The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1880-08-02
Last Nights Dispatches.
THAT LETTER
The one Which General W. s.. Hancock
Wrote 10 General W. r. Sherman
About the Electoral Mudd1e.

The one Which General W. s. Hancoc
Wrote 10 General W. K. Sherman
About the Electoral Mudd1e.
NEW York, July 3l.-This letter we
written in reply to two letters on the stir
alton received from Gen. Sherman:
CARoNDoLET PosToFFICE. st. Loui
Mo-. Dec. %, l876:-My Dear Genera
Your favor of the 4th inst. reached me i
New York on the 5th. the day before
left for the West. intended to reply t
| it before leaving, bat the cares incident {
departure interfered. Then again, sine
my arrival here / have been so occupie
by personal affairs of a business natur
that | have deferred writing from day I
day until this morning and now [ find my
self in debt to you another letter, in &C
knowledgement of your favor of the 18th
received few days since. [ have conclu
| ded to leave here on the 29th. (to-morroy
afternoon $50 that may be 10 New Yorl
on the 3lst inst. Il has been cold an,
dreary since my arrival here. / hav
worked like a Turk U presume tina
means hard work. in the country in max
ing fences. cutting down trees, repairing
buildings, etc, etc.. and am at least abb,
to say that st. Louis is the coolest place il
any that have encountered 10 the Tenn
perate Zone. have known St. Louis II
December to have genial weather through.
out the month. This December has beer
frigid and the river has been more solid
than l have ever known it,
When l heard tbs rumor that | was
ordered to the Pacific coast [ thought
it probably true, considering the past
discussion on that subject. The posi-
bilities seemed to point that way. Had
it been true should of course have pre-
scented no complaint nor made resistance
of any kind, would have gone quickly.
if not prepared to go promptly. / certain.
ly would have been relieved from the
responsibilities and anxietics concerning
presidential matters which, may fall to
those near the throne or in authority.
within the next four months as we'll as
from other incidents or matters which
could not control, an action concerning
which might not approve. I was not
exactly prepared to 60 to the Pacific, how
ever, and | therefore felt relieved when
[ received your note informing me that
there was no truth 10 the rumors. Then
l did not wish to appear to be escaping
from responsibilities and possible dangers
which may cluster around the military
commands in the East, especially in the
critical period fast approaching, Ais
we'll that ends we'll. The whole matter of
the presidency seems to be simple and to
admit of peaceful solution. The machine
cry for such a contingency as threatens to
present itself has been all carefully pre-
pared. 1t only requires fabrication, owing
to disuse, The army should have nothing
to do with the election or Inauguration of
presidents. The people elect presidents.
and congress declares IN joint session
who be is, We of the army have only to
obey bis mandates and are protected in so
doing only SO far as they may be lawful.
Our commissions express that.
like Jefferson's way of Inauguration
1t suits our, system. He rode alone
fear 1t was tho old capitoD tied
was duly sworn. He then rode to tho
executive mansion He inaueurated him
self simply by taking the oath of Office.
There is no other legal Inauguration in the
system. The people or politicians may
institute parsdes in honor of the event.
and public officials may add to the pageant
by assembling troops and banners, but all
that comes properly after the inauguration.
not before. and it is not part OF it. Our
system does not provide that one President
should inaugurate another. There might
be danger in that. 1t was studiously left
out of the charter. But you are placed in
an exceptionally Important position 10 con-
nection with coming events. The capitol
is 10 my jurisdiction also, but am q sub
ordinate and not on the spot, and if
we're, SO also would be my superiors in
authority, for there then is the station of
the General in chief. On the principal
that the regularly elected Presidents term
OF office expires with the Sd Of March, and
of which [ have not the slightest doubt,
and which the laws bearing on the subject
uniformly recognize and in consideration
of the possibility that the lawfully elected
President does not appear until the 5th of
March, a great deal of responsibility may
necessarily fall upon you. You hold over
and will have the power and prestige to
support you. The Secretary of War, too.
publicly holds over. but if no President
appears be may not be able to exercise
the functions in the name of Presi-
dent. You act on your own RESPONSE
biiity and by virtue of a commission
only restricted by the laws. The Secre-
tsry of War is the mouth-piece of the
President. You are not. If neither can
didate has constitutional majority of the
Electoral College. or the Senate and House
on the occasion Of the count do not unite
10 declaring some person legally elected by
the people, there is lawful machinery
already provided to meet that contingency
and decide the question peacefully. Ii
has not been recently used no occasion pre-
sentiug itself, but our forefathers provided
it. 1t has been exercised and submitted
10 Gs lawful on every hand. That
machinery would probably elect Mr. Til
den President and Mr.. Wheeler Vice Pre-
,ident. That would be right enough tor
the law provides that in a failure to elect
duy by the people the House shall in-
mediately elect the President and the
Senate the Vice President. Some tribuu
oil must decide whether the people have
duly elected the President. ! presume,
of course, that it is 10 the joint affirmative
action of the Senate aud House, or why
are they present to witness the count if
not to see that is fair and Just. Ii fail.
ure to agree arises between The two bodies
there can be DO lawful affirm alive decision
that the people have elected Prcsi lent
and the House must then proceed 10 act,
not the Senate. The Senate elects the
Vice Presidents. not Presidents. Doubt
less 10 case of failure by the House to
elect President By the 4th of March the
President of the Senate, ii there
be one, would be the legitimate
person to exercise the Presidential
authority for the time being or until the
appearances of the Lawful. President or for
the time lsip down By the constitution.