The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1882-04-12


incorporate the cherished idea first
promulgated by the Great Common
er, Andrew Johnson, that the Pres,
ident and Vice President should be
elected by the popular vote of the
people? tits a change that is daily
becoming more and more cOnvinc-
ingly essential to the republican vO
ter a number ofouraDlest statesmen
have devoIed much of their time to
the productions of essays and the
preparation of measures intended TO
simplify the election of Presidents
and Vice Presidents of the United
States but all of them have Crap
| pied with the subject as if it was so
abstruse that only some complicated
machinery could reduce it to practi-
cal and just results. This has been
the common error of all our states
men who have attempted TO provide
against the defeat of the popular
will i'm the choice of a President,
either by the Legitimate use or by
the perversion of the Electoral Col
lege system. The boidest and bal
dest fraud used the Electoral College
to. defeat 4 popular majority OF over
i . ......t -. =. = Z, ,,,sIIs,,. - 1919 opl
that has taught all parties the SUI
premc necessity of providing some
method of choosing Presidents that
will make elections certainly and
honestly elect.
The Electoral College system is
cumbrous machine that is liable to
defeat the expression of the people
even with honest direction, and
opens the way for the successful
employment of chicanery or fraud.
The Jefferson contest of 1901,
and the Jackson-Adams- Crawford
contest of 1926 and the Tilden-
Hayes contest of 1877 all stand as
fingcr-bOards To admonish the
American people OF the absolute
failure of the Electoral College sys-
tenn and the possibility ofperverting
il to the meanest aims of mean am
bition. II is not pretended that any |
of the purposes which were intend |
ed by the fathers of the Republic |
in creating the Electoral College,
have been fulfilled. Instead of Pres
idential Electors exercising a sound |
and-patriotic discretion in the choice
Ofa President and Vice President,
our Presidential Electors are the
mere puppets of party, and it would
now cost any one his life if he were
TO exercise his own discretion, how
ever just and patriotic, and thereby
elect n President against the wishes
of his party. The Electoral College
system ~, therefore, useless and
dangerous circumlocution, and it is
the duty of the best craftsmanship
of all parties TO unite for its over
throw.
There is a simple and just method
by which the people could elect
Presidents without more than a
1.-THE Of the dcbauchery and demon
alization which are now common in
such contests, and that is for the
people of the whole Union 10 vote
directly for President and Vice
with iudicious safeguards
for the determination of the legal
vote of each State, and declare the
men elected who receive the largest
number of votes. There is no rea-
ION why government Of the peO-
pie, by the people and for the peO-
Die" should have cumbrouS electoral
that can accomplish moth
ng beyond the possibility Of defeat
ng the popular choice and there
an be no reason, outside OF the ex-
,loded dogma of States Rights, 10
orbid direct vote for Ca highest
,ffices or the commission of those
Who receive the largest popular sup
,ort from the people Of the entire
Iation. Such a system of electing
and Vice Presidents
rould end the corruption and de-
which run riot in Ohio,
indiana and other pivotal States in
contests, and i. would
lake Democratic vote in Vermont
r Republican vote in Mississippi
; important rs any vote in any v
Their State. The very best system t
{ electing Presidents is the simplest, a
nd the simplest system is u direct !,
ote for the candidates and the
ighest popular vote TO elect This I
the doctrine taught by Andrew c
OhnsOn. O
80 Profit. $1,000. n
aTo sum it up, six long years of u