The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-02-03
Es,TA BLIsHED AUGUST "a, 1852

day, and thatiE 1t shall undertake to ex
ercise the power Of prescribing q day Il
shall make the day uniform Throughout
the country. He did not regard this al
mandatory either as to time or place o.
meeting, II for occasions over which hu
man authority could have no Control, such
as q foreign invasion, q breach oil the
peace, or the prevalence Of an epidemic
where the electors OF State were prevent
ed from meeting at the State capitol, thai
ought nevertheless be counted by Con
greas, He thought that in any such case
1t would be proper to make an exception,
and he would hesitate long before dis
iranchising q State under any such cir
cumstanCes,
Mr.. Hill, Of Georgia: l would ask
the Senator this question, admitting that
the constitutional provision is only dlrec'
tory, yet II Congress, in pursuance OF It's
power to fix the day, does tx 1t, is not the
law Of Congress- the supreme law OF the
land2
Mr.. Jones Of Florida: II the constitu.
tionsl provision Is only directory, then
the law that Is made In pursuance Of 1t is
only directory, for the law must partake Of
the nature OF the organic provision,
Mr.. Hill, OF Georgia; Do understand
the Senator TO say that q law, because In
pursuance ofa directory and not Q man.
datory power, is less supreme than would
be law that is in pursuance Of man
datory powerY Is not each law OF Congress
an equally supreme law2
Mr.. Jones replied that the equality Of the
supremacy OF laws did not, in bis opinion,
affect his argument. A law might be su.
preme and yet directory, 1t might be
supreme and yet mandatory.
MIR, Morgan remarked that the pointnow
suggested was pending In the Judiciary
Committee on the resolution recently
adopted directing them to make In.
quiry on the subject, and would proba.
bly, be reported on In day or two. He
hoped the Senate would now come to .
vote,
Mr.. Edmunds said the Senate would
come to q vote directly, and that won!d
be when every Senator had had an oppor.
tunity to say what he wanted to say. He
did not think It necessary for him 10 go
into the question OF the validity OF
Georgia's vote or the plan provided by the
resolution proposed to avoid that issue by
means Of the hypotheCating statement
which would make the vote Of Georgia
manifest, but would not count It. He
suggested the Interpretation Of the
Constitutional provision In the elaborate
argument OF Mr.. Jones, which he said he
thought was one OF great force.
A vote being taken, Mr.. Edmunds'
amendment was rejeCtCd-ayes %, nays
35i a party vote.
Mr., Eaton said he could not support the
resolutions as they left one very important
question In doubt, and that was whether
the President OF the Senate had the right
to count the electoral vote. He had hoped
to have an opportunity TO vote on that
question as i was presented by Mr..
Morgan's resolution now on the table, dc.
claring no such right existed, but this
privilege had been nLdenied here. In order
to bring the question squarely before the
Senate, he moved to amend that part
OF the resolutions requiring the tellers OF
the two houses to make the test OF votes as
they shall be declared by striking there.
from the words las they shall be declared"
and substituting In lieu therefor the
words "as certificates shall be opened by
the President Of the Senate"
Mr.. Eaton said there could be no two
opinions about the words proposed to be
inserted. They were the words OF the
Constitution itself. Under this amend.
ment, when the President Of the Senate
had executed his duty In opening the Ger.
tifCates, the officers appointed for the
purpose would count the votes and then
hand up the tests to the presiding officer,
who would make the declaration OF the
result. He Mr.. Eaton] did not attach to
the amendment any immediate practical
consequences as the election Of Garfield
and Arthur was conceded by everybody,
but he thought the present occasion o tit.
ting one for an expression oi the senti,
ment OF this body on the question.
Mr.. Thurman opposed the amendment
as unnecessary. He said the words, "As
they shall shall be declared" had been In
use for than half o century and had
never been taken by Implication to con.
Vey the idea that the President Of the Sen.
ate had the right 10 count the vote, In the
sense Of deciding for whom the vote was
or was not cast. II he had been the
drawer OF the original resolution In which
these words occurred he would not have
retained them, but In view OF the inter.
probation given them by long usage he did
not regard their retention as afording any
sufficient cause for the apprehension ex.
pressed by his friend Mr.. Ealon1 that
the President OF the Senate would ever
assume TO make the count; he could not
vote for the amendment for another reas.
on, and that was that II omitted TO make
provision for q decision In the disputed
case. Suppose two returns should be re.
ceiyed from a State; 1t had happened be.
fore, and he had heard 1t said that some.
body now held bogus returns from Oregon.
How were the tellers to proceed In such q
raaa?