The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1895-07-13
0LNEY's OPPORTUNITY.
aso Chance Tor til. Presidency In Case
the Election ls Thrown Into the

the Election Is Thrown into the
House.
Washington. July "a good deal oil
speculation is now being INDUCED in a:
20 the possible results of a failure OF
the people to elect q president in the
seems to have stumbled upon the fact
shat such az incident might land Mr..
Olney, the present secretary of state
n the presidential chair. Some havt
reached the conclusion hat 1t nigh,
make Mr.. Stevenson, the present vice
president, the next president. merely
through the failure of the house t.
elect, in case no candidate received 6
vote of the majority OF the states, II
the presidential election is thrown into
that body. But, of course. that is out
If the question, for, while the consti.
tt<tion does say that in ease of the fail
ure of the house to elect, then the vice
president shall act as president this
language. it is claimed, refers to the
vice president, who is to be elected by
the senate, while the houseis struggling
with the election Of u president.
But suppose the senate is unable tc
elect a vice president? To be sure, the
constitution provides that the senat
shall select only two names, those
having the highest number of electora
votes, and shall vote for them for tho
presidency, But it says that "a mi,
jority of the whole number of votes
in the senate shall be necessary to q
choice. The senate will by February OF
1897 have ninety MEMBERS. as Utah viii
doubtless have become a state and have
q senatorial representation before that
date. II This happens, it would require
lofty-slx votes for II person before
he could become vice president through
the action of the senate AS the re-
publ1canS Will have, at the most, as IL
is now figured, no more than forty-tive
and the democrats no more than forty
at the most. it is not impossible that the
4th of March, 1897. might be reached
without the selection of a president by
the house, or a vice president by the
senate, in case the election of those
officers Is thrown into those bodies by
a failure to elect through the usua
machinery of the electoral college.
What then? OF course Presiden,
CleNeland's term as president and Vice
President S~tevenson's term as vice
president would expire March 4. The
constitution makes no further provision
evidently assuming that the senate
with but two candidates before it
would elect one as vice president. But
If the view that the majority of the
whole membership is necessary to
choice is a correct one, it is quite posi-,
Bile that it might not so elect. How.
| ever thn 1aI rnuun2 nv thn LNrrf,.
ninth congress-, providing for a sue,
cessor to the presidency in case of the
death or inability of the president
seems to provide a way out of the alb
solute chaos which this condition
would bring.
1t is generally held thai a cabine'
officers term does not end with tn,
term of the man who appointed hin
any more than does that of a postmas
ter or collector of customs. So, in sucf
a case, the cabinet officers would still
be such, in the eyes of the law, even
after the expiration of President Cleve
lands term. The presidential success
sion law of the Forty-ninth congress
provides that in case of death or ina
bility or removal of the president ant
vice president, the secretary of stat
shall act as president until a succeSso
be provided, and shall within twent.
days call a special session of congress
presumably to provide for a specia
election. In case the office of secretar,
of state becomes vacant, then tn
same duty devolves on the secretary O
the treasury, and so on down the lin
of the cabinet officers. So there is jus
a possibility that in case of a failur
to elect a president by the usual pro
cess M the division of the house an,
senate into three sections, Secretar
Olney might become president, or, i
his absence, Secretary Carlisle. or, /
his absence, Secretary Lamont. VIII
would be next in the order of presiden
tial succession.