Telegram-herald., 1891-05-18
MINERS NONS1ROSITY
The Partisan and Narrow Elec-
toral Bill Exposed.
CONTRARY IOIHg US. CONSTITUTION
IL Assumes TO Delegated Power and
Therefore Caasos be Made 70 stand
the Test of Judicial serutiny-
strong Argumsnt-


forth quite an amount of criticism, and
in view If the radical and anomalous
character of such legislation il is likely
To provoke farther criticism. II Is to
be hoped that if such legislation finds
Its place upon our statute books, the
courts will be invoked to review the
the same. In order TO properly con-
sider this question. the exact language
of the federal constitution conferring
the power upon the several states 10 ap-
point presidential electors should be
carefully noted. Art. ?, Sec. =, of the
constitution provides as follows: Each
state shall appoint in such manner as
the Legislature may direct, number Of
electors equal 10 the whole number of
Senators and Representatives to which
the state may be entitled in the Con-
grese." This language OF the constitu-
tion is plain, explicit and mandatory.
each state shall appoint q
number of electors" there is no choice
in this matter. it is a duty enjoined
upon the state to appoint ali the elect
ors. There is no more firmly estab-
lished judicial principle, founded on
adludicated decisions, and III reason
than where power is conferred upon
body or person. with correspond
ing duty to exercise that power. and no
right OF substitution, or delegation Of
that power is gwen to the body or per-
son, such power must be discharged by
the body or person upon whom 1t IS
conferred. But 1t may be
said that in this instance,
the appointment of electors can be made
III "such manner as the legislature shall
direct" This calls into question the
true Interpretation of these words in
their connection with the other parts of
the section.
Correct Interpretation.
Their true Interpretation is certainly
not to relieve the state of the duty of
appointment of electors. The power of
appointment by the state and its duty
to exercise that power are unmistaka-
BILE, and such power and duty are placed
nowhere else. The state has no volition
in the premises. Its bounden duty is
to exercise this power of appointment.
The constitutional duty OF the legisla-
ture is to provide the manner-that is,
the method of appointment-by the
state. When the legislature has done
this it has discharged Its constitutional
duty. The question Of how the execu-
tive department of the government
should be created agitated the minds of
the trainers of the constitution, and
after = long discussion 1t was decided
that there should be one chief executive
to be called the president of the
United States of America" After this
question was settled. then there was an
equally mooted question how the chief
executive should be appointed. After
general discussion and consideration
the subject it was at first decided that
the president should be elected by Con-
gress, and so the matter stood for some
time until, upon motion of John Rut-
ledge of South Carolina, the whole
question was recolsldered by
Gouverneur Morris of Pennsylvania
persuading the convention to adopt the
electoral system which had been pre-
viously suggested. A careful perusal
of the debates upon this subject in the
convention will convince any person
that II was tho intention of the trainers
OF the Constitution To vest the sole aD-
pointment of Presidential electors III
the several states. as states, and we can
not see but that they succeeded in max
ing their intention plain in the language
used by them.
Hamilton's Opinion.
1t may not be amiss here to quote ex-
tendedly from the thlrty-eighth num-
Der of the "Federalist," supposed 10
have been written by Alexander Ham,
ilton, member of the convention. and
one who had keen appreciation of the
purposes, objects ana powers OF the
proposed constitution, In speaking of
the sources of the powers of the gov
ernment, he said: .sThe next relation is
to the sources from which the ordinary
powers of the government are to be dc
rived. The House of Representatives
will derive its powers from tho people
of America; and the people will be rep
resented IN the same proportion and on
the same principle, as they are in the
Legislature of particular state. So
far the government is rational, not
federal. The Senate, on the other
hand, will derive its powers from the
states, rs political and co-eoual soci-
cites, and these will he Represented on
the same principle of equality in the
Senate; as they now are IN the existing
Congress. 80 far the government is
federal, not national. The executive
power will be derived from a COM
pound source. The immediate election
of the President is TO be made
by the states in their political
characters. The eventual
election, again. is to be made by that
branch of the legislature which consists