The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1896-05-14
AN ELECTION BY HOUSE.

The threat of Tillman to set up free.
silver candidate for the Presidency, with
the hope of preventing any candidate
from receiving a majority Of the electo.
raj votes and imposing the duty OF
choosing the President upon the House
of representatives, may not be carried
out, but there is a possibility that there
may be q triangular fight for the great
office. If there should be such a diver.
sion of electoral votes from the Repub-
lican and Democratic parties as to throw
the election in the House, the present
House, it would become an interesting
question whether the Republicans could
carry enough states to elect their candi-
dates. The process of electing Presi-
dent by the House would be a novelty
to this generation.
The Constitution provides if no person
have a majority Of the electoral vote,
then from the persons having the high
est numbers of electoral votes of those
voted for as President, the House shall
choose, Immediately, by ballot, the
President. The vote is taken by States,
"the representation from each State
having one vote. A quorum for this
purpose consists of member or men,
bers from two.thirds of the States, and
a majority of all the States shall be nee
essary to choice"
The Washington correspondent of the
New York Evening Post, discussing the
probability Of a successful combination
of Southern and Western silver States in
the interest of free silver candidate
for President, says that the Republicans
have majorities in twenty.eight State
delegations in the House. OF these del
egations he thinks nineteen can be de.
pended upon to support their party
ticket. hey are: Connecticut, Delaware,
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Massa-
chusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,
New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Yer
mont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Four new States, not including Mary
land, which is equally divided between
the two parties, would be needed to give
the Republicans a majority, and the
Posts correspondent thinks these four
could be selected beyond doubt from
among the States of Kansas, Nebraska
Oregon and the Dakotas.
The Presidential election was thrown
into the House seventy years ago in
1925, when the second Adams was elected
over Jackson and Crawford. At the
popular election there were four Presi.
dental candidates in the field-Jackson,
Adams, Crawford and Clay. Jackson
was found to be in the lead in the Elec.
toral College, but he fell short of ma
jority. Clay received the smallest vote,
and his name was, therefore, dropped
from the list when the election went to
the House. Jackson's strength in the
Electoral College was not reflected in the
vote he received in the House of Repre-
In the Electoral College the
vote stood: Jackson, 80; Adams, 81;
Crawford, Al; Clay, 81. In the House
Adams received the vote of thirteen
States, Jackson seven and Crawford
four, the Clay influence going to Adams
The uncertainties of politics were strongly
Illustrated on this occasion, inasmuch as
t was fully expected that Jackson, who
lad a popular vote of about l54, 900, |
against 100000 for Adams, would be
elected. A commentator on this strug-
;le says; "The bitterness of this election
lid not cease when a choice had been
and the Annals of Congress
how that the desirability of making