The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-01-08

! said:
The various acls upon the subject
submit the decision of the right or aliens
to admission as citizens to courts OF re-
cord. They are to receive testimony, TO
compare it with the law, and TO Judge
2 upon both law and fact. This judgment
lis entered on record as the Judgment OF
itbe court. 1t seems 10 US, if 1t be IN legal
form, to close all inquiry, and, like every
: other judgment, to be complete evidence
of its own validity.
In Campbell rs. Gordon, 6 Oranch,
I176, the Supreme Court ofihe United
States held:
Il is true that this requisite [good moral
Ichsracterl to his admission is not stated
lin the certificate, but it is the opinion OF
tnis court that the court of Suffolk must
have been satisfied as to the character Of
the applicant, or otherwise q certificate
J that the oatn prescribed By law had been
taken would not have been granted. The
oath, when taken, confers upon him the
rights of citizen, and amounts to a judg-
ment of the court of his admission 10
those rights. 1t is, therefore, the unani-
nous opinion Of the court that William
Ourrie was duly naturalized.
II, now, it we're competent for the
House itself, in a contested case, to
reverse or vaoate this Judgment and
to declare that am an unnaturalized
foreigner, it would not be competent
for the Governor and Secretary, act
ing as oanVassers, to do this. The
notion that any Jurisdiction to reverse
or Yacate that judgment for mistake
or fraud, or on any other grounds, is
vested is the canvassing officers in
this case, is too preposterous to admit
of any comment from me. But in
the case OF Baskin Us. Cannon, in the
44th Congress. this precise objection
to my eligibility was urged before the
COMMITTEE of elections of the House,
aud was overruled by the unanimous
vote OF the committee, on the ground
that the judgment Of the First District
Court OF Utah on this point was con-
elusive, and retained my seat in
the House.
Not only is there no legal ground
for question OF my eligibility by the
territorial canvsssers, or even by the
House OF Representatives itself, based
on the ground OF alienage, but though
such ineligibility could be q lawful
ground OF action by the committee or
the House, it would not, IS Mr..
Campbell supposes. be aggravated by
polygamy, If that could also be added
as factor in the adjudication. For,
in the case OF Maxwell IS. Cannon,
in the Forty-third Congress, Smiths
Digest, 1SS, 1t WAS unanimously held
by the committee, with the concur
currence of the House, that the only
qualifications or disqualifications OF
delegates were those prescribed by
the Constitution for representatives,
and that polygsmy was not disquali
ficstion for seat in the House OF
Representatives of the United States.
B Mr.. CampbelPs 9th proposition
Is, that NV alleged want of citizenship
renders me ineligible to the office of
delegate in Congress. concede, for
the sake of the argument, that an
unnaturalizea foreigner ought to be
ineligible to the Office of delegate
from Utah. just as he is ineligible to
the Office OF representative in Con-
gress. l make this concession, not
because am certain tba. the propo.
sition is founded in the Constitution
or in the law, but because it seems to
me to be founded in common sense.
The Constitution provides neither for
the qualifications of the Office of dele
gate in Congress nor for the Office it.
self, The law accords to every terri.
tory the right to send q delegate 20
the House of Representatives of the
United States. REV. State, sec.
1862 1t prescribes the qualification
OF citizenship for the delegates from
Washington, Idaho and Montana,
Rev. Stats, sec. 1906, but for the
delegates from no other territory.
Whether. in the face of the constitu-
tional provisions that 'the House
ahall be composed of members chosen
every second year by the people of
the several states )" Tart. z. sec. 81
that each House shall be the Judge
OF the election, returns, and quallfi-
catIoIa OF its members;,, tart. z, sec,
81 ant that leach House may deter
mine the rules of its procedure"
Tart z, sec 5, the law creating the |
office oil delegate would or would not |
have any validity as against a rule of |
the House excluding from the floor
all territorial delegates, or any other
persons not constitutional members
or Officers OF the House, I admit, for
the purposes OF this argument, that
so long as delegates shall be received
IN conformity with the provisions of
the statute, it will be within the
over OF the House, and also its duty.
practically to recognize and enforce
this qualification of citizenship,
whether prescribed by law or not.
But 1t is an insult to the Governor
and Secretary 20 suggest that they
are capable OF such an unwarrsnt-
able invasion OF the jurisdiction of the
courts and of the House Ut Represent
atIves as to attempt 10 incorporate as
an element into their canvass in this
case decision adverse to my eligi-
olllty, based on q reversal or vacation
d. the Judgment by which was nat.
1rslizsd.
o, Z. The next two propositions of I
Mr. Campbell may be conveniently {
considered together. He asserts that !
oy reason OF my alleged ineliQibility l
ali the 1858 votes cast foT me at the t
ate election are void and are to be q
excluded from the canvass, and that, b
's consequence, the certificate of P
election Is to be given to him, and t.
lot to me. 1 will cite, without di.- Q
usslon, the authorities by which the
octrine involved in these PROPOSE il
ions has been repudiated as often az Il
has appeared in the Senate or in b
he House. p
The case of Smith vs. Brown, 2 a
Isrt.. 395, is the leading case in the tt
louise of Representatives. 1t wac re- Ia
orted from the committee on else Vi
ons by the chairman, Mr.. Dawes. Il
n the 18th OF January, 1868. His b.
xhaustive discussion on the subject Vi
ppesrs on pages 402-405 of the b'
seond volume OF Bsrslett's Contested OF
lection Cases. De refers to the case VI
Ramsey rS Smith, Clark & Hall. W
3, argued by Mr. Madison in the to
louise at the first session of the First sc
ongress, and to the cases of Albert a
iilatin 10 the Senate in 1898, Philip ne
srton Key in the House 10 1907, IN
Ihn Bailey in the House in 1924, tel
1mes Shields in the Senate in 1S49. frs
nj Inhva Vat,,,r, =. / 1 q