The Aberdeen examiner. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1866-current, 1882-11-23
The Second Mississippi District

The Secretary of State, Hon. H. G.
Myers. has awarded the certificate
Of election to Congress for the End
District, to Van H. Manning.
From the returns us received by
him Manning had s 479 votes Chal-
mers S,257; Carter 1873; Howry /,
and the tally sheet for Tate county
showed 1.472 votes cast for j. r.
Chambless. 1t was contended by
Chalmers personally and though
counsel that the Chambless votes be-
lopged to him and should be 80
counted, but the Secretary of State
held that his functions were purely
ministerial, and that he was required
by the letter Of the law "to sum up
the whole number Of votes given for
each candidate, and to ascertain the
person having the greatest number
of votes for each Office, and declare
such person to be duly elected and
that for him enter into the question
of intent when dealing with the re
turns would be to assume judicial
functions, or to usurp authority
delegated by the Constitution of the
United States to the House of Reps
resentatives, which is made the judge
as to the election and qualification
of its members.
Assuming the facts to be as stated,
it is impossible to see how Secretary
Myers could do otherwise than he
has done, and the only affect of Lis
decision is to place Manning in the
attitude of conteslee instead OF con-
testent.
If when the matter comes before
the Committee on Elections OF the
House it shall appear that there was
no such man voted for as u. r.
Chambless,' and that the aforesaid
1,472 votes were cast for J. r. Chal-
1ners, the Democratic Committee and
the Democratic House will give him
the full benefit OF every one of them,
and the contest will proceed upon
other grounds.
A Democratic House of Represen>
tasives has never been known to de-
eide contest otherwise than upon
its cold, judicial merits, and Gen.
Chalmers can rely on being treated
fairly and disinterestedly by the 4Sth
Congress, and even upon scoring the
vote of Curtin of Pennsylvania-who
he voted to unseat in favor of Yocum,
in the 10th Congress-if he succeeds
ID making out far case.
Co. Manning, who has been in Wash
ington for some days, Is reported as
follows by the correspondent Of the
N. o. Times-Democrat:
"Mr. Manning says, if Chalmers con-
tests his seat he shall pursue no course
that will in any way tend to embarrass
his party Mr.. Manning is of the opinion
that the Democrats will not follow the
precedents made by the Republicans i'll
the matter of contests, but will pursue
a just and conservative policy. His view
is that the party cannot afford, If il de-
sired, to antagoniZe public sentiment by
an arbitrary and unfair decision. The
party has now II fair chance of getting
control of the government in 1884, and
this chance, Mr.. Manning thinks, ought
not to- be jeopardtzed by arbitrary eXhl-
billions of power.
Speaking of his canvass, Mr.. Manning
says that ten days before the election
there was hardly Il man in the district
who thought that Chalmers had Il ghost
of n chance of being elected. The Dem
ocratic local leaders were, therefore,
thrown off their guard, and made no
great effort to get out the vote. The truth
of this is shown by the fact that only
about II 900 of the 81 900 votes of the dis
trict we're cast, Ten days before the
election thosands of the negroes said
they would not vote for Chalmers, hun
dreds said they intended to vote for
Manning, aud great many announced
their purpose to woe for Carter. About
this time, however, Chalmers received
large corruption fund from Washington,
which was distributed Il few days before
the election among the local Republican
leaders The negroes were quickly or
ganized and were marshalled at the polls
ON election days in Chalmers interest.
The entire district on election day was
overrm by deputy United States mar
shals, who encouraged the negroes and
intimidated the whites. Mr.. Manning
will remain here attending 10 business
in the Supreme Court, waiting for the