, John @. Den
| nett Of York county, would such summons
| give either of the above named persons right
| to take part in the organization or subsequent
| proceedings OF the Senate; or would such right
| rest in Andrew Halves of Cumberland county,
! David Duran of Cumberland county, Henry
| c. Brewer of Cumberland county, George ID.
| Fernald of Franklin county, Alden Bradford
of Washington county, George 4. Wakefield
| of York county, and j. w. Dearborn of York
| county, to the exclusion of the persons sum-
| moned from the same districts?
| Ans-The second. third and fourth ques-
tions may be answered together. The answer
| to the first question covers much of the ground
| embraced by these questions Holders OF sum-
4 -monses which are void for the reason that the
| Governor and Council have failed to correctly
| perform the constitutional obligation resting
| upon them, have no right to take part in the
| organization or in any subsequent proceedings
| of the House to which they are wrongfully
| certifcated. They are not in fact members.
But the members rightfully elected as shown
| by the official returns and the opinion OF the
| court upon the propositions heretofore by the
Governor presented to the court are entitled to
|
| Of the houses to which they belong,
| Unless the House and Senate, in Judging of
the election and qualification of members,
| shall determine to the contrary, member
| without summons who appears to claim his
seat is prinad facie entitled to equal considera-
| ton with q member who has a summons. He
| is not to be deprived of the position belonging
| to him on account of the dereliction of those
! whose duty it was to have given him the
| usual summons. The absence of that evidence
l hn cunnlind nv other Cyidanc6 of MEM
bership. The House and Senate have the
| same right TO consider and determine whether
| in the first instance such persons appear to
| havebeen elected land finally whether they were
in fact elected. as they have of any and all the
| persons who appear for the purpose OF COM
| posing their, respective bodies Under the
| facts recited in the statement submitted to us.
| we are of the opinion that Lewis Voter and
associates first named in question three were
not entitled to act, and that Cyrus A. Thomas
| and associates lastly named in the question
| were entitled to act in the House as members,
and that Daniel w. True aid those first named
| in question four were not entitled to act, and
| that Andrew Halves and others with him
| named were entitled to act as members of the
Senate. In neither case did the Senate or
| House itself ctupon the question of their
| membership. Both the Senate and House,
meaning the bodies assembled to be organ
lied as such,' were declared from any action
| thereon by the conduct of the presiding secre-
tary and clerk. The assumption of such Off
GERS that no questions should be entertained
relative to the rights of persons whose names
are not upon the rolls furnished by
the Secretary of State, but who were
claimants of seats, was unwarrantable
The statute Of 1869, embodied in the Revised
Statutes, CHI. 2, sec. %, cannot preclude either
the Senate or House from amending and com
pleting the roll of membership according to
the facts. Each House has the constitutional
right to organize itself. The form received for
aid and convenience in effecting the organiza-
ton does not confer upon temporarily presid-
ing officer such conclusive power. We have
not failed to carefully consider the act OF 1869
C. 67-incorporated into r. s., CHI. 2, sec. 20,
and so far as it declares that "no person shall
be allowed to vote or take part in the organiza-
ton of either branch of the Legislature as
member unless his name appears upon the GER
titled roll of that branch of the Legislature in
which he claims to act, we think it clearly re-
pugnant to the constitution, which declares
that each House shall be the judge OF the cleo
ton and qualification of its own members. 1t
aims to control the action of each within its
constitutional powers until after fuller Or
ganization-with a majority determined and
fixed by the Governor and Council. By their
action in granting certificates to men not ap-
pearing to be elected or refusing to grant GER
tihcates to men clearly elected, they may con-