Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1889-01-04

contest. He further showed that TIE method
of counting tie vote he Ueen changed so
frequently and in some instances exercised
so arbitrarily that the precedents were of no
value and that it must be held as a casus
omissus In the constitution, pointing out
that, in 1877 John Adams, as vice president,
opened the votes which made him president;
that in 1901 jefferson did the Same; in 1891
Vice President Tompkins the sans in 1897
Mr.. Van Buren, the same, and in 1s41 Richard
NJ johnson, as vice president, counted the
votes for his reelection to that office as
against Mr.. Tyler while in 1861 Mr.. Breckin-
ridge counted the votes for himself as O
candidate for the presidency.
Therefore" said Mr. Norton at is clear
that the trainers of the constitution did not
contemplate that the president of the senate
should exercise any discretionary or judicial
powers in determining between the votes of
two sets of electors or upon the validity or
sufficiency of the record of the votes of the
electors in any state; but that he should per-
form the ministerial act Of seeing the two
houses were witnesses and to make a record"
This and similar declarations on that side Of
the house returned to plague the inventors
few years later.
Senator Morton next proposed a radical
reform Preferring that the people should
elect by popular vote but admitting that it
was impracticable, he proposed to come as
near as possible to it by dividing each state
into as many districts as it had electoral
votes, the people choosing they do menu
bers of congress. If there was failure to
choose majority then the senate and house
were to sit in joint convention, each member
having one vote, so that their rumber would
be just equivalent to the number of electors
in the college
EorI1 in 1871 Saro+or Edu,,,,,ls - w.
mont introduced bis much dien,1+od In
which nossed the senate bnt wos not octa1
nnon IN tho bouse Its noin nro,,;s;,,, ,,.ns,
| that the houses sbould sen.,ata and doho+, ~,
any disnutad return hnt the vote Of on,
state sbonld NOT be roioctod rnlass -
houses agreed tharato fins raversin, ioint
rule % Further that II thero yyoro t.,
returns from, ona state onlv thai sho,,ld ~,
counted on which both bouces acraod AZ tbor,
did not aorea neither vote should ha counted
All this has been obviated by the act of 1887
making the state courts the final iudoes
| IN 1874 tbera ,ver, 1874 uncontrolled o,oo+or,,
votos for Son,uel T Tildor Don,oorot 1es
uncontested votes for Rntherford a H.
! Ranub,ican and t,vantv in dis,,,,+a ,,iy ;r,o
eio,ht of Louisiana tbsseven Of south c,rcs
lima the four of Florida and ona of the three
of OREGON And this last furnished tho or,Ir,
CLEAN of comedy that liphtened the Gloom ~
that winter of anxietv and diecnn,an, ~.
Republicans cast an unonastioned ma ior;tr,
of the nonular vote in Oregon hn, os o,o -
their candidates for elector vas q ,,os+r,as,o,.
and therefore inelioihle Goverrar Cro,,or -
that state issped the certifcate to bis nan,o-
cratic opnonent. Mr.. Cronin. The net r,.Sul.
was n national louph n deal of had noo+rv
and many execrable Jokes about "Cronin,s
nosen
In the three southern states in disnuto nv
traordinarv mowers had heon corfarrad ~,
ssreturninr boardsn In canv.ss;ng tbo yoto.
and making the final count tbev wera autbor.
ICED 10 s,throv outn tbe vo.ns ~ INV rro.
cipcts where thera had been fraud or tarro,
ism and this mower thew exercisad 60 lih-
orally as to reverse the result first a,,narent
on the face of the returns
For three months papers and reonle dis
puted the matter.
At first the Renu,l;cons c,oirod tho r;,h4
of the vice nresident 70 decide ho, no., e. ~
disnuted retnrns and tho nar,oo, ~, $3.50. 80
unon the mower of ,ba hou,e 70 raiact ~
vote of n s+ote. hrt hoth cIai,,,S 80 W.
soon seen +, Ina untenahle Az tha twartr.
second Joint ule had n~t hoan -,
adopted by this CONGRESS il was hold
20 he not in force. and TINS there vas M III
binding conorees and nei,her ay no.. 800.
dent 10 At the case A. v,r;orO ti,r,..s d,,r;,,,.
the long and heated debate II was nro,,osa3
that the matter sbopld Inc do, arr,inad h.v Iot
that the nresi6ent of the senate shonld go.
as chief execntive TN n now o,oc.io,, c(,,,J
ha bald +hot ,ha.a sI,o,,lI 10 ,.,s,o.,,;ao
20 Au' .uay snouiu oo eoiip oiii,se,
INC pait 'aAiis 'ne fies,uehey anu Tue o.her
'no ~ Pi1siuenoy anu 'lao 'ne ueciSion
snoIIu 20 seonii'Veu " 'ne supre,he court OF
liz. .ne me. .h ara'eS, bi', az ',ie last inmate
pn .ue wv HOUSES aeieeu upon Tue ceie-
o'n'eu eie' ,, commission.
roi 'ui' oouy 'ue sena.e cnose Messrs' Ed
i' moi tUn anu 'reiinshuysen, hepuo-
m aiiu Messis' oayaro ana thurman
U 'ue nouSe choso .hesSrs rayhe'
1,un.oi anu I1ooo'I, DeliocralS' ana Messrs'
uain eiu a anu mar repuoiicaiiS' n'e OF eacn
party iue supreme court appointed from
us membership AsSoclate justices Cliford,
o,fons' Niiiier anu rieio' TWO OF eacn party,
mno were suPpoSeu 10 acI iinpartiaiiy' All
'uen oePehueu On the niteehth man, the
,heiiioer Vi 'ao supreme court 10 DC CHOSEN by
THESE TOUR lney maze no secret or the faco