The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1890-01-23

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I TITJ:Tz7T : : T7T s77l7I7 n IT.TT.s T-----1S
bly,. yThe- President Of the Senate callet
for order and Judge 0key, johnson
addressed tho court. II n 4,
&GIf any," he said, chad come to heal
q pyrotechnic display 5or AMI eloquent
speech, they would ] boz diaap I,
He came In the confident belief that the
cause he represented was q Just one,
He recited the history OF tho election,
saying that on the face oi these returns
picked up from all over the State Il
appeared that GoG was elected bys1l0
u plurality.s d u rs .sS ! Y sI,ls sl7.
StlAt this point Delegate Peck, Of Mich.
olas,' INTERRUPTED 10 ask that Judge John.
son stand further back, where he might
be heard. lIe therefore took his place
atthe Clerks desk. iati islft
roRTY.slx TO PoRrY.FlyE. 81
Resuming, hesaid that these nominees
were well known distinguished men.
When the returns came here under seal
and,were delivered to the Speaker under
the constitution and laws, TIN ques.
ton 4 aroset whether lit 4 was I in, h the
power OF the Speaker to do aught
but open the returns and , declare
what appeared on the face OF these re-.
turns Judge Flemingh given notice
OF contest, which WIS filed In Joint SEES.
sion: You remember what occurred,
and the comments In the State papers
with regard to what was done. Forty.
five members wanted the result declared; /;
forty.six declined to do 1t. From that
day TO this II has been spread broadcast
that these f0rty!six men, backed by their
party, were trying to steal the Governor.
ship lof West Virginia He Swas sorry
that anybody could be so blinded by par.
tisan Zeal as not to admit III others as
much honestyias, he claimed Tor himself,
These iorty.six men who refused to de.
clare the result were right and the forty,
five were wrong. 81 n { IsS5 5If5ii
~ neyen had any doubt on the sub.
ject. II had been on this floor, having
sworn with uplifted hand to obey the
Constitution, 1Fwould have voted pre-.
Cisely as tue i4G voted. In the scheme
Of our Constitution it neverfwas contem.
plated that the Chief Executive should
ever take his seat upon doubtful title
and then be ousted from that position.
ALLEGED lNrALLlBlLlrYo OF COURT OF LAST
ssii'2s7-.. n RESORT. 4 &,
0ut Constitution Is clear that before
the Governor is seated it shall be shown
clearly who is elected. q! This is he.view
that ONE Of the Judges Of Tie Supreme
Court took. - sy = ;i55 S,
Judge johnson read at length from
Judge Snyder's opinion in the case of
Gof vs.. Wilson, in which the action OF
the JOINT, assembly Us declared to z be
neither Unreasonable nor unjust. Z This
was said not to be law. II time shall
ever come. when the adjudications of
the court OF last resort shall be treated
as OF no effect, then is the sheet anchor
Of our liberties gone. ! believe in the
infallibility OF the court OF last resort as
the Catholic believes in the infallibility
Of the Pope. 33;ii8eiii + Il III {
gThen who shall say it Us an outrage
that Gov. Wilson has been kept in his
position for ten months and that Col
was not seated as Governor in March
last. Away with the charge lin the mi.
nority report that it is your duty to seat
Golf during the trial OF this contest.
5fSenator Maxwell-The report doesn't
Say that, Mr.. Johnson s5 e e + :; i =
Judge Johnson.I may have been in
error as to the language Of the report,
but that isitsSpufport:S Great slressfis
laid on the fact that the returns on their
face show GoH was elected { Governor.
We cannot accept the doctrine that
under any circumstances the face Of the
returns mus be accepted.
1B$s NATIONAL ELrcrioN loF 1876.
ssInls7G it.was Gclaimed by the Demo-
cratic party that on the face Of the re-
turns Tilden was elected President, and
under the Constitution it was claimed
by many Democrats he ought to be seat-
ed!t " hatiwas done RI The Republicans
said no. Tile great Republican party
demanded to go behind the returns and
the people, and Allen G. Thurman con-
sented on tho ground that it was ncces-
sary to save the country. In this case
this course was necessary. This august
tribunal is here to say who was elected
Governor on November Q, 1883.
For the peace and safety OF the State it
matters not which one is elected. !: For
the; sake Of the purity Of ballot il, mat
ters everything. People talk about the
cost OF the contest. Why, for n fprinci-,
pile you would put your hands in the
Treasury to take out the last dollar.
You would put bards on the, State for a
principle . n .i.;5 8 y rs:
b This Legislature could not be expected
to look into all this evidence, aud so
committee is provided for to whom all
papers in the contestshall be given, and
by'whomT all evidence Shall ybe heard.
About 10, 900 manuscript pages of ,testi-
mony were taken, seven largo octave
volumes Of 4, 900 pages each:3 The com.
lnittee could not have acted in less time
and are entitled ! to the thanks Of the
people. rs ~ q:
As JUDGE JOHNSON SEES IT. 4 i5s
Now, there is a majority report; and a
minority report. This is the first con-
test for Governor that eyershas come to
o. trial. This might be decided not to
come to trial. The legal difficulty at
the threshold is, what weight ought to
be given 10 the report Of that committee?
The majority say Fleming plurality is
2S7 votes. s The minority SAY Golf was
elected by 40 votes. When a majority
Of acourta when it decides, is a quorum,
that decision standsas law. This. report
may be llikenedSto the report OF aeon.
missioner! Of Chancery. General Golf
smiling very much ).zss5 q I'll si4S
9 Ut: would be aimpossible, said Judge
johnson, for the chancellor to wade
through Iall that! & e ii II
!lHers comes the commissioner, who at
his leisure ,wades through them. % Ex.
ceptions to the commissioners report
must bel made specific and will mot be'
sustained unless theireport is plainly
erroneous. The majority is the report
Of the committee ;ithe minority may be
regarded as the exceptions. You must
decide whether, these exceptions are
we'll taken, 1 and Notwithstanding all
their labor stheySwerei wrong and Golf
has majority. y
si COULDN'T HAVE READ MANY RRFoRTs. VI
Z Tn,paa 1nhpoo tl,or t1ol- IN thn nm.